Pliocene-Quaternary orogenic systems in Central Mediterranean: The Apulia-Southern Apennines-Tyrrhenian Sea example

In the Central Mediterranean the Africa-Eurasia convergence led to the development of complex orogenic systems and back-arc basins. Throughout Pliocene-Quaternary times the Southern Apennines accretionary prism migrated toward the Apulia foreland and, contemporaneously, the Tyrrhenian Sea back-arc basin opened. In this study, we investigated the offshore of the southern Apulia foreland and the Southern Apennines. Using seismic reflection profiles and well data in a dedicated GIS software, we made a detailed stratigraphic analysis, reconstructed the structural pattern, and built 2-D geological models of the main geological surfaces. The structure of the Apulia region formed during two main tectonic stages: lower Pleistocene complex extensional faulting developed in a transtensional regime and middle-upper Pleistocene transpression/shortening. The Southern Apennines accretionary prism developed through the Pliocene-early lower Pleistocene and was overprinted by late lower Pleistocene-middle Pleistocene NW-SE sinistral faults. Through linking new data from the accretionary prism and the foreland with previous information from the Tyrrhenian Sea back-arc, we provide an original interpretation for the relationships between the various provinces that make the Central Mediterranean crustal puzzle and reconstruct the main phases of the evolution of its Pliocene-Quaternary orogenic cycle. We recognized collisional stages of uncoupled plates, followed by late lower-middle Pleistocene postcollisional stages of coupled continental plates. This Pleistocene plate reorganization of Central Mediterranean was probably due to the rupture of the Apulia/Ionian slab or to NNW intraplate shortening transmitted from Africa.