Universidad Autonoma De Baja California Research Articles

Awareness of Listening Comprehension Importance among Languages Students: A Cross-sectional Study

The process of listening comprehension was neglected for years in the English classroom. It was thought to be a passive skill until some authors highlighted its importance in language acquisition and communication. In order to find out the extent to which students are aware of the importance of listening comprehension to learn English, a descriptive study was conducted. To collect the information, a questionnaire was sent to 166 students of language teaching at the Language Faculty of the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, Mexico, Tijuana. The questionnaire consisted of three parts, the first containing demographic information; the second dealing with the basic principles of listening comprehension; and the third one with information about listening comprehension activities.

A Novel Method to Aproach a Hipoplasic Midface Diagnosis

Class III skeletal malocclusion is one of the less frequent but aesthetically impactful misalignments. It can be caused by maxillary hypoplasia or retrognathia, mandibular hyperplasia, or a combination of both. Its frequency varies between 2-11% of the global population, depending on the ethnic group. Diagnosis and treatment planning traditionally is determined by two-dimensional anteroposterior position using cephalometric analysis on lateral radiographs, with few studies analyzing bone volume rather than position, being of great importance for diagnosis and treatment planning. This study aims to measure maxillary volume and its anteroposterior position using CBCT (Cone Beam Computarized Tomography) in skeletal Class I, II, and III patients, establish the bone volume and determine if there is a correlation between volume, length and anteroposterior position using the Trujillo analysis as a reference. Tomographs of patients from the Orthodontic program of the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California with Class I, II, and III malocclusions were collected. The maxilla was segmented using the DIAGNOCAT software, and teeth removed to measure the volume. The skeletal groups were divided for measurements to determine the patient's sex and search for volume, length and anteroposterior position, using for the last two variables the Trujillo’s analysis to compare them. ”T” students test was used for statistical analysis. There was a statistically significant difference in maxillary length and volume when comparing Class III patients to Class I and Class II, with Class III patients exhibiting lower values. No significant difference was found in the anteroposterior position of the maxilla when comparing the Class III group to the Class II skeletal group.

Methodology of the Fifth Helix Systemic, A Decade of Sectorial Investigations 2010-2020

As a result of a Doctoral Thesis Research in 2010 at the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, Tijuana Campus, Mexico, and within the PhD Global Development Studies -High Level Human Resources Training Program of CONACYT, a methodological proposal called Fifth Helix Systemic (in spanish Quinta Helice Sistemica QHS) was generated, for the aim of the widespred policy analysis and as a methodological instrument, to be a research applicable in different sectors in the State of Baja California community. This documentary article aims to analyze, the productivity and traceability, of the QHS methodology (business, education, government, business chambers and consultants) and its applications identified in the decade 2010 to 2020 at regional, national and international level, through traceability in network platforms of academic and scientific research journals on the Internet.

Índice SPAD, nitratos y rendimiento en sorgo en respuesta al suministro de nitrógeno

Introducción. El nitrógeno (N) es el macronutriente que más afecta el rendimiento de los cultivos; sin embargo, su utilización por los cultivos se asocia a una baja eficiencia de recuperación; por esta razón es necesario analizar su absorción en el tejido vegetal durante el ciclo para obtener el beneficio deseado. Objetivo. Conocer el efecto de la fertilización nitrogenada en el crecimiento, concentración de nitratos en la base del tallo (NBT), índice SPAD (medición de clorofila) y el rendimiento en grano de sorgo (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench). Materiales y métodos. El estudio se realizó en el Instituto de Ciencias Agrícolas de la Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México, durante el verano de 2012 y la primavera de 2013. Se evaluaron dosis crecientes de nitrógeno (N) (0, 64, 128, 192, 256 y 320 kg ha-1), bajo un diseño experimental completamente al azar. En el Experimento 1 (Verano 2012), se evaluaron las seis dosis de N en un suelo bajo labranza de conservación (LC). En el experimento 2 (Primavera 2013), se evaluaron las mismas dosis de N y además se incluyó un tratamiento de 128 kg N ha-1 utilizando sistema de labranza mínima (LM). Resultados. En el Experimento 1, se obtuvo mayor cantidad de peso seco del grano (PSg), planta completa (PSt), índice de cosecha (IC) y rendimiento de grano, que en el Experimento 2. El mayor PSg, PSt, IC, área foliar (AF) y rendimiento de grano se obtuvo con la dosis de 192 kg de N ha-1. El índice SPAD y la concentración de NBT presentaron correlación con el rendimiento. Los valores R2 en el índice SPAD fueron mayores que en NBT. Conclusiones. Los NBT y el índice SPAD resultaron significativamente asociadas al rendimiento. La mejor época de producción del cultivo de sorgo fue en verano con una dosis de192 kg de N ha-1.

Sulodexide in the Treatment of Patients with Early Stages of COVID-19: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Targeting endothelial cells has been suggested for the treatment of patients with COVID-19 and sulodexide has pleiotropic properties within the vascular endothelium that can prove beneficial to the same. We aimed to evaluate the effect of sulodexide when used in the early clinical stages of COVID-19. Methods: We conducted a single-centre, outpatient setting, randomized controlled trial with a parallel-group design in Mexico. Including patients within three days of clinical symptom onset, who were at a high risk of severe clinical progression due to chronic comorbidities. Participants were randomly allocated to receive an oral dose of sulodexide (500 LRU twice a day) or the placebo for 21 days. Primary outcomes were need and length of hospitalisation, need and length of oxygen support and mortality. Results: Between June 5 and August 30, 2020, 243 patients were included in the “per-protocol” analysis. One hundred twenty-four of them received sulodexide, while 119 received placeboes. At 21 days follow-up, 22 of 124 patients required hospitalisation in the sulodexide group compared to 35 of 119 in the placebo group [relative risk (RR), 0·6; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0·37-0·96; p=0·03]. Fewer patients required oxygen support in the sulodexide group [37 of 124 vs. 50 of 119; RR, 0·71; 95% CI, 0·5 to 1; p=0·05], and for fewer days (9±7·2 in the sulodexide group vs. 11·5±9·6 in the placebo group; p=0·02). There was no between-group difference concerning the length of hospital stay or mortality. Interpretation: Early intervention in COVID-19 patients with sulodexide reduced hospital admissions and oxygen support requirements, although with no significant effect on mortality. This has beneficial implications in the patient well-being, making sulodexide a favourable medication until an effective vaccine or an antiviral becomes available. Trial Registration: Listed in the ISRCTN registry under ID ISRCTN59048638.Funding: Researcher independently initiated, partially funded by Alfasigma, Mexico. Declaration of Interests: AGO has received speaker fees, honoraria and travel reimbursement from Alfasigma Mexico for research outside of this submitted study. All other authors declare no competing interests.Ethics Approval Statement: We conducted this trial according to the Declaration of Helsinki and it was board reviewed by the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California Faculty of Medicine Mexicali Ethics and Investigation Committee, being designated with approval number FMM/CEI/0011/2020-2.

Análisis comparativo de competencias emprendedoras entre estudiantes de la UABC

Este estudio descriptivo, no experimental y no paramétrico muestra los resultados obtenidos a partir de un test que mide 14 competencias emprendedoras aplicado a estudiantes de la Escuela de Ciencias de la Ingeniería y Tecnología (Ecitec) de la Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC) durante los ciclos 2017-2 y 2018-1. Dicho test, creado por la Confederación Española de Asociaciones de Jóvenes Empresarios (Ceaje), se aplicó con el objetivo de analizar comparativamente las respuestas de los alumnos de ambos ciclos de las carreras de Bioingeniería, Industrial y Mecatrónica, a partir del supuesto de que no muchos estudiantes de universidades públicas están interesados en llevar a cabo proyectos de emprendimiento (Westhead y Solesvik, 2016). La muestra por conveniencia estuvo compuesta por 106 sujetos de estudio. El análisis y procesamiento estadístico se llevaron a cabo con apoyo del software SPSS 17.0; para el contraste de hipótesis se empleó la prueba de Friedman. Los resultados indican que no hay diferencias significativas en las competencias emprendedoras entre los participantes de ambos ciclos. Como parte de las conclusiones, se evidencia la escasa investigación orientada hacia el papel que juegan las instituciones de educación superior en el fomento y motivación en los estudiantes para emprender ideas de negocio que detonen en nuevas empresas.

Evaluación estandarizada de los aprendizajes en la UABC: innovación desde el análisis psicométrico

The evaluation has had a strong impact on teaching, which is why learning instruments that are valid and reliable are indispensable. The Faculty of Languages of the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California does not implement a technological tool for the development of standardized tests and their psychometric analysis. Therefore, this paper analyze the implementation of standardized tests referred to a criterion, based on the Item Response Theory. The used methodology required the integration of several committees of specialists to produce instruments that guided the construction of the test, such as the curricular relevance index table, the contents justification, etc. The test quality was evaluated using an innovating development that automatically quantified the psychometric criteria of validity and trustworthiness like the difficulty index of the items and the discrimination index. The results allow to observe the quality of the test identifying the yield of each item, as well as the yield and level of knowledge of the participant students sample, which contributes to the realization of more accurate assessments of their academic performance. It is concluded that the instrument showed utility for both formative and summative evaluation.

Memoria histórica de la licenciatura en Ciencias de la Educación impartida en la Facultad de Ciencias Humanas de la Universidad Autónoma de Baja California

La memoria histórica sobre el desarrollo de las instituciones educativas permite la transferencia cultural y la edificación identitaria de los miembros de la comunidad académica, a la vez es un puente que posibilita la continuidad de un proyecto educativo. En este artículo se presenta un análisis histórico sobre la prospectiva y evolución del programa de Licenciado en Ciencias de la Educación impartido por la Facultad de Ciencias Humanas de la Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México. Para reconstruir la memoria histórica del programa educativo se llevó a cabo un análisis documental centrado en la revisión de cuatro ejes temáticos: fundamentos epistemológicos de la profesión, prospectiva del campo profesional, institucionalización de la profesión como campo formativo en las universidades y el entorno socio-histórico del programa educativo. Se concluye que el programa educativo analizado tiene sus bases epistemológicas en el pensamiento científico-educativo promovido en Francia a principios del siglo XX; asimismo, la historia local demuestra la interdisciplinariedad y la flexibilidad curricular como grandes fortalezas del programa educativo.

Learning Styles and Study Habits of New University Students at a Public University in Mexico.

The objective of this research is to identify the learning styles and study habits of new students of the Education, Psychology, Communication, Sociology, and History undergraduate programs of the School of Humanities at the Mexicali Campus of Universidad Autonoma de Baja California (UABC), in Mexico. The method is quantitative, with a sample of 650 students. The inventories used are the survey applied upon admission to the School of Humanities, and adaptations of the Learning Styles and Study Habits Inventories. The questionnaires were answered online by students who were already enrolled in the 2016-2017 school year. A socio-demographic profile of the students was established based on the results: 73 % of enrolled students are female, and only 27 % are male. The majority (70 %) live with their families (father, mother, siblings); 75 % of students do not work; 90 % said they were single and 10 % were married. The predominant learning styles out of the 13 dimensions are the factors associated with effort and frustration tolerance (.99), followed by a single and structured focus of attention (.98) and intrinsic motivation (.94). The primary study habits in the aspect of optimization are reading 32.8 % and motivation to study 28.7 %. Conclusion: Comprehensive profiles that consider the sociodemographic background, learning styles and study habits are essential when dealing with new students.

Development of a Scale to Measure Attitudes Toward Professional Values: An Analysis of Dimensionality Using Rasch Measurement

Abstract The purpose of this study was to create and validate a scale of attitudes towards professional values. It corresponds to the phase of analysis of metric properties in an intentional sample of 1008 bachelor student's equivalent to 30.74% of the population of the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California. The sample of students represents six knowledge areas: Social and Business Sciences, Human and Education Sciences, Natural Sciences, Exact Sciences, Technology and Engineering, and Health Sciences. The scale was pilot tested with a group of 253 students that took the full 50-item scale. Based on the Rasch Methodology, twenty items were deleted from the original scale. From the final scale, the outcomes reported unidimensionality and goodness-of fit indexes assuming the Rating Scale Model (RSM). The results showed values close to 1 on both goodness fit indexes: INFIT MNSQ and OUTFIT MSNQ. Finally, the reliability for the total scale was found to be .85 Cronbach's alpha. The six subscales within the scale (responsibility, honesty, justice, respect, autonomy and professional competence) had moderate levels of internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha ranging .62 to .75). The findings have important implications for the accumulation of evidence of reliability and construct validity of an instrument for college students in the Mexican context.

Developing Emotional Intelligence in At-Risk Youth

The purpose of this study was to create and validate a scale of attitudes towards professional values. It corresponds to the phase of analysis of metric properties in an intentional sample of 1008 bachelor student's equivalent to 30.74% of the population of the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California. The sample of students represents six knowledge areas: Social and Business Sciences, Human and Education Sciences, Natural Sciences, Exact Sciences, Technology and Engineering, and Health Sciences. The scale was pilot tested with a group of 253 students that took the full 50-item scale. Based on the Rasch Methodology, twenty items were deleted from the original scale. From the final scale, the outcomes reported unidimensionality and goodness-of fit indexes assuming the Rating Scale Model (RSM). The results showed values close to 1 on both goodness fit indexes: INFIT MNSQ and OUTFIT MSNQ. Finally, the reliability for the total scale was found to be .85 Cronbach's alpha. The six subscales within the scale (responsibility, honesty, justice, respect, autonomy and professional competence) had moderate levels of internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha ranging .62 to .75). The findings have important implications for the accumulation of evidence of reliability and construct validity of an instrument for college students in the Mexican context.

El currículo de la universidad pública mexicana a 20 años de permanecer en los programas de financiamiento extraordinario

En la década de los noventa, se originan cambios curriculares en las universidades públicas de México promovidos por recursos financieros extraordinarios, tales como el Fondo para la Modernización de la Educación Superior, el Programa Integral de Fortalecimiento Institucional y recientemente el programa de Fortalecimiento de la Calidad en Instituciones Educativas. Este artículo tiene como objeto analizar el currículo desde dos ejes, por un lado los recursos financieros provenientes de estos fondos y el segundo eje lo constituye los resultados de una investigación a estudiantes de la Universidad Autónoma de Baja California en torno a variables sobre los procesos desarrollados en su currículo. Se encontró que subsiste en los programas de financiamiento atención reiterada al cambio curricular. Los estudiantes expresaron ciertos logros en su formación profesional a partir de dichos cambios.

Magnetic Properties of Divalent (Ni,Sn,Zn)- Tetravalent (Ru,Sn) Ionic Mixtures of Substituted Ba Ferrite

Magnetic Properties of Divalent (Ni,Sn,Zn) Tetravalent (Ru,Sn) Ionic Mixtures of Substituted Ba Ferrite J. Slama, A. Gruskova, A. Gonzalez Angeles, M. ’okaa,∗, R. Dosoudil Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, Slovak University of Technology, Ilkovi£ova 3, 812 19 Bratislava, Slovakia Facultad de Ingenieria, Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, C.P. 21900 Mexicali, B.C., Mexico The drop of coercivity, while preserving the saturation magnetic polarisation JS of substituted M-type Ba hexaferrites with composition BaFe12−2x(Me1Me2)xO19, was studied. Divalent Me1 =Ni, Zn, Sn and tetravalent Me2 =Ru, Sn ionic combinations were used in various compounds. Mossbauer spectroscopy was used to reveal sites of replacement of the Fe ions by Ru and Sn. The Ni, Zn and Sn occupation sites were identi ed as well. Strong drop of coercivity di erence ∆Hc(x) near x = 0.1 and slight decrease of ∆Hc(x) close to x = 0.3 was obtained for suitable coupling of Me 1 and Me 4+ 2 ions.

A cross-sectional study of genetic diversity of the envelope glycoprotein of HIV-1 in Baja California, Mexico

BackgroundMexico had 4598 reported cases of AIDS as of December, 2012, and 4% of the patients infected with HIV-1 in Mexico live in Baja California. The aim of this study was to analyse the predominant HIV-1 virus and characterise the extent of viral genetic diversity in populations from Ensenada and Tijuana cities in Baja California, Mexico. MethodsWe collected clinical samples from February, 2012, to April, 2013, in three different public hospitals (one in Ensenada and two in Tijuana). Only patients with HIV-1 infections confirmed by Western blot who were naive to antiretroviral treatment (ART) were included in the study. All patients answered a questionnaire addressing sociodemographic and behavioural issues, gave signed informed consent, and allowed the extraction of 5 mL of whole blood. Findings22 patients infected with HIV-1 were included in the study (mean age 37 years [range 18–50]) and 82% of the patients were men. 54% represented men who self-reported homosexual or bisexual behaviour. The mean plasma viral load was 239 946 HIV-1 RNA copies per mL (range 1950–1 862 087). The predominant route of transmission was sexual in 72% of the patients. Plasma RNA was extracted from whole blood with the High Pure Viral Nucleic Acid kit. The HIV-1 V3–V5 region of the gp120 env gene (HXB2 position 7065–7634) was amplified by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Only five (23%) samples were successfully amplified and sequenced. We obtained a 579 bp sequence showing 116 variable sites. Reference sequences of different subtypes (n=58) were downloaded from the HIV-1 GenBank. Subtyping of the clinical strains was initially inferred with a maximum likelihood phylogenetic tree constructed with the HKY model and 1000 bootstrap datasets with PAUP 4.0Beta. The gene segments were analysed for recombinant screening with RIP3·0. To confirm consistent results, REGA HIV-1 Subtyping Tool (version 2·0) was also used. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that all five samples analysed were HIV-1 subtype B group M, which were distributed in two haplotypes. Hap 1 (n=4) was classified as X4 and Hap 2 (n=1) as R5 virus (which use CCR4 and CCR5 as a co-receptor, respectively). All samples showed the crown of the V3 loop with the aminoacid sequence glycine-proline-glycine-arginine. There was no phylogenetic clustering or differences between the samples according to sex, age, or method of acquisition of HIV infection. InterpretationThe genetic diversity of HIV has important implications for multiple aspects of the pandemic, including diagnostic and laboratory tests, susceptibility to ART, transmission capability, and disease progression. This study contributes to our understanding of the epidemiology of HIV infection in Mexico. We are now analysing more clinical samples collected from the same public hospitals, and the nucleotide sequences have been deposited in GenBank under accession numbers KF356165-67 and KF366441-42. FundingThis research was supported by Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnologia de Mexico (CONACyT) and Universidad Autonoma de Baja California.

Práctica de actividad física, deporte y niveles de sedentarismo en estudiantes universitarios

The objective of this research is to describe the practice of physical and sporting activities and levels of inactivity in mexican university students. The study included 634 university students (178 men, 456 women) between 17 and 47 years (M = 20.25, SD = 3.5) from the Centro de Ciencias de la Salud de la Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, Valle de las Palmas. Data collection was conducted within the classroom and without the presence of a professor.The results indicate that 25.4% of students play sports, while 74.6% report not do any sports. Moreover, 55% of referred students do some form of physical exercise; the other 45% of university does no exercise. The 65.3% of college students are active, meaning that regularly practice a sport or exercise; the 34.7% of the students are sedentary being most of them women, representing the 84.5%.Based on the results we can conclude that the levels of participation in sports in college are significantly lower levels of physical activity. The high percentage of sedentary is still higher in women.

Macroecology of marine mammal species in the Mexican Pacific Ocean: diversity and distribution

The Mexican Pacific Ocean, defined as east of 122° W and from 12 to 34° N, encom- passes an oceanographic transition zone with dynamic population and community processes. In order to gain insight into possible marine mammal ecological responses to the current rapid environmental changes, we compiled and analyzed data from 11 145 marine mammal sightings made between 1981 and 2008 by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California Sur, and the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. In 2 × 2° cells, we computed alpha and beta diversities in terms of species richness, commonness as the occurrence of species among years, tropicality as the proportion of tropical species, and degree of threat according to the IUCN Red List. Current marine mammal distributions seem to derive from a postglacial northwards expansion of tropical pelagic species and a retention of upwelling-rich tropical and subtropical habi- tats nearshore by antitropical species. Analysis of commonness indicates that species distributions and thus biogeographic boundaries are dynamic, since marine mammals transit large distances, especially around southern Baja California. Analysis of beta diversity showed a considerable degree of spatial heterogeneity, but without well-defined regions. The species at risk are concentrated in the northern Gulf of California, but also occur off Pacific Baja California, Jalisco, and Guerrero coasts. The Gulf of California could be considered a refuge of global value for these animals.

Impacto en las Competencias Matemáticas de los Estudiantes de Ecuaciones Diferenciales a Partir de una Estrategia Didáctica que Incorpora la Calculadora

In this paper presents a report of a research work about learning mathematical competences in the differential equations course, in which a teaching strategy that incorporates the use of a calculator. The project was carried out with students from the Faculty of Engineering, Mexicali Campus of the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California. To evaluate knowledge of mathematics a Pre-Test and

Características de ser un Buen Profesional de Ingeniería en la Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, México

The objective of this study was to determine the most significant characteristics of being a good professional” in the opinion of teachers and students of Engineering at the Universidad Autonoma de Baja California in Mexico. Qualitative and quantitative techniques for analysis were used, which allow to determine that competences determined by the characteristics of honesty, responsibility and ethics, were the most important ones. However, some discrepancies between the opinion of students and professors in the evaluated characteristics. It is concluded that it is convenient and necessary to evaluate the agreement between the objectives of important careers such as engineering and the actual formative programs of the university.

CURRENT RECORDS OF THE MEXICAN LONG-TONGUED BAT, CHOERONYCTERIS MEXICANA, IN BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO

The long-tongued bat ( Choeronycteris mexicana) is a nectar-eating species that inhabits southern California, southern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, northern and central Mexico including Baja California and the Tres Marias Islands, El Salvador, and Honduras (Hall 1981, Cryan and Bogan 2003). The usual altitudinal range is from about 300 m to 2400 m (Arroyo-Cabrales et al. 1987). This species is found in a wide variety of habitats ranging from arid thorn scrub (Axtell 1962, Baker and Greer 1962, Baker and Womochel 1966, Matson et al. 1978) to tropical deciduous forest (Davis and Russell 1954) and mixed oak-conifer forest (Matson and Patten 1975, Arroyo-Cabrales et al. 1987). In 1947 Huey collected 4 specimens (2 females and 2 males) from Rancho la Ramona, 8 mi N of Santa Catarina (San Diego Natural History Museum [SDNMH]), and 4 specimens (2 females and 2 males) in the Aguajito, Turquesa Mine (SDNHM). All these records were reported by Huey (1963). In 1961 Parrish and Banks collected 2 specimens (1 female and 1 male) in Turquesa Mine, E of El Rosario (SDNHM). In 1947 Villa-R reported 2 bats 5.5 mi E of Aguajito (California Academy of Science [CAS]) and 3 specimens in Desengano mine, 14 mi N NE of Punta Prieta (CAS). And in 1969 Bostic collected 3 specimens (2 females and 1 male) 1.7 mi SW of Santa Catarina (SDNHM). California records have largely been from urban habitats in San Diego (Olson 1947). We provide new information on recent records of C. mexicana at 3 localities in Baja California (Table 1); these specimens will be deposited in the Collection of Vertebrates (Mammals), Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autonoma de Baja California (UABC), Ensenada, Mexico. Recent records of C. mexicana in Baja California are (1) an adult female (UABC -2 19) captured 3 October 2003 in an olive acreage at the Canon de Dona Petra, 2.3 mi NE of Ensenada city (31°53'00N, 116°20'00W), by E. Hernandez-del Angel, E Casillas-Figueroa, N. Briones-Escobedo, and R. Couoh-de la Garza; (2) an adult female (UABC211) and skull (UABC-220) collected 17 December 2003 in the Sauzalito mine near El Rosario, 0.3 mi NE of Arenoso (30°05'00N, 115°22'00W), by E. Flores-Rojas, N. BrionesEscobedo, R. Couoh-de la Garza, and R. Martinez-Gallardo; (3) 7 specimens captured 17 December 2003 in the abandoned Cajoncito gold mine, 1.4 mi NNW of El Arenoso (30°07'00N, 115°2r00W), by E. Flores-Rojas, N. Briones-Escobedo, R. Couoh-de la Garza, and R. MartinezGallardo. These recent records of C. mexicana indicate the northernmost presence of this species in Baja California, Mexico (Fig. 1). This survey established a body of information that will be u eful to future population monitoring efforts. Considering their ecological importance and susceptibility to population decline, bat populations should be effectively monitored (O'Shea and Bogan 2000). Because of the limited number of roost sites involved in this study, we r commend that these areas be surveyed every 2-3 years and protected from disturbance. Further research into the habitat needs, food habits, pollination role, survivorship, and distribution of C. mexicana would enhance our

EXPLORING PORPHYRA SPECIES FOR USE AS NITROGEN SCRUBBERS IN INTEGRATED AQUACULTURE

Carmona, R.1, Kraemer G. P.2, Zertuche, J. A.3, Chanes, L.4, Chopin, T.5, Neefus C.4,6 & Yarish, C.1 1Dept. of Ecol. and Evol. Biol., University of Connecticut, One University Place, Stamford, CT 06901, USA; 2Department of Environmental Sciences, State University of New York, Purchase, NY 10577 USA; 3IIO, Universidad Autonoma de Baja California. Ensenada,B.C., Mexico; 4DGETI‐CBTis41, Mexico; 5CCSA, Dept. of Biol., University of New Brunswick, Saint John, N.B., E2L 4L5, Canada; 6Department of Plant Biology, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USAFinfish mariculture along the Northeast US coast continues to develop into a strong industry. At a regional level, mariculture can be a significant contributor to nutrient loading in coastal waters. Since macroalgae are able to concentrate nutrients and grow at high rates, they can be an useful tool for alleviating this problem. In addition, seaweed mariculture is by itself a multi‐billion dollar industry, with the red alga Porphyra (nori) valued at over $US 1.8 billion. Local species and strains of Porphyra from the Northeast U.S.A. are being studied to determine their capacity as nutrient scrubbers under different nutrient and temperature conditions. P. purpurea was grown under two N sources (NO3‐ vs. NH4+). The fastest growth (up to 13% d‐1) and greatest N content (ca. 7% DW) were measured in plants grown at 300 µM NH4+. Short‐term NH4+ uptake by P. purpurea (strains from Maine and Long Island Sound) and by P. amplissima was not saturated at 150 µM, the highest concentration tested. The P. purpurea isolate from Maine took up NH4+ faster than did the Long Island Sound isolate. NH4+ uptake by P. amplissima was faster than uptake by either P. purpurea strain. The high growth rates obtained and the ability for N uptake and tissue accumulation make these species suitable for using as a biological nutrient removal system.