Novel insights into animal sociality from multilayer networks

Network analysis has driven key developments in animal behavior research by providing quantitative methods to study the social structure of animal groups and populations. A recent advancement in network science, \emph{multilayer network analysis}, the study of network structures of multiple interconnected `layers', offers a novel way to represent and analyze the structure of animal behavior, and help strengthen links to broader ecological and evolutionary contexts. We outline the potential uses of these new methods at individual-, group-, population-, and evolutionary-levels, and we highlight their potential to advance behavioral ecology research. This novel quantitative approach makes it possible to address classic research questions from a new perspective and opens a diversity of new questions that previously have been out of reach.