Fungal behaviour: a new frontier in behavioural ecology

As human beings, behaviours make up our everyday lives. What we do from the moment we wake up to the moment we go back to sleep at night can all be classified and studied through the concepts of behavioural ecology. The same applies to all vertebrates and, to some extent, invertebrates. Fungi are, in most people's eyes perhaps, the eukaryotic multicellular organisms with which we humans share the least commonalities. However, they still express behaviours, and we argue that we could obtain a better understanding of their lives - although they are very different from ours - through the lens of behavioural ecology. Moreover, insights from fungal behaviour may drive a better understanding of behavioural ecology in general.

Automated summary

Behaviors are integral to the daily lives of human beings, vertebrates, and to some extent, invertebrates, and can be studied through the concepts of behavioral ecology. Despite the minimal commonalities between humans and fungi, fungi also exhibit behaviors that can be better understood through the lens of behavioral ecology. Insights from fungal behavior may contribute to a broader understanding of behavioral ecology as a whole.