Topic: evolutionary constraints

Animals of the same species exhibit similar behaviours that are advantageously adapted to their body and environment. These behaviours are shaped at the species level by selection pressures over evolutionary timescales. Yet, it remains unclear how these common behavioural adaptations emerge from the idiosyncratic neural circuitry of each individual. The overall organisation of neural circuits is preserved across individuals because of their common evolutionarily specified developmental programme. Such organisation at the circuit level may constrain neural activity, leading to low-dimensional l