Terrestrial plant extinction during the Permian–Triassic ecosystem crisis

The end-Permian mass extinction is the most severe ecosystem crisis in the Phanerozoic, profoundly reshaping Earth’s ecosystems on a global scale. How the terrestrial ecosystem was impacted during the crisis remains poorly constrained due to limited fossil records. Especially, there is the lack of a global view of terrestrial ecosystem changes during the mass extinction. Here we combine Earth system simulations with plant fossil records to reconstruct the global distributions of terrestrial biomes across the Permian-Triassic transition. The results show that terrestrial plant extinction initiated in polar regions and gradually extended to lower latitudes. Plants between 50 ºN and 75 ºS were nearly completely extinct, with survival limited to local areas. Concurrently, flora from lower latitudes migrated into polar habitats. Our results provide quantitative global and regional views of terrestrial plant extinction during Earth’s most severe ecosystem collapse, enhancing our understanding of terrestrial biotic responses to extreme environmental change.