Geochemistry and Zircon U-Pb Dates of Felsic-Intermediate Members of the Late Cretaceous Yüksekova Arc Basin: Constraints on the Evolution of the Bitlis–Zagros Branch of Neotethys(Elazig, E Turkey)

During the Late Cretaceous in the Eastern Mediterranean, the northern branch of the southern Neotethys was closed by multiple northward subductions. Of these, the most northerly located subduction created the Baskil continental arc at around 82–84 Ma. The more southerly and intra-oceanic subduction, on the other hand, produced an arc-basin system,the Yüksekova Complex, as early as the late Cenomanian–early Turonian. The abundant and relatively well-studied basaltic rocks of this complex were intruded by dykes, sills and small stocks of felsic–intermediate rocks, not previously studied in detail. The intrusives collected from five different localities in the Elazig region of eastern Turkey are all subalkaline, with low Nb/Y values. Most of them have been chemically classified as rhyodacites/dacites, whereas a small number appear to be andesites. In normal mid-ocean-ridge basalt(N-MORB)-normalised plots, the intrusives are characterised by relative enrichments in Th and La over Nb, Zr, Hf, Ti and high field strength elements(HREEs), indicating their derivation from a subduction-modified source. While their relatively high, positive εN d(i) values(+6.4 and +7.2) might suggest a depleted mantle source for their ultimate origin, somewhat radiogenic Pb values indicate a sedimentary contribution to the source of the rocks. The overall geochemical characteristics indicate their generation in an oceanic arc setting. The zircon U-Pb Laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry(LA-ICP-MS) data obtained from five felsic-intermediate rock samples yielded intrusion dates of 80–88 Ma. This suggests that the Elazig oceanic arc-related intrusives are slightly younger than those of the Yüksekova arc-basin system, but coeval with the Baskil continental arc. However, the felsic–intermediate intrusives show different geochemical characteristics(oceanic arc-type, with a lack of crustal contamination)to those of the Baskil continental arc. This indicates that these two igneous systems are unrelated and likely developed in different tectonic settings. This, in turn, supports a geodynamic model in which the northern strand of the southern Neotethys was consumed by multiple northward subductions.

The Intra-Pontide ophiolites in Northern Turkey revisited:From birth to death of a Neotethyan oceanic domain

The Anatolian peninsula is a key location to study the central portion of the Neotethys Ocean(s)and to understand how its western and eastern branches were connected.One of the lesser known branches of the Mesozoic ocean(s)is preserved in the northern ophiolite suture zone exposed in Turkey,namely,the Intra-Pontide suture zone.It is located between the Sakarya terrane and the Eurasian margin(i.e.,Istanbul-Zonguldak terrane)and consists of several metamorphic and non-metamorphic units containing ophiolites produced in supra-subduction settings from the Late Triassic to the Early Cretaceous.Ophiolites preserved in the metamorphic units recorded pervasive deformations and peak metamorphic conditions ranging from blueschist to eclogite facies.In the nonmetamorphic units,the complete oceanic crust sequence is preserved in tectonic units or as olistoliths in sedimentary melanges.Geochemical,structural,metamorphic and geochronological investigations performed on ophiolite-bearing units allowed the formulation of a new geodynamic model of the entire"life"of the IntraPontide oceanic basin(s).The reconstruction starts with the opening of the Intra-Pontide oceanic basins during the Late Triassic between the Sakarya and Istanbul-Zonguldak continental microplates and ends with its closure caused by two different subductions events that occurred during the upper Early Jurassic and Middle Jurassic.The continental collision between the Sakarya continental microplate and the Eurasian margin developed from the upper Early Cretaceous to the Palaeocene.The presented reconstruction is an alternative model to explain the complex and articulate geodynamic evolution that characterizes the southern margin of Eurasia during the Mesozoic era.

Latest Carboniferous-Early Permian Rifting of the Northern Gondwanan Margin and the Opening of the Northern Neotethys: New Evidence from the Carboniferous and Permian Foraminiferal Assemblages from the Beyşehir-Hoyran Nappes, Central Taurides(Southern Turkey)

The Beyşehir-Hoyran Nappes,one of the tectonostratigraphic units of the Taurides,are thought to be originated from the Izmir-Ankara Ocean(northern branch of Neotethys).In this study,Late Paleozoic rock units from the blocks of Beyşehir-Hoyran Nappes were studied in detail using foraminiferal assemblages in two different locations from the southwest of Karaman City(southern Turkey).In both places,blocks/slices and pebbles of various origins are embedded within a highly sheared matrix of Late Cretaceous Age,and the whole unit can be regarded as a sedimentary mélange.The ages of the blocks from the southwest of Karaman City range from the Late Serpukhovian(Late Mississippian)to Late Capitanian(Middle Permian)with some depositional breaks(e.g.,Bashkirian,Kasimovian).Combined with the previous data from the Mersin Mélange,which also include the remnants of the Beyşehir-Hoyran Nappes,our new findings suggest that a shallowing-upward sequence,characterized by a shallow water environment with foraminifera-bearing limestones,was deposited over the Tournaisian pelagic sequence in the Beyşehir-Hoyran Nappes till the Early Moscovian(Early Middle Pennsylvanian).This shallowing-upward sequence in the Beyşehir-Hoyran Nappes could be related to the Late Paleozoic Glaciation on the Gondwana supercontinent(Glacial Ⅱ),which resulted in a sea-level drop and deposition of platform carbonates during the Viséan–Early Moscovian(Middle Mississippian to Early Middle Pennsylvanian)time interval.The absence of the main part of the Middle-Upper Pennsylvanian deposits(continental phase during the Middle Moscovian–Middle Gzhelian)in the Beyşehir-Hoyran Nappes can be mainly attributed to the occurrence of a mantle plume and partially to the effect of Late Paleozoic Gondwanan Glaciation(Glacial Ⅲ).Progressive uplifting by the buoyant mantle plume material has resulted in rifting at the center of the basin where the Beyşehir-Hoyran Nappes have deposited.The rifting process led to tectonic destabilization of the platform in the basin,causing accumulation of the Upper Gzhelian(uppermost Pennsylvanian)detrital limestone with broken and abraded foraminiferal shells.Following this,deep basinal conditions prevailed during the Late Asselian–Kungurian(Early Permian),as revealed in the Mersin Mélange,where radiolarian cherts are associated with continental within-plate lavas of extreme incompatible trace element enrichment.Similar processes were responsible for the continual deposition of detrital limestones in the same basin until the end of Late Capitanian(Middle Permian).Based on all these,the uplifting process followed by rift-related volcanic rocks and detrital limestones can be interpreted as the opening of the Izmir-Ankara Ocean(northern Neotethys).

Geological,Structural and Mineralogical Approach to Investigate the Evolution of Low-and very Low-Grade Metamorphic Units from the Intra-Pontide Suture Zone,Central Pontides,Turkey

A multidisciplinary approach combining multiscale geological-structural analyses(from field to microscale) and clay mineral transformations(clay mineralogy, illite and chlorite "crystallinity" and b cell dimension(b_(0)) of K-white mica) was adopted to unravel the tectono-metamorphic evolution of low-and very low-grade tectono-metamorphic units from the Intra-Pontide suture zone in northern Turkey. The mineralogical study allowed to better evaluate the structural stacking outlined during the geological mapping, leading to distinguish three tectono-metamorphic units, two in epizone(Daday and Emirkoy units) and one in anchizone(Cifter Unit) metamorphic conditions. The mesostructural and microstructural analyses suggest a polyphase tectonic-metamorphic evolution. The different macroscopic features observed between the two units characterized by the same epizone metamorphism, can be justified by the evidence that these metamorphic conditions were acquired during the last stages of exhumation in the Daday Unit, while they constrained the metamorphic-peak conditions in the Emirkoy Unit. Contemporary analyses and comparison between structural and mineralogical data have thus proven to be a powerful tool to investigate the low-grade and very low-grade metamorphic environments, allowing at the same time to solve the apparent contradictions deriving from the mineralogical study and to significantly improve the detail of the geological mapping in the field.