Neogene evolution of the southwestern Tyrrhenian Sea (Sardinia Basin and western Bathyal plain)

Structuring and evolution of Neogene transcurrent basins in the Tellian foreland domain, north-eastern Tunisia

“…This movement would have accentuated the genesis of the compressive Betic-Rifian and the North Africa mountain chains (Tapponnier, 1977;Vila, 1980;Malod, 1982;Leblanc and Olivier, 1984;Larouzière et al, 1987;Montenat et al, 1987;Philip, 1987;Sanz de Galdeano and Vera, 1992;Melki et al, 1999;De Vicente et al, 2009;Frizon de Lamotte et al, 2009;Casas-Sainz and De Vicente, 2009) following the Late Eocene and Late Miocene IberiaKabylie collision with the Tellian margin of Africa (Auzende, 1971;Wildi, 1983;Bouillin, 1986) (Table 2). The main Neogene structures and major tectonic lineaments and events have been also identified in the offshore Gulf of Tunis and along the SiculoTunisian Channel rift (Montenat et al, 1991;Chihi and Philip, 1998;Sartori et al, 2001;Corti et al, 2006).…”

Early-stage rifting of the Southern Tyrrhenian region: The Calabria–Sardinia breakup

“…Kastens and Mascle, 1990;Sartori, 1990;Sartori et al, 2001); this age is based on the result of the OPD site 654, located offshore northeastern Sardinia ( Fig. 1), where upper Tortonian syn-rift deposits overly 50 m of conglomerates containing pebbles of Paleozoic basement rocks.…”

“…Whilst the beginning of the Tyrrhenian rifting is well documented on the Sardinia margin (e.g. Kastens and Mascle, 1990;Sartori, 1990;Sartori et al, 2001), the link between Calabria and Sardinia as being the exact place of the conjugate margins, width and geometry of extension are controversial. Several middle Miocene paleogeographic maps produced on the basis of distribution of dated magmatic, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks of both the Tyrrhenian area (dredges, ODP and DSDP sites) and peri-Tyrrhenian orogens, kinematic data of thrust front of the southern Apennines and plate kinematic data are available (Alvarez et al, 1974;Malinverno and Ryan, 1986;Dewey et al, 1989;Kastens and Mascle, 1990;Patacca et al, 1990;Carminati et al, 1998;Gueguen et al, 1998;Savelli, 2002;Rosenbaum and Lister, 2004;Sartori, 2005;Faccenna et al, 2007;Reitz and Seeber, 2012;Vitale and Ciarcia, 2013).…”

“…The beginning of the Tyrrhenian opening on the Sardinia margin was characterized by NS normal faults and pre-Messinian syn-rift wedges (Rehault et al, 1987;Sartori et al, 2001). Pre-Messinian sediments were recognized in the ODP Sites 654 offshore the northern Sardinia Margin, and also in the infill of Erice Basin located in the Southern Tyrrhenian sea offshore western sicily (Bertotti et al, 1999).…”

Petrological, geochemical, and stable isotope constraints on the genesis of the Miocene igneous rocks of Chetaibi and Cap de Fer (NE Algeria)

“…The structure of the North African Alpine belt is believed to be a consequence of the western Mediterranean subduction-collision between the African and European plates during the Oligo-Miocene (Auzende et al, 1975;Bouillin, 1979Bouillin, , 1986Cohen, 1980;Carminati et al, 1998a,b;Sartori et al, 2001;Duggen et al, 2004). In this geodynamic setting a number of igneous bodies were emplaced along the North African margin.…”