Current directions in animal social networks

•We review the application of social network theory to non-human animals.•Social network theory provides a framework to link individuals to populations.•Questions can be approached from both a proximate and ultimate perspective.•Recent technology allows for the reality mining of animal social networks.

A social network approach provides a framework to study the link between individual behaviour and population-level patterns and processes. Studies have demonstrated how animal social network structure can be influenced by factors ranging from characteristics of the environment to characteristics of the individual, such as developmental experience and personality. At the level of the individual, the patterning of social connections can be an important determinant of fitness, predicting both survival and reproductive success. At the population level, network structure can influence the patterning of ecological and evolutionary processes, such as frequency-dependant selection and disease and information transmission.