Late Quaternary marine terraces in the Mediterranean coastal area of Syria: Geochronology and neotectonics

In order to provide new data on the neotectonics and geodynamic properties of western Syria, studies of marine terraces have been carried out. The most attention was paid to the lower terraces in the range of 3–5 to 30–35 m above sea level, because they have more complete distributions along the shore. The lower terraces were examined along the coastal area from Tartus to Latakia, and along the carbonate cliff on Arwad Island. Seven ²³⁰Th/U dates for these terraces are in the range of 85–130 ka, suggesting the age interval of the last interglacial (MIS 5). New dates on the lower terraces provide a basis for stratigraphical and geomorphological interpretation as well as neotectonic reconstruction. According to the geomorphological data and lithological composition of those terraces, two main uplifted blocks can be established. One coincides with the Latakia block, and another corresponds to the western margin of the Banias volcanic plateau. These blocks are divided by a subsided structure corresponding to the Nahr el Kebir graben. The amplitude of neotectonic uplifting in the Latakia and Banias blocks reaches 15–20 m for the Late Pleistocene.     

Distribution and relative density of cetaceans in the Hauraki Gulf,New Zealand

Understanding species distributions, and how they change in space and time, is vital when prioritising conservation or management initiatives. We assessed the distribution and density patterns of common dolphins (Delphinus sp.), bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and Bryde’s whales (Balaenoptera edeni) in the Hauraki Gulf, New Zealand. Dedicated boat-based surveys were conducted in the inner Hauraki Gulf (IHG) and off Great Barrier Island (GBI) during 2010–2012. Generalised linear models were used to investigate temporal changes in relative densities and kernel density estimation was implemented to examine spatial trends. Common dolphins were widely distributed during all seasons, with higher densities observed during winter and spring in the IHG but during autumn off GBI. There was inter-annual variation in Bryde’s whale distribution, with high densities recorded off GBI in 2011. Bottlenose dolphins were infrequently sighted in the IHG but regularly encountered off GBI, with the highest densities during spring and summer.     

Neotectonics and the Upper Mantle Structure of Central Asia

Geotectonics - Studies carried out by the authors show that the uplift of Central Asia situated between the eastern Alpine–Himalayan and western Altai–Stanovoy orogenic belts formed in...     

New data on the Late Cenozoic basaltic volcanism in Syria,applied to its origin

New data on geology and 21 K–Ar dates of the Late Oligocene–Quaternary basalts in Syria, combined with analysis of the new and previous data are used to reconstruct the volcanic history and relations between it and tectonic events. Volcanism began at the end of Oligocene (26–24 Ma) and was concentrated in the Late Oligocene–Early Miocene along a N-trending band, which stretches from the Jebel Arab (Harrat Ash Shaam) up to Kurd Dagh and southern Turkey. Activity waned in the Middle Miocene (17–12 Ma), but was resumed in the same band in the Tortonian and increased in the Messinian and Early Pliocene (6.3–4 Ma), when volcanism spread to the Shin Plateau and its coastal extension. After a brief hiatus ～ 4–3.5 Ma, volcanism became still more intensive and spread from the N-trending band to the east into the northern margin of the Mesopotamian Foredeep and to the west into the Dead Sea Transform zone. Additional eruptions continued into the Holocene.Volcanism lasted > 25 million years in the Jebel Arab Highland and > 15 million years in the Aleppo Plateau. The long duration of volcanism in the same parts of the moving Arabian plate and absence of records of one-way migration of the activity mean that the magmatic sources moved together with the plate, i.e., they were situated within the lithosphere mantle. Coincidence of the tectonic and volcanic stages of the Arabian plate development proves that volcanic activity depended on the geodynamic situation, caused by the plate motion. Situated within the lithosphere, magmatic sources within this transverse band were possibly caused by thermal and deforming influences of the asthenospheric lateral flow, moved laterally from the Ethiopia–Afar deep superplume.     

Recent Mountain Building at the Junction Zone of the Northwestern Caucasus and Intermediate Kerch–Taman Region,Russia

Geotectonics - The recent evolution of the marginal segment of the Northwestern Caucasus orogen at its junction with the Kerch–Taman periclinal trough has been studied. Geomorphological...     

Mussel reefs on soft sediments: a severely reduced but important habitat for macroinvertebrates and fishes in New Zealand

Green-lipped mussels (Perna canaliculus) formed extensive reefs on soft sediments in sheltered embayments around northern New Zealand until overfishing and/or increased sediment input caused their virtual disappearance by 1980. To determine the role of mussel reefs as habitat for other animals, we located remnant soft-sediment reefs in five locations and compared the density, biomass, productivity and composition of mobile macroinvertebrate communities, and the density of small fishes associated with mussels, with fauna in the surrounding soft sediments. The mussel reefs had a distinct assemblage of macroinvertebrates, which had 3.5 times the density, 3.4 times the biomass and 3.5 times the productivity of surrounding areas. The density of small fishes was 13.7 times higher than in surrounding areas. These results show that soft-sediment mussel reefs support an abundant and productive fauna, highlighting the probable large loss of productivity associated with the historical decline in mussel habitat and the consequent desirability of restoration efforts.     

Quaternary tectonics of recent basins in northwestern Armenia

New data on the stratigraphy, faults, and formation history of lower to middle Pleistocene rocks in Late Cenozoic basins of northwestern Armenia are presented. It has been established that the low-mountain topography created by tectonic movements and volcanic activity existed in the region by the onset of the Pleistocene. The manifestations of two geodynamic structure-forming factors became clear in Pleistocene: (i) collisional interaction of plates due to near-meridional compression and (ii) deep tectogenesis and magma formation expressed in the distribution of vertical movements and volcanism. The general uplift of the territory, which was also related to deep processes, reached 350–500 m in basins and 600–800 m in mountain ranges over the last 0.5 Ma. The early Pleistocene (~1.8 Ma) low- and medium-mountain topography has been reconstructed by subtraction of the latest deformations and uplift of the territory. Ancient human ancestry appeared at that time.     

磁相变与地壳地球物理异常

我们曾提出过一种可能导致地磁和地壳电导率异常的来源：地壳中的二级磁相变,即居里（尼尔）深度附近磁化率的显著提高.这一现象能很好地解释一些来源不明的地磁异常.本文总结了在中地壳深度处、薄且高磁导率异常体的一维和多维大地电磁特征.高磁导率层引起的异常与高电导率层导致的异常相比,大小上可相比拟,但符号相反.无论在什么情况下,经典的大地电磁解释容易导致一个不真实的极厚高阻层,并且在地磁异常附近有与之对应的空间波长,二级磁相变也被认为是这一现象的可能解释.尽管在地壳中是否存在二级磁相变还有一定争议,但最近的一些固体物理实验结果进一步表明它可能是地壳各种地球物理异常的来源之一.     

The Ming-Kush-Kökömeren zone of recent transpression in the Middle Tien Shan

The Ming-Kush-Kökömeren Zone in the Middle Tien Shan is a transpressional structural unit, i.e., a longitudinal recent faultline depression, where manifestations of transverse shortening (intense folding, reverse and thrust faulting) are combined with left-lateral offset along the same faults; the left-lateral offset is commensurable to vertical separation along reverse and thrust faults or it even exceeds the latter. The complicated deformation within this zone has developed most intensely since the late Pliocene and reached a peak in the Pleistocene. However, the origin of this structural unit was at the onset of neotectonic stage, as evidenced from the Oligocene-lower Miocene conglomerate unit, which was formed as a product of the destruction of reactivated Hercynian thrust faults and nappes in the southern wall of the zone. The conglomerate filled a narrow ramp valley that formed in front of thrusts, probably due to the strike-slip offsets along boundary faults. Similar transpressional linear zones-Tessyk-Sary-Bulak, Uzunbulak-Oy-Kain, Kara-Köl, and Chong-Kemin (Kemin-Chilik)-are known in the Middle Tien Shan.     

Active Tectonics of Central Asia

Geotectonics - Central Asia exceeds neighboring territories in the intensity of Quaternary uplifts and active faulting. The active fault kinematics differ in the northeast of the region, from...