Sleep research goes wild: New methods and approaches to investigate the ecology, evolution and functions of sleep

摘要: Despite being a prominent aspect of animal life, sleep and its functions remain poorly understood. As with any biological process, the can only be fully understood when examined in ecological context which they evolved. Owing to technological constraints, until recently, has primarily been artificial laboratory environment. However, new tools are enabling researchers study behaviour neurophysiology wild. Here, we summarize various methods that have enabled go wild, their strengths weaknesses, discoveries resulting from these first steps outside laboratory. The initial studies 'go wild' revealed wealth interindividual variation sleep, shown duration is not even fixed within an individual, but instead varies response assortment demands. Determining costs benefits this inter- intraindividual may reveal clues sleep. Perhaps greatest surprise reduction neurobehavioural performance loss demonstrated obligatory outcome reduced wild.This article part themed issue 'Wild clocks: integrating chronobiology ecology understand timekeeping free-living animals'.