#being capable of very complex intelligent behavior which emerges from very simple indirect coordination between individuals

[absinthe-of-midnight]

I know the default explanation is "sci-fi hive mind" for the dependent plants but I think there's also realistic eusocial organisms thing going on, like stigmergy, a mechanism of indirect coordination, through the environment, between agents or actions.

The principle is that the trace left in the environment by an individual action stimulates the performance of a succeeding action by the same or different agent.

Agents that respond to traces in the environment receive positive fitness benefits, reinforcing the likelihood of these behaviors becoming fixed within a population over time. Stigmergy is a form of self-organization. It produces complex, seemingly intelligent structures, without need for any planning, control, or even direct communication between the agents.

Losing individuals in a stigmergy would be akin to a injury, it's like an interesting fusion of "sci-fi hive mind" and "realistic eusocial organisms".