Evidence have shown that plants have evolved flexible strategies to cope with their sessile lifestyle and enhance their chances of survival and reproduction. They employ diverse movement strategies in both above- and below-ground organs to explore, monitor, and optimize interactions with their environment. Moreover, plants actively perceive and respond to their surroundings through complex networks of intra- and inter-plant communication involving both electrical and chemical signaling. These strategies underscore the complexity and integration of plant perception, signaling, and response systems. Despite growing research, a deeper and more integrated approach—drawing on molecular biology, philosophy, plant physiology, ecology, evolutionary biology, behavioral sciences, and bioengineering—is needed to fully understand the diverse mechanisms and behaviors that plants exhibit in natural contexts.

This Research Topic aims to advance our understanding of how plants actively perceive and interact with their environment, with a focus on plant movement and communication. Core objectives include investigating how plants sense, interact and adapt to environmental elements.

By integrating insights from different perspectives such as plant physiology, ecology, behavioral science, and bioengineering, this collection seeks to highlight plants as active agents with complex adaptive capabilities. We invite contributions from diverse disciplines that explore the dynamics of plant behavior, movement, and communication. Submissions should address how plants perceive their surroundings, modulate their behavior accordingly, and engage in interactions with other organisms. We particularly welcome studies that reveal novel signaling pathways, adaptive strategies, and innovative technologies that challenge the traditional view of plants as passive organisms.

Key questions to be addressed include: How do plants perceive environmental stimuli and adapt their behavior accordingly? What are the underlying physiological mechanisms that enable these behaviors? How can interdisciplinary frameworks improve our understanding of plant behavior? In what ways do plants influence and reshape their ecosystems through behavioral and communicative responses?

We welcome Original Research, Review Articles, Methods, and Perspectives addressing (but not limited to) the following themes:
- Adaptive behaviors in plants that enhance survival across diverse environmental conditions, along with the underlying physiological mechanisms.
- Signaling pathways including electrical signals, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), root exudates involved in plant behavior and plant-organism interactions.
- Technological innovations such as plant-inspired sensors, robotics, and environmental monitoring systems for studying plant behavior.

Are you interested in contributing a manuscript to this Research Topic?

Unveiling Plant Behavior: Movement, Communication, and Environmental Interactions