2026 in paleobotany

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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.

Chlorophytes

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Salpingoporella vivariensis^[1]	Sp. nov		Bucur et al.	Early Cretaceous (Aptian)		France		A member of Dasycladales.
Similiclypeina hadrianii^[1]	Sp. nov		Bucur et al.	Early Cretaceous (Aptian)		France		A member of Dasycladales.

Rhodophytes

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Vetusceramium^[2]	Gen. et sp. nov		Du et al.	Ediacaran	Doushantuo Formation	China		A member of Ceramiales belonging to the family Ceramiaceae. The type species is V. sinense.

Phycological research

Fossil evidence of persistence of multicellular algae belonging to the genus Wengania into the early Cambrian is reported from the Zhujiaqing Formation (Yunnan, China) by You, Shang & Liu (2026).^[3]
Fossil algae with morphological similarities to Proterozoic and Cambrian vendotaenids are reported from the Ordovician Landeyran Formation (France) by Vayda, Birolini & Xiao (2026).^[4]
Jeon et al. (2026) study the growth characteristics of Palaeoaplysina from the Permian (Asselian) strata of the Tyrrellfjellet Member of the Wordiekammen Formation (Svalbard, Norway), and interpret Palaeoaplysina as more likely to be an alga (probably a red alga) than a sponge or cnidarian.^[5]
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.^[6]
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).^[7]

Non-vascular plants

Bryophyta

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Meteoriella parvicella^[8]	Sp. nov	Valid	Wolski, Kaczmarek & Ignatov	Eocene	Baltic amber	Europe (Baltic Sea region)		A moss belonging to the family Hylocomiaceae.

Marchantiophyta

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Frullania tseltal^[9]	Sp. nov		Juárez-Martínez et al.	Miocene	Mexican amber	Mexico		A liverwort, a species of Frullania.
Frullania tsotsil^[9]	Sp. nov		Juárez-Martínez & Estrada-Ruiz in Juárez-Martínez et al.	Miocene	Mexican amber	Mexico		A liverwort, a species of Frullania.

Non-vascular plant research

Evidence from the study of moss fossil from north-eastern European Russia, indicative of evolution of leaf developmental pathway in Permian protosphagnacean mosses similar to that of extant Sphagnum, is presented by Ignatov et al. (2026).^[10]

Lycophytes

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Nowenia^[11]	Gen. et sp. nov		El-Abdallah & Tomescu in El-Abdallah et al.	Devonian	Beartooth Butte Formation	United States ( Wyoming)		A zosterophyll. The type species is N. matsunagae.
Selaginellites huatingensis^[12]	Sp. nov		Song & Ding in Song et al.	Middle Jurassic	Yanan Formation	China		A member of Selaginellales.

Lycophyte research

Xu et al. (2026) report evidence from morphology and stable isotope analysis from Permian–Triassic transitional lycophytes from southwest China interpreted as consistent with use of crassulacean acid metabolism photosynthesis similar to the one seen in extant Isoetales, and interpret the physiology of the studied lycophytes as a possible factor enabling their survival during the Permian–Triassic extinction event and subsequent recovery.^[13]

Ferns and fern allies

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Coniopteris glaesifilix^[14]	Sp. nov		Wang, Tao, Zhang, Wang, & Shi in Wang et al.	Cretaceous (Albian-Cenomanian)	Kachin amber	Myanmar
Cyathocarpus felicianoi^[15]	Sp. nov		Correia, Šimůnek & Pereira	Carboniferous (Gzhelian)	Douro Carboniferous Basin	Portugal	A member of Marattiales belonging to the family Psaroniaceae.
Danaeopsis huatingensis^[16]	Sp. nov		Sun & Dengin Sun et al.	Middle Triassic	Tongchuan Formation	China	A member of the family Marattiaceae.
Danaeopsis xunyiensis^[16]	Sp. nov		Sun & Dengin Sun et al.	Middle Triassic	Tongchuan Formation	China	A member of the family Marattiaceae.
Lophosoria myanmarica^[17]	Sp. nov		Li in Li et al.	Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian)	Kachin amber	Myanmar	A species of Lophosoria.
Loxsomopsis minor^[18]	Sp. nov		Li in Li, Li & Ma	Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian)	Kachin amber	Myanmar	A species of Loxsomopsis.
Paradoxopteris huertasii^[19]	Sp. nov		Palma-Castro et al.	Early Cretaceous (Aptian)	Paja Formation	Colombia
Polymorphopteris mei^[20]	Sp. nov		Li et al.	Permian		China
Polystichum espinarensis^[21]	Sp. nov	Valid	Aliaga-Castillo et al.	Pliocene		Peru	A species of Polystichum. Published online in 2025; the final version of the article naming it was published in 2026.
Todites holmesii^[22]	Sp. nov		Retallack	Early Triassic		Australia	An osmundalean fern.

Pteridological research

A study on changes of distribution and on the evolutionary history of members of the genera Equisetites and Neocalamites in Europe, Central Asia and Siberia during the Early and Middle Jurassic is published by Frolov & Mashchuk (2026).^[23]

Conifers

Cheirolepidiaceae

Name	Novelty	Authors	Age	Unit	Location
Arkansia axsmithii^[24]	Sp. nov	Andruchow-Colombo & Matsunaga	Early Cretaceous	Holly Creek Formation	United States ( Arkansas)
Classostrobus amealensis^[25]	Sp. nov	Tekleva et al.	Early Cretaceous (Hauterivian)		Portugal
Pseudofrenelopsis axsmithii^[24]	Sp. nov	Andruchow-Colombo & Matsunaga	Early Cretaceous	Holly Creek Formation	United States ( Arkansas)

Cupressaceae

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Cupressinoxylon marquesii^[26]	Sp. nov		Nhamutole & Bamford			Mozambique
Kamikistrobus^[27]	Gen. et sp. nov		Jiang & Yamada	Late Cretaceous (Turonian)	Yezo Group	Japan		A member of the subfamily Taxodioideae. Genus includes new species K. primulus.

Pinaceae

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Tsuga zhuoziensis^[28]	Sp. nov	Valid	Xiao et al.	Miocene	Hannuoba Formation	China		A species of Tsuga. Announced online in 2025; the final version of the article naming it was published in 2026.

Podocarpaceae

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Circoporoxylon bighornense^[29]	Sp. nov	Valid	Hoff & Gee in Hoff, Gee & Storrs	Late Jurassic	Morrison Formation	United States ( Montana)
Podocarpoxylon paralambertii^[30]	Sp. nov		Ramos, Brea & Kröhling	Pleistocene	El Palmar Formation	Argentina

Taxaceae

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Torreya albertensis^[31]	Sp. nov		Halbwidl, Seyfullah & West	Late Cretaceous	Horseshoe Canyon Formation	Canada ( Alberta)		A species of Torreya.

Other conifers

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Lindleycladus changtuensis^[32]	Sp. nov		Yu & Liang in Yu et al.	Early Cretaceous (Aptian)	Shahezi Formation	China		A member of the family Podozamitaceae.

Conifer research

Zhou et al. (2026) reconstruct the general morphology of Pagiophyllum maculosum on the basis of the study of the first fossil material reported from the Lower Jurassic strata in China.^[33]
Taxonomic revision of coniferous woods from the Oligocene strata of the Petroșani Basin (Romania) is published by Călin, Popa & Pirnea (2026).^[34]

Flowering plants

Monocots

Alismatales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Eospirodela^[35]	Gen. et sp. nov		Ali, Almeida & Khan in Ali et al.	Eocene	Palana Formation	India		A member of the family Araceae. The type species is E. indica.

Arecales

Name	Novelty	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Palmoxylon caryoteaeoides^[36]	Sp. nov	Kumar et al.	Cretaceous-Paleocene transition	Deccan Intertrappean Beds	India	A fossil palm stem.
Palmoxylon nannorrhopsoides^[36]	Sp. nov	Kumar et al.	Cretaceous-Paleocene transition	Deccan Intertrappean Beds	India	A fossil palm stem.
Palmoxylon sabaleaeoides^[36]	Sp. nov	Kumar et al.	Cretaceous-Paleocene transition	Deccan Intertrappean Beds	India	A fossil palm stem.
Phoenicites deccansis^[37]	Sp. nov	Kumar & Khan	Cretaceous-Paleocene transition	Deccan Intertrappean Beds	India	A pinnate palm leaf.

Monocot research

Bellot et al. (2026) reconstruct the evolutionary history of palms on the basis of phylogeny of extant members of the group determined from data from nuclear genes and on the basis of the study of the fossil record of the group.^[38]
Redescription and a study on the affinities of Palmoxylon santarosense, P. rionegrense and P. valchetense from the Allen Formation (Argentina) is published by Vera (2026).^[39]

Basal eudicots

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Platanus orientalifolia^[40]	Sp. nov		Zhu & Jia in Jia et al.	Eocene	Xiangcheng Formation	China		A species of Platanus.

Superasterids

Cornales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Davidia indica^[41]	Sp. nov	Valid	Ali, Su & Khan in Ali et al.	Eocene		India		A species of Davidia. Published online in 2025; the final version of the article naming it was published in 2026.

Ericales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Herendeenia^[42]	Gen. et sp. nov		Pigg et al.	Paleocene	Sentinel Butte Formation	United States ( North Dakota)		A member of the family Actinidiaceae. Genus includes new species H. willistonensis.

Icacinales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Mappia siwalika^[43]	Sp. nov	Valid	Prasad et al.	Miocene		India		A species of Mappia.

Lamiales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Fraxinoxylon sihongense^[44]	Sp. nov		Zhu, Li & Cheng in Zhu et al.	Miocene	Xiacaowan Formation	China		A member of the family Oleaceae.

Solanales

Name	Novelty	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Albionites^[45]	Gen. et comb. nov	Deanna & Knapp in Deanna et al.	Eocene	Poole Formation	United Kingdom	A member of the family Solanaceae; a new genus for "Solanum" arnense Chandler (1962).
Hyoscyamosperma^[45]	Gen. et 2 sp. nov	Deanna & Smith in Deanna et al.	Oligocene to Quaternary		Russia	A member of the family Solanaceae. The type species is H. daturoides; genus also includes H. undulatus.
Seminuta^[45]	Gen. et sp. nov	Deanna & Smith in Deanna et al.	Pliocene to Pleistocene		Italy	A member of the family Solanaceae. The type species is S. pliocenica.
Sinuatitesta^[45]	Gen. et comb. nov	Deanna & Knapp in Deanna et al.	Oligocene to Pleistocene		Ukraine	A member of the family Solanaceae; a new genus for "Solanum" foveolatum Negru (1986).
Solanotes^[45]	Gen. et sp. nov	Deanna & Smith in Deanna et al.	Oligocene to Pleistocene		Russia	A member of the family Solanaceae. The type species is S. dorofeevii.
Solanum miocenicum^[45]	Sp. nov	Deanna & Smith in Deanna et al.	Oligocene to Pleistocene		Russia	A species of Solanum.
Thanatosperma^[45]	Gen. et sp. nov	Deanna & Knapp in Deanna et al.	Pliocene to Holocene		Germany	A member of the family Solanaceae. The type species is T. minutum.

Superasterid research

Lu et al. (2026) study the fossil material of Nyssa sibirica from the Pliocene strata from the Yuxi Basin (Yunnan, China) and reconstruct the geographic distribution of tupelos throughout their evolutionary history, interpreting the species belonging to this genus as originating in warm and humid environments, with their distribution contracting as a result of climate cooling during the Neogene.^[46]
González-Ramírez, Deanna & Smith (2026) reconstruct the evolutionary history of Solanaceae on the basis of data from extant and fossil taxa, reporting evidence of Late Cretaceous origin of the group.^[47]

Superrosids

Fabales

Name	Novelty	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Pahudioxylon pakistanicum^[48]	Sp. nov	Izhar, Su & Oskolski in Izhar et al.	Miocene	Kamlial Formation	Pakistan	A member of the family Fabaceae belonging to the subfamily Detarioideae.
Simojoflorum^[49]	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.
Spatholobus zhurongii^[50]	Sp. nov	Zhao & Xie in Zhao et al.	Miocene	Bangmai Formation	China	A species of Spatholobus.

Fagales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Hexagonokaryon^[51]	Gen. et sp. nov	Valid	Manchester et al.	Paleocene		United States ( Wyoming)		A member of the family Fagaceae. Genus includes new species H. nixonii. Published online in 2025; the final version of the article naming it was published in 2026.

Malpighiales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Eogarcinia^[52]	Gen. et sp. nov	Valid	Ali, Almeida & Khan in Ali et al.	Eocene		India	Fossil flowers with affinities with Garcinia. Genus includes new species E. longistaminata. Published online in 2025; the final version of the article naming it was published in 2026.
Parasalicaceoxylon^[53]	Gen. et sp. nov		Hung & Oskolski in Hung et al.	Eocene	Na Duong Formation	Vietnam	A member of the family Salicaceae. The type species is P. naduongensis.
Tetrapterys miocenica^[54]	Comb. nov	Valid	(Berry)	Miocene		Venezuela	A species of Tetrapterys; moved from Gyrocarpus miocenica Berry (1937).

Malvales

Name	Novelty	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Dryobalanops rajangensis^[55]	Sp. nov	Othman et al.	Miocene	Merit-Pila Formation	Malaysia	A species of Dryobalanops.
Malvaciphyllum checuorum^[56]	Sp. nov	Puente-Santos & Carvalho in Puente-Santos, Carvalho & Herrera	Paleocene	Bogotá Formation	Colombia	A member of the family Malvaceae.
Tilia pentagona^[57]	Sp. nov	Chen, Jia & Xing in Chen et al.	Miocene	Duho Formation	South Korea	A species of Tilia.
Tilia perpendicularis^[57]	Sp. nov	Chen et al.	Miocene	Duho Formation	South Korea	A species of Tilia.
Umarsaria^[58]	Gen. et sp. nov	Singh et al.	Eocene	Umarsar lignite	India	A flower of malvaceous affinity. Genus includes new species U. asahnii.

Myrtales

Name	Novelty	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Capella^[59]	Gen. et sp. nov	Rozefelds et al.	Oligocene		Australia	A member of Melastomataceae. Genus includes new species C. raulingsii.
Syzygium paleosalicifolium^[60]	Sp. nov	Sadanand, Bhatia & Srivastava in Sadanand et al.	Miocene	Kasauli Formation	India	A species of Syzygium.
Trapa gokarnansis^[61]	Sp. nov	Khatri in Khatri et al.	Pleistocene		Nepal	A species of Trapa.

Oxalidales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Eucryphia ñirihuaensis^[62]	Sp. nov		Passalia et al.	Miocene	Ñirihuau Formation	Argentina		A species of Eucryphia.

Sapindales

Name	Novelty	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Baravalosphaera^[63]	Gen. et sp. nov	Ersoy et al.	Oligocene		France	A member of the family Anacardiaceae. Genus includes new species B. operculata.
Palaeochoerospondias^[63]	Gen. et comb. nov	Ersoy et al.	Eocene and Oligocene		United Kingdom	A member of the family Anacardiaceae. Genus includes P. sheppeyensis (Reid & Chandler, 1933).
Zanthoxylum guipingense^[64]	Sp. nov	Xu, Song & Jin in Xu et al.	Miocene	Erzitang Formation	China	A species of Zanthoxylum.

Saxifragales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Location	Notes
Trochodendroides cuneatum^[65]	Comb. nov	Valid	(Newberry)	Paleocene	United States ( Montana)	A species of Trochodendroides; moved from Populus cuneata Newberry (1868).
Trochodendroides flexuosa^[65]	Comb. nov	Valid	(Hollick)	Paleocene	United States ( Alaska)	A species of Trochodendroides; moved from Populus flexuosa Hollick (1936).
Trochodendroides genesevianum^[65]	Comb. nov	Valid	(Chandrasekharam)	Paleocene	Canada ( Alberta)	A species of Trochodendroides; moved from Cercidiphyllum genesevianum Chandrasekharam (1974).

Vitales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Leea himachalensis^[43]	Sp. nov	Valid	Prasad et al.	Miocene		India		A species of Leea.

Zygophyllales

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Larreoxylon^[66]	Gen. et sp. nov		Franco et al.	Miocene	Mariño Formation	Argentina		A member of the family Zygophyllaceae belonging to the subfamily Larreoideae. Genus includes new species L. cuyensis.

Superrosid research

Velasco-Flores et al. (2026) report the discovery of stem fossils of Euphorbia canariensis from the Pleistocene (Chibanian) strata of the Diego Hernández Formation (Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain), preserved in their original distribution as a result of volcanic eruption, and representing the first record of fossils attributed to this species.^[67]
Lu et al. (2026) study the affinities of Albizia fossil leaflets from the Miocene strata from the Xiangyang Coal Mine (Yunnan, China), and interpret them as indicative of presence of ancestors of Albizia julibrissin in southwest China during or before the late Miocene.^[68]
Ali et al. (2026) report the discovery of fossil material of cf. Backhousia sp. from the Eocene strata of the Palana Formation (India), representing the first fossil record a member of this genus outside Australia.^[69]

Other angiosperms

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Synonymized taxa	Notes	Images
Jixia jiuquanensis^[70]	Sp. nov		Peng et al.	Early Cretaceous	Zhonggou Formation	China		A basal flowering plant.

Other plants

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Dengfengfructus^[71]	Gen. et sp. nov		Wang et al.	Permian	Lower Shihezi Formation	China	A fossil plant organ with similarities to flowering plant fruits. The type species is D. maxima.
Dopyeria^[72]	Gen. et sp. nov		Gensel	Devonian (Emsian)		Canada ( New Brunswick)	A basal euphyllophyte. Genus includes new species D. elongata.
Gnetopsis villosa^[73]	Sp. nov		Li & Xue in Li et al.	Carboniferous	Zhangshuwan Formation	China	A member of Lagenospermopsida of uncertain affinities.
Ixostrobus bilobus^[74]	Sp. nov		Chen, Zhang & Wang in Chen et al.	Jurassic		China	Male cones of members of Czekanowskiales.
Marythodaya^[75]	Nom. nov	Valid	Deshmukh	Early Cretaceous (Albian)	Potomac Group	United States ( Virginia)	A seed plant belonging to the informal grouping Bennettitales-Erdtmanithecales-Gnetales; a replacement name for Thodaya Friis, Crane & Pedersen (2019).
Neoparadoxa^[75]	Nom. nov	Valid	Deshmukh	Middle Jurassic (Callovian)	Jiulongshan Formation	China	A gymnosperm with several morphological features formerly restricted to angiosperms; a replacement name for Paradoxa Liu, Shen & Wang (2023).
Panxia spinosa^[76]	Sp. nov		Shen, Xue & Feng in Shen et al.	Devonian	Haikou Formation	China	A member of Cladoxylopsida.
Pseudotorellia yilongensis^[77]	Sp. nov		Dong et al.	Early Cretaceous	Huolinhe Formation	China	A ginkgophyte leaf.
Rellimia piedboeufii^[78]	Comb. nov		(Kräusel & Weyland)	Devonian		Germany	A progymnosperm; moved from Protopteridium piedboeufii Kräusel & Weyland (1932).
Zamites ambigua^[79]	Sp. nov		Morales-Toledo, Zepeda-Martínez & Cevallos-Ferriz	Middle Jurassic (Bathonian–Callovian)	Otlaltepec Formation	Mexico

Other plant research

A study on the morphology of the stem apex of Medullosa stellata, interpreted as indicative of presence of a complex vascular system, as well as indicating that members of Medullosales differed in stem development from the majority of extant seed plants, is presented by Portailler & Luthardt (2026).^[80]
Jiang et al. (2026) interpret the morphology of Fengweioxylon sinense as consistent with the interpretation of the studied plant as an evergreen tree with a 3–5 year leaf retention period, growing in environment with warm summer conditions, and interpret the morphology of corystosperms as consistent with their placement as intermediate between gymnosperms and flowering plants.^[81]
Xu et al. (2026) revise the cuticle structures of Pterophyllum crassinervum and confirms its taxonomic validity.^[82]
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.^[83]
Jiang et al. (2026) use stomatal parameters and carbon isotope composition of cuticles of Ginkgoites and Czekanowskia from the Yanan Formation (China) to reconstruct CO₂ concentrations, local temperature and elevation during the Aalenian, interpreted as consistent with the studied plants growing in a basin or low mountainous terrain with a warm, humid climate.^[84]

Palynology

Name	Novelty	Status	Authors	Age	Unit	Location	Notes
Antulsporites constrictus^[85]	Sp. nov		Ruffo Rey, Balarino & Gutiérrez	Middle Triassic	Cerro de Las Cabras Formation	Argentina	A bryophyte spore.
Antulsporites incipiens^[85]	Sp. nov		Ruffo Rey, Balarino & Gutiérrez	Middle Triassic	Cerro de Las Cabras Formation	Argentina	A bryophyte spore.
Antulsporites robustus^[85]	Sp. nov		Ruffo Rey, Balarino & Gutiérrez	Middle Triassic	Cerro de Las Cabras Formation	Argentina	A bryophyte spore.
Bacutriletes reguralis^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Echitriletes conicus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Erlansonisporites depauperatus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Erlansonisporites junggarensis^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Flabellisporites sparsulus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Floricorbispora^[86]	Gen. et sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China	A spore. Genus includes new species F. zhoui.
Henrisporites grandis^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Henrisporites karamayensis^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Henrisporites rarus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Horstisporites papillatus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Luntaispora granulatus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Narkisporites coacorvatus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Narkisporites junggarensis^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Narkisporites sparsus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Striatriletes inflatus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Striatriletes junggarensis^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Tarimispora radiorugosa^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Trileites bullosus^[86]	Sp. nov	Valid	Peng et al.	Triassic		China
Trypophobiacites^[87]	Gen. et sp. nov		De Benedetti in De Benedetti et al.	Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian)	La Colonia Formation	Argentina	A non-pollen palynomorph of uncertain affinities, with similarities to modern green algae Coelastrum. Genus includes new species T. chubutensis.

Palynological research

Wellman et al. (2026) describe the Devonian spore assemblages from the Portilla and Candás formations (Spain), and interpret spores from the latter formation as indicative of presence of a flora dominated by arborescent archaeopteridaleans and aneurophytaleans.^[88]
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.^[89]
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).^[90]
Sajjadi Hezaveh & Hashemi-Yazdi (2026) reconstruct the composition of the plant assemblage from the Triassic (Rhaetian) strata of the Qadir Member of the Nayband Formation (Iran) and the basis of the study of spores and pollen, interpreted as indicative of affinities of the studied flora with both floras from northern Gondwana and with ones from southern Laurasia.^[91]
Vilas-Boas et al. (2026) study the composition of Late Triassic and Early Jurassic palynological assemblages from the Algarve and Lusitanian basins (Portugal), providing evidence of overall dominance of xerophytic plants across both basins, as well as evidence of links of studied assemblages with floras from the western Tethyan margin and North America, and report malformed sporomorphs interpreted as evidence of environmental impact of Central Atlantic magmatic province activity.^[92]
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.^[93]
A study on spores and pollen grains from the Schandelah-1 core (Germany), providing evidence of increased occurrence of malformed pollen grains and shifts in the composition of the palynofloral assemblage indicative of ecological stress during the Toarcian hyperthermal event, is published by Galasso, Foster & van de Schootbrugge (2026).^[94]
Evidence from the study of palynological assemblages from the Upper Jurassic strata from the Binalud Mountains (Iran), indicative of increase in the abundance and diversity of warm-adapted cheirolepid conifers over time in response to a regional warming, is presented by Kalanat (2026).^[95]
Buratti et al. (2026) study the composition of palynological assemblages from the Gorgo a Cerbara section (Barremian–Aptian transition; Italy), and report evidence of presence of pollen Afropollis cf. jardinus representing one of the earliest records of flowering plants in the Tethyan realm.^[96]
Zhang et al. (2026) study the composition of palynological assemblages from the Jiufengshan Formation (Dayangshu Basin, China), and report evidence of increase of taxonomic richness of the flowering plants in the studied area during the Aptian.^[97]
Carvalho et al. (2026) reconstruct the composition of Aptian assemblages of spore-producing plants from the south Atlantic margin and their responses to environmental changes at the time of the opening of the southern Atlantic Ocean on the basis of the study of palynological assemblages from eight Brazilian sedimentary basins.^[98]
Evidence from the study of palynological assemblages from Codó and Itapecuru formations, indicative of changes of composition of plant assemblages in northeastern Brazil in response to climate and moisture variability during the late Aptian, is presented by Correia et al. (2026).^[99]
Lorente (2026) calculates the biomass of Cenomanian conifers in the eastern North America and the amount of their dispersed pollen on the basis of the study of the fossil record from the Arlington Archosaur Section (Woodbine Group; Texas, United States) and comparisons with extant conifers.^[100]
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).^[101]
Raynaud et al. (2026) reconstruct the composition of the Eocene plant assemblage from the embrithopod-bearing Bultu-Zile site (Meryemdere Formation; Turkey) on the basis of the study of the freshwater-deposited palynoflora from the site, and interpreted as indicative of a swamp-freshwater environment.^[102]
Barreda et al. (2026) study the composition of the palynological assemblage from the Río Pichileufú locality (Huitrera Formation, Argentina), providing evidence of presence of a middle Eocene flora dominated by gymnosperms and Nothofagaceae, and including fossil pollen representing the oldest record of the crown group of Barnadesioideae reported to date.^[103]
Evidence from the study of palynological assemblages from the Miocene El Chacay Formation (Argentina) indicative of increase in floral diversity during the early Burdigalian before the onset of the Middle Miocene Climatic Optimum is presented by Tapia et al. (2026).^[104]
Pound et al. (2026) study the Miocene (Serravallian) palynoflora from the Kenslow Member of the Brassington Formation (United Kingdom), interpreted as fossil record of plant growing in an area with an oceanic type climate with more rainfall during the summer than the winter (but with no pronounced dry season), and report evidence of impact of seasonal changes of availability of moisture on the composition of the studied Miocene forest.^[105]
Li et al. (2026) report evidence from the study of the palynological record from the East China Sea continental shelf spanning the past 71,000 years indicative of presence of a cool, dry temperate grassland biome during the lowstand intervals (including the Last Glacial Maximum), as well as evidence of presence of an open-forest landscape during the milder conditions of the Marine Isotope Stage 3, and interpret their findings as supporting the interpretation of the exposed East China Sea continental shelf as a habitat facilitating the initial dispersal of early modern humans into East Asia.^[106]
Evidence from the study of pollen record from eastern Nanling Mountains, indicative of impact of climate changes (and, since the late Holocene, human activities) on the composition of vegetation in the studied area during the last 46,000 years, as well as of existence of cool and humid refugia in subtropical China during the Last Glacial Maximum, is presented by Quan et al. (2026).^[107]

General research

Cai et al. (2026) report evidence of a shift in organic carbon to total phosphorus ratios in marine siliciclastic strata from approximately 455 million years ago, interpreted as likely linked to the spread of early land plants during the Ordovician.^[108]
Lu et al. (2026) review evidence of impact of successive phases of plant terrestrialization on global coal accumulation.^[109]
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).^[110]
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.^[111]
A study on the affinities of early gymnospermous seeds and their evolutionary history from the late Devonian to the late Permian is published by Bateman, Spencer & Hilton (2026).^[112]
Santos et al. (2026) study the composition of the Permian plant assemblage from the Costela Mine locality (Pedra de Fogo Formation, Brazil) dominated by callipterid peltasperms, interpreted as indicative of biogeographic links with early Permian plant assemblages from Euramerica, and report evidence of plant-arthropod interactions and plant disease in fossils from the studied assemblage.^[113]
Negri & Toledo (2026) review evidence of mutualistic relationships between insects and gymnosperms before the emergence of flowering plants.^[114]
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).^[115]
Jalfin et al. (2026) study changes of taxonomic diversity and community structure of the riparian forest known from fossil from the La Golondrina Formation (Argentina) during the Permian, reporting evidence of peak diversity in the Guadalupian and major ecological disruption near the Guadalupian–Lopingian transition.^[116]
A study on gymnosperm wood preserved as charcoal from the Madygen Formation (Kyrgyzstan), providing evidence of wildfire in the studied area near the Ladinian–Carnian transition, is published by Spiekermann et al. (2026).^[117]
Foster et al. (2026) provide estimates of height and mass of giant trees preserved as fossil logs from the Morrison Formation (western United States), and interpret the presence of these trees in western North America during the Late Jurassic as suggestive of long-term climatic cyclicity including both periods of arid conditions and periods of humid ones.^[118]
Evidence from the study of fossil plants from the Lower Cretaceous Jinju Formation (South Korea), indicative of presence of a temperate intermontane savanna in the studied area during the Albian, is presented by Lee, Kim & Looy (2026).^[119]
A study on the composition of the Cenomanian plant assemblage from the strata of the Utrillas Group from the Algora area (Guadalajara, Spain) is published by Sender, Bueno-Cebollada & Pérez-García (2026).^[120]
Greenwood & Conran (2026) review the fossil record of Cenozoic plants from the Kati Thanda–Lake Eyre, Woomera and northern deserts region of South Australia.^[121]
A study on the composition of the early Miocene plant assemblages known from leaf material from West Akrocheiras (Lesvos Petrified Forest, Greece) is published by Liapi et al. (2026).^[122]
Stiles et al. (2026) reconstruct climate changes and vegetation in the Upper Magdalena River Valley region (Colombia) during the middle and late Miocene, reporting evidence of surface cooling that exceeded global estimates, as well as evidence of presence of closed-canopy forests with increasing vegetation density.^[123]
Allaby et al. (2026) reconstruct the environment of the Southern River system in southern Doggerland on the basis of sedimentological and sedimentary ancient DNA, and report evidence of presence of temperate trees indicative of presence of northern refugia during the early Mesolithic.^[124]
Evidence from the study of modern leaves from swamp and river margins, indicating that studies that use fossil leaves as paleoclimate proxy and do not take into account the reduction of size of leaves from the surface litter and buried litter might result in underestimation of precipitation, is presented by Brown et al. (2026).^[125]