2026 in paleobotany

This paleobotany list records new fossil plant taxa that were announced or described during the year 2026, as well as notes other significant paleobotany discoveries and events which occurred during the year.

Algae

Phycological research

• Zhao et al. (2026) link the displacement of green eukaryotic algae by phytoplankton groups whose plastids are derived from rhodophytes as the dominant marine phytoplankton in the early Mesozoic to structural characteristics of red lineage phytoplankton that enhanced their resistance to environmental reactive oxygen species. ^[1]
• Evidence of changes of cellular structure of coralline algae from Meghalaya (northeast India) in response to environmental changes during the Paleocene–Eocene thermal maximum, resulting in the studied algae maintaining calcification in spite of high temperatures and acidification of surface waters, is presented by Melbourne, Sarkar & Schmidt (2026). ^[2]

Ferns and fern allies

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Polymorphopteris mei [3]	Sp. nov		Li et al.	Permian		China

Conifers

Cheirolepidiaceae

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Classostrobus amealensis [4]	Sp. nov		Tekleva et al.	Early Cretaceous (Hauterivian)		Portugal

Conifer research

• Taxonomic revision of coniferous woods from the Oligocene strata of the Petroșani Basin (Romania) is published by Călin, Popa & Pirnea (2026). ^[5]

Flowering plants

Superrosids

Fabales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Simojoflorum [6]	Gen. et sp. nov		Hernández-Damián et al.	Miocene	La Quinta Formation (Mexican amber)	Mexico		A member of the family Fabaceae belonging to the tribe Mimoseae. The type species is S. mijangosii.

Other plants

Other plant research

• Nosova & Zavialova (2026) provide new information on the anatomy of seeds of Allicospermum angrenicum from the Middle Jurassic Angren Formation (Uzbekistan), including evidence of preservation of pollen interpreted as suggestive of cycadalean affinities of the studied plant. ^[7]

Palynology

• Gutiérrez et al. (2026) study the composition of the first palynological assemblage recovered from the Permian (probably Lopingian) strata of the upper member of the La Golondrina Formation (Argentina), providing evidence of presence of a forest dominated by members of Glossopteridales, with undergrowth including ferns, sphenophytes, lycophytes and bryophytes. ^[8]
• Evidence from the study of the palynological record from the Jiyuan Basin in the southern part of the North China Plate, indicative of four distinct phases of terrestrial vegetation transition across the Carnian pluvial episode that were temporally linked with indicators of volcanic activity and were accompanied by climate changes, is presented by Zhang et al. (2026). ^[9]
• Rosin et al. (2026) study the composition of the palynological assemblages from the Westbury, Lilstock and Redcar Mudstone formations in the Cheshire Basin (United Kingdom), recording changes of composition of vegetation in response to environmental changes during the latest Triassic and Early Jurassic. ^[10]
• Evidence from the study of spores, pollen and microcharcoal abundances from Paleogene sediments from a hydrothermal vent crater in the North Atlantic Igneous Province on the Norwegian Margin and from other mid- and high latitude continental margins, indicative of rapid vegetation and soil disturbances in response to environmental changes at the onset of the Paleocene–Eocene thermal maximum resulting in widespread appearance of fern-dominated pioneer vegetation across mid- and high-latitude regions of the world, is presented by Nelissen et al. (2026). ^[11]

General research

• Lu et al. (2026) review evidence of impact of successive phases of plant terrestrialization on global coal accumulation. ^[12]
• Evidence of widespread presence of diterpenoid-rich surface resins in cuticles of coal-forming plants from the Devonian (Givetian) strata of the Haikou and Hujiersite formations (China) is presented by Song et al. (2026). ^[13]
• Meyer-Berthaud, Young & Decombeix (2026) document a new assemblage of Devonian (Frasnian) plants from the Hervey Group (New South Wales, Australia), similar in composition to Frasnian plant assemblages from south China. ^[14]
• Negri & Toledo (2026) review evidence of mutualistic relationships between insects and gymnosperms before the emergence of flowering plants. ^[15]
• A diverse assemblage of plant cuticles and spores, providing evidence of presence of conifers, members of Peltaspermales and lycophytes, is reported from the Permian (Kungurian) strata from the Gorl locality in the Athesian Volcanic District (Italy) by Delfosse-Allain et al. (2026). ^[16]
• Greenwood & Conran (2026) review the fossil record of Cenozoic plants from the Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre, Woomera and northern deserts region of South Australia. ^[17]

References

1. Zhao, Y.; Tong, M.; Tian, L.; Luo, G.; Li, P.; Song, H.; Chen, Z.; Xie, S.; Kappler, A.; Yuan, S. (2026). "Reactive oxygen species drove red lineage phytoplankton to displace green lineage phytoplankton during the Mesozoic". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 123 (2) e2521306123. doi:10.1073/pnas.2521306123. PMC  12799162. PMID   41512038.
2. Melbourne, L. A.; Sarkar, S.; Schmidt, D. N. (2026). "Exploring structural integrity of coralline algae in response to the environmental changes associated with the PETM: a tale of functional resistance". Palaeontology. 69 (1) e70039. doi: 10.1111/pala.70039 .
3. Li, D.-D.; Zhou, W.-M.; Clements, T.; Hilton, J.; Wang, S.-J.; Wu, Y.-F.; Sun, W.-J.; Wang, J. (2026). "Frond reconstruction of Polymorphopteris mei sp. nov. from the early Permian Wuda Tuff Flora with insights into its taphonomy". Historical Biology: An International Journal of Paleobiology. doi:10.1080/08912963.2025.2605723.
4. Tekleva, M.; Mendes, M. M.; Kvaček, J.; Van Konijnenburg-van Cittert, J. H. A.; Callapez, P.; Heřmanová, Z. (2026). "The microsporangiate cone Classostrobus amealensis sp. nov. with in situ pollen from the Lower Cretaceous (lower Hauterivian) of Portugal: pollen ultrastructure and implications for frenelopsid species diversity". Cretaceous Research 106315. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2026.106315.
5. Călin, A. G.; Popa, M. E.; Pirnea, R. (2026). "Oligocene coniferous woods of the Petroșani Basin, South Carpathians, Romania". Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 105512. doi:10.1016/j.revpalbo.2026.105512.
6. Hernández-Damián, A. L.; Rubalcava Knoth, M. A.; Gómez-Acevedo, S. L.; Cruz-Durán, R.; Cevallos-Ferriz, S. R. S. (2026). "Simojoflorum mijangosii gen. et sp. nov. preserved in the Mexican amber unravels the polycarpellate condition in the tribe Mimoseae (Caesalpinioideae, Fabaceae)". Historical Biology: An International Journal of Paleobiology. doi: 10.1080/08912963.2025.2604147 .
7. Nosova, N.; Zavialova, N. (2026). "A seed of Allicospermum angrenicum Nosova from the Middle Jurassic of Uzbekistan with a trapped pollen grain". Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 105513. doi:10.1016/j.revpalbo.2026.105513.
8. Gutiérrez, P. R.; Balarino, M. L.; Cariglino, B.; Ruffo Rey, L.; Noetinger, S. (2026). "First palynoflora for the Permian La Golondrina Formation (Santa Cruz Province, Argentina): biostratigraphic and paleoenvironmental implications for the Dos Hermanos Member". Journal of South American Earth Sciences 105951. doi:10.1016/j.jsames.2026.105951.
9. Zhang, P.; Yang, M.; Lu, J.; Dal Corso, J.; Jiang, Z.; Wang, L.; Zhou, K.; Xu, X.; Guo, Y.; Chen, H.; Shao, L.; Xu, Z.; Hilton, J. (2026). "Repeated pulses of volcanism drove terrestrial vegetation and climate changes during the late Triassic Carnian Pluvial Episode in North China". Global and Planetary Change 105301. doi: 10.1016/j.gloplacha.2026.105301 .
10. Rosin, J. C. F.; van de Schootbrugge, B.; Hesselbo, S. P.; Vandenbroucke, T. R. A. (2026). "Organic-walled microphytoplankton from the West Midlands, England, following the end-Triassic mass extinction: palynological evidence from the Prees 2 borehole, Cheshire Basin". Geological Magazine. 163 e1. doi: 10.1017/S0016756825100459 .
11. Nelissen, M.; Willard, D. A.; van Konijnenburg-van Cittert, H.; Bowen, G. J.; Hollaar, T.; Sluijs, A.; Frieling, J.; Brinkhuis, H. (2026). "Widespread terrestrial ecosystem disruption at the onset of the Paleocene–Eocene Thermal Maximum". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 123 (4) e2509231122. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2509231122 .
12. Lu, J.; Peng, X.; Yin, L.; Ling, Z.; Yang, M.; Zhang, P.; Zhou, K.; Liu, L.; Dai, S.; Shao, L.; Hilton, J. (2026). "Influence of plant terrestrialization on coal accumulation and deep time terrestrial carbon storage". Earth-Science Reviews 105390. doi: 10.1016/j.earscirev.2026.105390 .
13. Song, D.; Wang, T.; Zhong, N.; Xu, H.; Wang, H.; Lu, Z.; Liu, Y.; Wang, Y. (2026). "Abundant surface resins present on Middle Devonian land plants". Communications Earth & Environment. doi: 10.1038/s43247-025-03161-9 .
14. Meyer-Berthaud, B.; Young, G. C.; Decombeix, A.-L. (2026). "Enriching the Late Devonian plant record of Australia: A Frasnian assemblage from Gooloogong, New South Wales". Palaeoworld 201066. doi:10.1016/j.palwor.2026.201066.
15. Negri, I.; Toledo, M. E. (2026). "Evolution of Insect Pollination Before Angiosperms and Lessons for Modern Ecosystems". Insects. 17 (1) 103. doi: 10.3390/insects17010103 .
16. Delfosse-Allain, M.; Branz, R.; Barreiro, I. R.; Kustatscher, E. (2026). "An exceptional plant mesofossil assemblage from the Kungurian (early Permian) locality of Gorl (Southern Alps, northern Italy)". Review of Palaeobotany and Palynology 105499. doi:10.1016/j.revpalbo.2026.105499.
17. Greenwood, D. R.; Conran, J. G. (2026). "The Paleogene–Neogene silcrete macrofloras of Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre and northeastern deserts, South Australia: a literature review and assessment of collections". Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Palaeontology. doi: 10.1080/03115518.2025.2597033 .