国际研究团队通过分析钻芯沉积物中的化石孢粉和有机微化石，发现约2.01亿年前三叠纪末大灭绝期间，古代蕨类植物覆盖的欧洲地区经历了持续严重的野火活动[1]。该研究基于包括来自英国640米长钻芯在内的4个钻芯数据，研究人员进行了15,000次孢粉和孢子的颜色测量[1]。蕨类植物扩展区间与木炭、多环芳烃含量升高完全重合，表明这一时期的生物地层与火灾活动之间存在直接关联[1]。
火山喷发导致大气中二氧化碳大量释放，全球气温上升5至10摄氏度，为蕨类植物的大规模扩展创造了条件[1]。作为灾难物种，蕨类植物能够在火烧后快速再生，其大规模覆盖形成的干燥燃料垫层又导致了反复的大规模野火，这一过程持续至少4万年，可能长达30万年[1]。研究人员指出，"气候变化、森林砍伐和机会主义物种的扩散相结合可能造成完美风暴"[1]。该研究已发表于《自然地球科学》2026年7月21日[1]。
An international research team has reconstructed a catastrophic period of repeated massive wildfires in Triassic Europe by analyzing fossil pollen and organic microfossils preserved in drill core sediments.[1] The wildfires occurred during the end-Triassic extinction event approximately 201 million years ago, when volcanic eruptions released massive amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, raising global temperatures by 5 to 10 degrees Celsius.[1] Ancient ferns, functioning as disaster species capable of rapid regeneration following fire, expanded across the region and created extensive dry fuel layers that triggered successive large-scale fires.[1]
The research, published in Nature Earth Sciences on July 21, 2026, was based on analysis of four drill cores, including a 640-meter-long core from the United Kingdom.[1] Researchers conducted 15,000 color measurements of pollen and spores to track environmental changes.[1] The expansion of fern populations coincided precisely with elevated levels of charcoal and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), chemical markers of fire activity.[1] This fern-dominated period persisted for at least 40,000 years and potentially lasted as long as 300,000 years.[1]
According to the research team, "climate change, forest loss, and the spread of opportunistic species may have combined to create a perfect storm."[1] The findings demonstrate how ancient vegetation patterns and fire dynamics were fundamentally reshaped during one of Earth's most severe extinction episodes.