# Topics and Trends in Most Cited Marine Biology and Ecology Research Papers, Class of 2026

*Canonical URL: https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/marine-biology-and-ecology-research/2026*

## What topics and trends defined most-cited Marine Biology and Ecology Research research in the Class of 2026?

Marine biology and ecology research in the Class of 2026 is heavily anchored by ocean carbon sequestration and phytoplankton biomass dynamics. Rapidly emerging priorities show significant growth in particulate organic carbon and marine comparative genomics, while focus on marine heatwaves and broad phytoplankton community composition has experienced relative decline across top-ranked literature.

## At a glance

| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Field | Marine Biology and Ecology Research |
| Cohort label | Class of 2026 (2024 publications) |
| Papers analyzed | 4,453 |
| Papers ranked | 20 |
| Top topics in ranked papers | Carbon sequestration, phytoplankton biomass, particulate organic carbon, eutrophication |
| Publication window | Jan 1, 2024 – Dec 31, 2024 |
| Eligibility | Research articles; reviews excluded |
| Citation window | 18 months post-publication |
| 18m citation range | 23–183 |
| Data source | OpenAlex · Retrieved Jul 2026 |
| License | CC BY 4.0 |

## Rankings

| Rank | Title | Authors | Corresponding authors | Affiliation | Journal | 18m citations | DOI |
| ---: | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | ---: | --- |
| 1 | Harmful algal blooms in inland waters | Lian Feng, Ying Wang, Xuejiao Hou, Boqiang Qin, Tiit Kuster, Fan Qu, Nengwang Chen, Hans W Paerl, Chunmiao Zheng | Lian Feng | Southern University of Science and Technology, China | Nature Reviews Earth & Environment | 183 | 10.1038/s43017-024-00578-2 |
| 2 | <scp>Bio‐ORACLE</scp> v3.0. Pushing marine data layers to the <scp>CMIP6</scp> Earth System Models of climate change research | Jorge Assis, Salvador Jesús Fernández Bejarano, Vinícius Salazar, Lennert Schepers, Lidiane Gouvêa, Eliza Fragkopoulou, Frederic Leclercq, B. Vanhoorne, L. Tyberghein, Ester Á. Serrão, Heroen Verbruggen, Olivier De Clerck | Jorge Assis | Universidade do Algarve, Portugal | Global Ecology and Biogeography | 81 | 10.1111/geb.13813 |
| 3 | Carbon export from seaweed forests to deep ocean sinks | Karen Filbee‐Dexter, Albert Pessarrodona, Morten Foldager Pedersen, Thomas Wernberg, Carlos M. Duarte, Jorge Assis, Trine Bekkby, Michael T. Burrows, Daniel F. Carlson, Jean‐Pierre Gattuso, Hege Gundersen, Kasper Hancke, Kira A. Krumhansl, Tomohiro Kuwae, Jack J. Middelburg, Pippa J. Moore, Ana M. Queirós, Dan A. Smale, Isabel Sousa‐Pinto, Nobuhiro Suzuki, Dorte Krause‐Jensen | Karen Filbee‐Dexter | Institute of Marine Research, Norway | Nature Geoscience | 64 | 10.1038/s41561-024-01449-7 |
| 4 | Evidence of dark oxygen production at the abyssal seafloor | Andrew K Sweetman, Alycia J Smith, Danielle S W de Jonge, Tobias Hahn, Peter Schroedl, Michael Silverstein, Claire Andrade, R Lawrence Edwards, Alastair J M Lough, Clare Woulds, William B Homoky, Andrea Koschinsky, Sebastian Fuchs, Thomas Kuhn, Franz Geiger, Jeffrey J Marlow | Andrew K. Sweetman | The Scottish Association for Marine Science, United Kingdom | Nature Geoscience | 59 | 10.1038/s41561-024-01480-8 |
| 5 | Chemical signaling in biofilm-mediated biofouling | Xiaobo Liu, Ling Zou, Boqiao Li, Patrick Di Martino, Daniel Rittschof, Jin-Long Yang, James Maki, Weijie Liu, Ji-Dong Gu | Xiaobo Liu | Nanjing University of Science and Technology, China | Nature Chemical Biology | 43 | 10.1038/s41589-024-01740-z |
| 6 | Frenemies on the reef? Resolving the coral–Endozoicomonas association | Claudia Pogoreutz, Maren Ziegler | Claudia Pogoreutz, Maren Ziegler | Université de Perpignan Via Domitia, France | Trends in Microbiology | 40 | 10.1016/j.tim.2023.11.006 |
| 7 | Climate change is an important predictor of extinction risk on macroevolutionary timescales | Cooper M Malanoski, Alex Farnsworth, Daniel J Lunt, Paul J Valdes, Erin E Saupe | Cooper Malanoski, Erin E. Saupe | Oxford University, United Kingdom | Science | 37 | 10.1126/science.adj5763 |
| 8 | The annual update GLODAPv2.2023: the global interior ocean biogeochemical data product | Siv K. Lauvset, Nico Lange, Toste Tanhua, Henry C. Bittig, Are Olsen, Alex Kozyr, Marta Álvarez, Kumiko Azetsu‐Scott, Peter J. Brown, Brendan R. Carter, Letícia Cotrim da Cunha, Mario Hoppema, Matthew Humphreys, Masao Ishii, Emil Jeansson, Akihiko Murata, Jens Daniel Müller, Fı́z F. Pérez, Carsten Schirnick, Reiner Steinfeldt, Toru Suzuki, Adam Ulfsbo, A. Velo, Ryan J. Woosley, Robert M. Key | Siv K. Lauvset, Nico Lange, Toste Tanhua, Henry C. Bittig, Are Olsen, Alex Kozyr, Marta Álvarez, Kumiko Azetsu‐Scott, Peter J. Brown, Brendan R. Carter, Letícia Cotrim da Cunha, Mario Hoppema, Matthew Humphreys, Masao Ishii, Emil Jeansson, Akihiko Murata, Jens Daniel Müller, Fı́z F. Pérez, Carsten Schirnick, Reiner Steinfeldt, Toru Suzuki, Adam Ulfsbo, A. Velo, Ryan J. Woosley, Robert M. Key | NORCE Norwegian Research Centre, Norway | Earth system science data | 35 | 10.5194/essd-16-2047-2024 |
| 9 | The marine biodiversity impact of the Late Miocene Mediterranean salinity crisis | Konstantina Agiadi, Niklas Hohmann, Elsa Gliozzi, Danae Thivaiou, Francesca R Bosellini, Marco Taviani, Giovanni Bianucci, Alberto Collareta, Laurent Londeix, Costanza Faranda, Francesca Bulian, Efterpi Koskeridou, Francesca Lozar, Alan Maria Mancini, Stefano Dominici, Pierre Moissette, Ildefonso Bajo Campos, Enrico Borghi, George Iliopoulos, Assimina Antonarakou, George Kontakiotis, Evangelia Besiou, Stergios D Zarkogiannis, Mathias Harzhauser, Francisco Javier Sierro, Marta Coll, Iuliana Vasiliev, Angelo Camerlenghi, Daniel García-Castellanos | Konstantina Agiadi | University of Vienna, Austria | Science | 34 | 10.1126/science.adp3703 |
| 10 | Sea level controls on Ediacaran-Cambrian animal radiations | Fred T Bowyer, Rachel A Wood, Mariana Yilales | Fred Bowyer, Rachel Wood, Mariana Yilales | University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom | Science Advances | 32 | 10.1126/sciadv.ado6462 |
| 11 | Projected loss of brown macroalgae and seagrasses with global environmental change | Federica Manca, Lisandro Benedetti-Cecchi, Corey J A Bradshaw, Mar Cabeza, Camilla Gustafsson, Alf M Norkko, Tomas V Roslin, David N Thomas, Lydia White, Giovanni Strona | Federica Manca, Giovanni Strona | University of Helsinki, Finland | Nature Communications | 31 | 10.1038/s41467-024-48273-6 |
| 12 | Seagrass genomes reveal ancient polyploidy and adaptations to the marine environment | Xiao Ma, Steffen Vanneste, Jiyang Chang, Luca Ambrosino, Kerrie Barry, Till Bayer, Alexander A Bobrov, LoriBeth Boston, Justin E Campbell, Hengchi Chen, Maria Luisa Chiusano, Emanuela Dattolo, Jane Grimwood, Guifen He, Jerry Jenkins, Marina Khachaturyan, Lázaro Marín-Guirao, Attila Mesterházy, Danish-Daniel Muhd, Jessica Pazzaglia, Chris Plott, Shanmugam Rajasekar, Stephane Rombauts, Miriam Ruocco, Alison Scott, Min Pau Tan, Jozefien Van de Velde, Bartel Vanholme, Jenell Webber, Li Lian Wong, Mi Yan, Yeong Yik Sung, Polina Novikova, Jeremy Schmutz, Thorsten B H Reusch, Gabriele Procaccini, Jeanine L Olsen, Yves Van de Peer | Jozefien Van de Velde, Thorsten B. H. Reusch, Gabriele Procaccini, Jørn Olsen, Yves Van de Peer | Ghent University, Belgium | Nature Plants | 28 | 10.1038/s41477-023-01608-5 |
| 13 | Disentangling drivers of mudflat intertidal DOM chemodiversity using ecological models | Kai Ma, Yueyue Li, Wen Song, Jiayin Zhou, Xia Liu, Mengqi Wang, Xiaofan Gong, Linlin Wang, Qichao Tu | Qichao Tu | Shandong University, China | Nature Communications | 27 | 10.1038/s41467-024-50841-9 |
| 14 | Aquatic deoxygenation as a planetary boundary and key regulator of Earth system stability | Kevin C Rose, Erica M Ferrer, Stephen R Carpenter, Sean A Crowe, Sarah C Donelan, Véronique C Garçon, Marilaure Grégoire, Stephen F Jane, Peter R Leavitt, Lisa A Levin, Andreas Oschlies, Denise Breitburg | Kevin C. Rose | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, United States | Nature Ecology & Evolution | 26 | 10.1038/s41559-024-02448-y |
| 15 | One-third of Southern Ocean productivity is supported by dust deposition | Jakob Weis, Zanna Chase, Christina Schallenberg, Peter G Strutton, Andrew R Bowie, Sonya L Fiddes | Jakob Weis | University of Tasmania, Australia | Nature | 26 | 10.1038/s41586-024-07366-4 |
| 16 | Long-term effects of dead algal deposition on sediment surfaces: Behavior of endogenous phosphorus release in sediments | Yanqi Chen, Dapeng Li, Songqi Liu, Yujie Zhang, Xinrui Yan, Xinyu Song, Ziyu Li, Boling Li, Sujie Shan, Yizhi Zhu, Jun Hou | Dapeng Li, Songqi Liu | Suzhou University of Science and Technology, China | Water Research | 25 | 10.1016/j.watres.2024.122742 |
| 17 | Temperature and nutrients drive distinct successions between diatoms and dinoflagellates over the past 40 years: Implications for climate warming and eutrophication | Yuqiu Wei, Qingshan Luan, Xiujuan Shan, Hongwu Cui, Keming Qu, Zhengguo Cui, Jun Sun | Zhengguo Cui, Jun Sun | Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute, China | The Science of The Total Environment | 24 | 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172997 |
| 18 | Impact of anthropogenic global hypoxia on the physiological response of bivalves | Jingjing Song, Ardavan Farhadi, Kianann Tan, Leongseng Lim, Karsoon Tan | Kianann Tan, Karsoon Tan | Beibu Gulf University, China | The Science of The Total Environment | 24 | 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172056 |
| 19 | Tracking the Changes of DOM Composition, Transformation, and Cycling Mechanism Triggered by the Priming Effect: Insights from Incubation Experiments | Wenrui Yao, Yuanyuan Dong, Yulin Qi, Yufu Han, Jinfeng Ge, Dietrich A Volmer, Zhiyang Zhang, Xueyan Liu, Si-Liang Li, Pingqing Fu | Yulin Qi | Tianjin University, China | Environmental Science & Technology | 24 | 10.1021/acs.est.4c03784 |
| 20 | The Central Paratethys Sea—rise and demise of a Miocene European marine biodiversity hotspot | Mathias Harzhauser, Bernard Landau, Oleg Mandic, Thomas A Neubauer | Mathias Harzhauser | Natural History Museum Vienna, Austria | Scientific Reports | 23 | 10.1038/s41598-024-67370-6 |

## Topic trends

### What Topics Define the Class of 2026?

The Class of 2026 in marine biology and ecology research is prominently defined by studies on marine carbon cycling and biogeochemical ocean processes. Leading the cohort, carbon sequestration stands out as the single most frequent core concept with a 12% normalized frequency, closely accompanied by phytoplankton biomass dynamics at 10% normalized frequency. Researchers are increasingly focusing on the biological carbon pump, evaluating how primary production drives elemental flux and long-term carbon storage in ocean reservoirs. Alongside marine carbon dynamics, ecosystem health indicators such as eutrophication (8%) and seasonal biogeochemical variability (8%) represent central research focal points across high-impact literature. Additional dominant themes include particulate organic carbon export, chlorophyll a remote sensing, and regional ecological assessments centered in marine hotspots like the Mediterranean Sea. Furthermore, high-throughput technologies such as autonomous BGC-Argo float arrays and comparative marine genomics are becoming integral to baseline monitoring. Together, these topics illustrate a strong consensus around quantifying oceanic carbon budgets, predicting biological responses to global environmental change, and developing mechanistic models of marine ecosystem function.

*Leading research themes*

### How Did Topics Shift from the Class of 2025 to the Class of 2026?

Comparing the Class of 2025 to the Class of 2026 reveals a distinct shift toward high-resolution observation and mechanistic genomic approaches in marine ecology. The most pronounced expansion occurred in particulate organic carbon tracking, which jumped from zero representation in 2023 to 8% of top papers in 2024. Similarly, comparative genomics and deep-ocean reservoir dynamics emerged as major new growth areas, reflecting an increasing emphasis on molecular-level adaptation and deep-sea biogeochemistry. Substantial gains were also observed in coral reef resilience, biodiversity loss assessments, and depth-resolved autonomous sampling using BGC-Argo platforms. Conversely, several established concepts saw a relative decline in representation: research focused on marine heatwaves dropped by 50% (from 8% in 2023 to 4% in 2024), and general studies on phytoplankton community composition declined from 6% to 4%. This shift suggests that the field is moving from broad observational studies of thermal anomalies toward granular, process-oriented investigations of organic carbon export, microbial genomic capacity, and subsurface ocean dynamics.

*How topics shifted year over year*

## Cite this ranking

```
Pepkio Research Index (PRI). Topics and Trends in Most Cited Marine Biology and Ecology Research Papers, Class of 2026. https://pri.pepkio.com/top-papers/marine-biology-and-ecology-research/2026. Accessed 2026-07-23.

Zheng Su, Tinsley Li, Thematic Shifts in Early-High-Impact Cancer Genomics and Diagnostics Research: A Bibliometric and Semantic Analysis. bioRxiv 2026.07.04.736459; doi: https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.07.04.736459
```