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Non‐native species have invaded most parts of the world, and the invasion process is expected to continue and accelerate. Because many invading non‐native species are likely to become permanent inhabitants, future consideration of species‐area relationships (SARs) should account for non‐native species, either separately or jointly with native species. If non‐native species occupy unused niches and space in invaded areas and extinction rate of native species remains low (especially for plants), the resultant SARs (with both native and non‐native species) will likely be stronger. We used published and newly compiled data (35 data sets worldwide) to examine how species invasions affect SARs across selected taxonomic groups and diverse ecosystems around the world. We first examined the SARs for native, non‐native, and all species. We then investigated with linear regression analyses and paired or unpaired t tests how degree of invasion (proportion of non‐native species) affected postinvasion SARs. Postinvasion SARs for all species (native plus non‐native) became significantly stronger as degree of invasion increased (r2 = 0.31, p = 0.0006), thus, reshaping SARs worldwide. Overall, native species still showed stronger and less variable SARs. Also, slopes for native species were steeper than for non‐native species (0.298 vs. 0.153). There were some differences among non‐native taxonomic groups in filling new niches (especially for birds) and between islands and mainland ecosystems. We also found evidence that invasions may increase equilibrial diversity. Study of such changing species–area curves may help determine the probability of future invasions and have practical implications for conservation. Article Impact Statement: Increasingly, altered species–area relationships due to non‐native species invasions affect future conservation efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the relationship between the local unemployment rate and immigrant self‐employment entry decision. The study uses Swedish population register data at the individual level and the annual unemployment rate data at the local labour market level over the time period of 1996–2007. The paper finds that the local unemployment rate is negatively correlated with the probability of entering into self‐employment for natives and immigrants who are not from the Middle East. Compared with natives, Middle Eastern immigrants are more likely to enter into self‐employment when local unemployment rate increases. Furthermore, the magnitude of the impact of the local unemployment rate on women's self‐employment entry is quantitatively smaller than that of men, indicating the less important role of economic conditions in determining women's decision to enter self‐employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many empirical studies on immigrant integration document the benefits of an education acquired in the country of destination. In this article; we study how the degree of human capital transferability affects an immigrant's chances of studying in Spain. We used data from the Spanish Labour Force Survey (2008–2015) for a sample of adults aged 18–55 who had left the educational system. The main findings show that natives are the ethnic group with the highest likelihood of re‐enrolling in education. Amongst immigrants, those with fewer limitations on human capital transferability also invest more. These results question the predictions of the Immigrant Human Capital Investment model which expect that immigrants whose human capital depreciates upon arrival and those who can obtain a higher return on a new investment in education are therefore more likely to study. Moreover, the effect of skill transferability differs depending on the type of obstacle and the kind of education. Immigrants with less linguistic and cultural familiarity with the host country are less likely to undertake non‐formal education than formal education. However, when the transferability obstacles are related to administrative requirements and legal restrictions, the probability of investing in non‐formal education is higher. We conclude that immigrants with low skill transferability are not only less well integrated in the labour market upon arrival, but are also less able to redress that disadvantage through a new investment in education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Even though breastfeeding is typically considered the preferred feeding method for infants worldwide, in Belgium, breastfeeding rates remain low across native and migrant groups while the underlying determinants are unclear. Furthermore, research examining contextual effects, especially regarding gender (in)equality and ideology, has not been conducted. We hypothesized that greater gender equality scores in the country of origin will result in higher breastfeeding chances. Because gender equality does not operate only at the contextual level but can be mediated through individual level resources, we hypothesized the following for maternal education: higher maternal education will be an important positive predictor for exclusive breastfeeding chances in Belgium, but its effects will differ over subsequent origin countries. Based on IKAROS data (GeÏntegreerd Kind Activiteiten en Regio Ondersteunings Systeem), we perform multilevel analyses on 27 936 newborns. Feeding method is indicated by exclusive breastfeeding 3 months after childbirth. We measure gender (in)equality using Global Gender Gap scores from the mother's origin country. Maternal education is a metric variable based on International Standard Classification of Education indicators. Results show that 3.6% of the variation in breastfeeding can be explained by differences between the migrant mother's country of origin. However, the effect of gender (in)equality appears to be non-significant. After adding maternal education, the effect for origin countries scoring low on gender equality turns significant. Maternal education on its own shows strong positive association with exclusive breastfeeding and, furthermore, has different effects for different origin countries. Possible explanations are discussed in-depth setting direction for further research regarding the different pathways gender (in)equality and maternal education affect breastfeeding. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we analyze how the possibility of conflict between natives and immigrants shapes income redistribution in developed democracies. This possibility can generate income redistribution towards immigrants even if they have no voting rights. We show that the threat of conflict between natives and immigrants lowers vertical income redistribution (from the rich to the poor) as the level of immigration increases. The opposite holds for horizontal income redistribution (from natives to immigrants), which increases with the level of immigration. Income inequality weakens the negative effect of immigration on vertical redistribution, but it also reduces horizontal redistribution. These theoretical predictions are consistent with the results of our empirical analysis on data from 29 European countries: larger immigrant populations are associated with more redistribution towards immigrants and lower vertical redistribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To understand vegetation development during the ecological succession of rehabilitated quarries, floristic composition and structure were evaluated at different restoration phases on three quarries in Hong Kong that were planted with exotic woody species over the course of 2-14 years. A total of 113 species, of which 82 were woody species, were recorded. Exotic species dominated the overstory, and species number, richness, and diversity increased with age. Some light-demanding early successional species were becoming dominant in the overstory vegetation at the older phases of revegetation. These species could be potential candidates for early enrichment planting with Acacia spp. Common secondary forest species occurred naturally in the understory vegetation, and were more abundant and dominant after 10 years of ecological development. The most successful restorations were on scree slopes using leguminous Acacia spp. as nurse species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose and test a novel effect of immigration on wages. Existing studies have focused on the wage effects that result from changes in the aggregate labour supply in a competitive labour market. We argue that if labour markets are not fully competitive, immigrants might also affect wage formation at the most disaggregate level - the workplace. Using linked employer−employee data, we find that an increased use of low-skilled immigrant workers has a significantly negative effect on the wages of native workers at the workplace - also when controlling for potential endogeneity of the immigrant share using both fixed effects and instrumental variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]