Individual and population level determinants of immigration success on local habitat patches: an experimental approach

The effect of population density on immigration success of young root voles was studied in a factorial experiment where immigrants of three different types were translocated from donor populations to recipient habitat patches with experimentally manipulated population sizes. The different types of immigrants were: (1) residents, animals that had remained in their natal patch; (2) colonists, animals that already had successfully dispersed and settled in a new patch; and (3) transients, animals roaming around in a non-habitable matrix area of the donor population. Generally, we found evidence for a negative density-dependent immigration success in terms of survival, rate of sexual maturation and body growth rate. With respect to the survival rate, the degree of density dependence differed among the three immigrant types. Our findings are discussed with respect to the degree of rescue effect immigrants may have on a recipient population depending on population density, and also its relevance concerning translocation of individuals for conserving endangered populations.     

Defining “American” in the context of immigration: a case study of Helping Hands Elementary

Immigration has dramatically changed the face of the nation in the last thirty years, yet it is unclear how children currently define “Americanness” in light of these demographic and cultural shifts. This research explores how elementary students define what it means to be American in the context of immigration-driven diversity. Based on a survey of fourth and fifth graders in an elementary school located in a high-immigrant community, the author shows that despite the diversity of the school and local surroundings, and the multicultural ideology espoused by school staff, students predominately defined “American” in ethnocultural terms – specifically, as white, US-born, and English-speaking. At the same time, a small group of students challenged this narrative and defined Americans in pluralist terms. This study suggests that schools aiming to create inclusive learning communities in an increasingly diverse nation may need more direct approaches to teaching a culturally pluralist model of America.     

The influence of temperature on migration of Lepidoptera into Britain

A unique 113‐year record of numbers of nine migrating butterflies and 20 migrating moths is examined in relation to temperatures on the migration route, to temperatures in England, and to the North Atlantic oscillation (NAO). This study clearly reveals the strong association between numbers of migrant Lepidoptera and temperatures in France; with higher temperatures associated with increased migrant numbers. The NAO also appears influential with high index years associated with increased numbers. The strong temperature link suggests that Britain and other northern temperate countries can expect to receive larger numbers of migrant Lepidoptera if climate warms as predicted in the 21st century.     

Stuck behind kitchen doors? Assessing the work prospects of latter-generation Latino workers in a Los Angeles restaurant

The disproportionate number of Latinos employed in unskilled US service industries appears to exemplify the bleak labour market prospects and inter-generational immobility facing this population. Yet as the children of immigrants enter “bad” service and retail jobs alongside the first generation, how might they be faring differently? Drawing on over two years of ethnographic research, this study examines the labour prospects of 1.5- and second-generation Latinos working at a Los Angeles restaurant. I show that while structural disadvantages initially funnel these workers into bottom-rung jobs at the restaurant, many are able to leverage their in-betweenness on a shopfloor divided into immigrant Latino and privileged white employee cohorts. Doing so has allowed some latter-generation workers access to new occupational mobility pathways virtually closed to the first generation.     

Genomic evidence of rapid,global-scale gene flow in a Sulfolobus species

Local populations of Sulfolobus islandicus diverge genetically with geographical separation, and this has been attributed to restricted transfer of propagules imposed by the unfavorable spatial distribution of acidic geothermal habitat. We tested the generality of genetic divergence with distance in Sulfolobus species by analyzing genomes of Sulfolobus acidocaldarius drawn from three populations separated by more than 8000 km. In sharp contrast to S. islandicus, the geographically diverse S. acidocaldarius genomes proved to be nearly identical. We could not link the difference in genome conservation between the two species to a corresponding difference in genome stability or ecological factors affecting propagule dispersal. The results provide the first evidence that genetic isolation of local populations does not result primarily from properties intrinsic to Sulfolobus and the severe discontinuity of its geothermal habitat, but varies with species, and thus may reflect biotic interactions that act after propagule dispersal.     

European Catches of Elver of 1928-1988

Data on quantities of glasseels and elvers caught at 11 stations on the western and northern coast of Europe together with abundance indices for glass eels at Den Oever, Netherlands and for larvae in the Bay of Biscay are presented covering the period 1924 to 1988. Large catches were made in the 1960's and 1970's followed by a sudden and widespread, but not universal, decline in the 1980's. Catches within years between stations showed significant correlations in some cases but not in all.     

Obstetric violence as immigration injustice: A view from the United States and Colombia

In September 2020, Project South, along with numerous other organizations, released a report detailing abuses in a Georgia Detention Center – including forced hysterectomies. Whatever other factors are at play, one of them is an intrinsic connection between obstetric violence against pregnant migrants and immigration injustice. It is not incidental that these acts – in US detention centers, along the US-Mexico border, in Colombian hospitals and clinics – are being perpetrated on immigrant bodies. And it is not accidental or random which immigrant bodies are vulnerable to these violations. Understanding and confronting obstetric violence directed at pregnant migrants, though, requires reconceptualizing the nature of obstetric violence itself. In particular, we must recognize that obstetric violence against pregnant Latin American migrants in the United States and Colombia is a type of immigration injustice, a means to perpetrate immigration injustice, and a product of immigration injustice. As such, bioethicists need to collaborate with immigration scholars to resist it. After providing some background on the nature of obstetric violence and some ways it is perpetuated against pregnant migrants in the United States and Colombia, I will give a brief overview of how I conceptualize immigration justice. From there, I explain how this type of obstetric violence constitutes a type of immigration injustice, a means to perpetrate immigration injustice, and a product of immigration injustice. My hope is that this analysis motivates bioethicists throughout the Americas to engage with immigration scholars and activists to confront the issue more forcefully.