Maternal Perceptions of Physical Activity Spaces for Children in Texas Border colonias

This study examined differences in mother-reported physical activity (PA) and screen time (ST) based on child sex and mothers’ perceptions of PA resources for Mexican-heritage (MH) children residing in Texas-Mexico border colonias. Mothers with children 8 to 10 years old ( n = 335) from colonias in south Texas reported if there were places for their child to be physically active and their child’s hours of PA and ST per day during the week and weekend. Two-way ANCOVAs examined differences in child PA and ST based on presence of PA places and child sex. Only 46.0% of mothers ( n = 159) reported places for their child to be physically active; with no significant difference based on sex. Mothers’ perceptions of a place to play was differentially beneficial for girls’ weekday PA and ST. Findings suggest a need to increase perceived and/or actual access to PA places in colonias communities, particularly for girls.

My Journey as an Emergent Bilingual

This autoethnography was conducted at an elementary school not far from the South Texas border. I documented how my journey as a kindergarten, first-grade, and second-grade student has impacted me to become a better educator. Through this qualitative study, I planned to determine if my childhood experiences as an emergent bilingual learner have made an impact in my teaching and the connections I have formed with my students. I analyzed observations of my current teaching practices and my elementary report cards and test scores. After observing my students’ interactions among their peers and my reaction towards their conversations, I found that emergent bilinguals can reach academic achievement, and their learning can be enhanced. Embracing more than one language can be a powerful resource that binds students to a variety of cultures.

DIET OF EIGHT SPECIES OF LIZARDS FROM GRANITE GAP, HIDALGO COUNTY, NEW MEXICO

Granite Gap is a desert scrub habitat located in the Chihuahuan Desert in southwestern New Mexico about 200 km from the Texas border. In May 2016, we collected specimens of eight lizard species, six of which range into Texas: Callisaurus draconoides, Cophosaurus texanus, Uta stansburiana, Urosaurus ornatus, Gambelia wislizenii, and Aspidoscelis sonorae (a parthenogenetic species), plus two species not found in Texas: Sceloporus clarkii and Aspidoscelis tigris. We analyzed stomach contents of the preserved lizards and computed diet breadth and overlap for each. All lizard species consumed arthropods only. Considering the entire sample, there was a significant correlation between lizard snout-vent length (SVL) and total volume of arthropods consumed, and between lizard SVL and mean volume per prey item, but not between lizard SVL and number of arthropods consumed. This suggests larger lizards did not consume more arthropods than smaller lizards, but they did consume larger ones. Overall, A. sonorae was the most specialized lizard species at Granite Gap whereas C. texanus seemed to be the most generalized owing to its high numeric and high volumetric diet breadth. The dietary overlap data suggest there were two groups of lizards at Granite Gap: one that consumes a large number and volume of termites (Callisaurus, Cophosaurus, and the two species of Aspidoscelis) and the other that consumes a large number and volume of ants (Uta, Urosaurus, small Sceloporus) plus cicadas when lizard size is large enough to consume them (large Sceloporus and Gambelia).

Landscape and Anthropogenic Factors Associated with Adult Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus in Small Cities in the Southern Great Plains

As mosquito-borne diseases are a growing human health concern in the United States, the distribution and potential arbovirus risk from container-breeding Aedes mosquitoes is understudied in the southern Great Plains. The aim of the study was to assess landscape and anthropogenic factors associated with encountering adult container-breeding mosquitoes in small cities in southern Oklahoma. Collections were carried out over a 10 week period from June to August 2017 along two geographical transects, each consisting of three cities, equally distant from the Red River/Texas border. Mosquitoes were collected weekly using two trap types along with data for 13 landscape, vegetation, and anthropogenic variables. After five rounds of collection, 6628 female mosquitoes were collected over 2110 trap-nights involving 242 commercial or residential sites in six cities. Of the mosquitoes collected, 80% consisted of container-breeding species: Aedes albopictus (72%), Culex pipiens complex (16%) and Aedes aegypti (8%). Regionally, Aedes aegypti was more likely present in cities closest to the Texas border while Ae. albopictus was spread throughout the region. In general, Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus were significantly more present in sites featuring no or low vegetation and residential sites. Variables associated with Ae. albopictus presence and abundance varied between cities and highlighted the urban nature of the species. The study highlighted the distribution of Ae. aegypti geographically and within the urban context, indicated potential habitat preferences of container-breeding mosquito species in small towns, and demonstrated the usefulness of Gravid Aedes traps (GAT) traps for monitoring Aedes populations in urban habitats in small cities.

The Pursuit of Equal Educational Opportunity: A Historical Analysis of the South Texas/Border Initiative

The purpose of this historical study was to investigate how individuals articulated the call for the South Texas/Border Initiative, a legislative mandate that funneled unprecedented amounts of funding to underserved universities along the Texas-Mexico border region between 1987 and 2003. Utilizing archival sources, we conducted an analysis of the intentional shifts in funding critical to equity and access in higher education. The events surrounding the South Texas/Border Initiative are unique in that they represent purposeful Latina/o community and state-wide activism that challenged higher education funding inequities.

Range extension of Mesophyllum erubescens (Foslie) Me. Lemoine (Hapalidiales, Rhodophyta): first report from mesophotic rhodolith beds in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico offshore Louisiana and Texas, including the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary

DNA sequence analysis of plastid-encoded psbA and UPA, mitochondrion-encoded COI, and nuclear-encoded LSU rDNA of rhodolith-forming crustose coralline algal specimens from the northwestern Gulf of Mexico reveals that Mesophyllum erubescens (Foslie) Me. Lemoine is present in mesophotic rhodolith beds offshore Louisiana and Texas at 39–57 m depth. Morpho-anatomical characters viewed with SEM support the identification of these specimens. Mesophyllum erubescens is reported for the first time offshore Louisiana at Ewing Bank, the Louisiana–Texas border at Bright Bank, and Texas in the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary.