The transition from wave-dominated estuary to wave-dominated delta: The Late Quaternary stratigraphic architecture of Tiber River deltaic succession (Italy)

Abstract This paper presents a detailed description of the stratigraphic architecture of the Late Pleistocene/Holocene Tiber delta succession in order to document the passage from wave-dominated estuary to wave-dominated delta in the broader context of Late Quaternary sea level fluctuations. This succession constitutes a sequence-stratigraphic unit known as Tiber Depositional Sequence (TDS), which was deposited during the last glacial–interglacial cycle (last 120 ka). Our study is based on the examination of an enormous amount of data derived from the stratigraphy of about 300 wells, petrographical and paleontological data (foraminifera, ostracoda, pollen, and plant macrofossils), 14 C dating, and from the integration of geomorphological and geoarcheological data. Recently a 100 m deep core (Pesce Luna well) was studied through a multidisciplinary approach and a detailed description of sedimentary facies, foraminifer and ostracod assemblages, pollen and 14 C dating is presented in this paper. The new data allowed to produce three new correlation panels and to describe in more detail, with respect to previous interpretations, the stratigraphic-depositional architecture of the TDS, which internally shows the preservation of sediment deposited during the early and late lowstand, the transgressive and the highstand systems tracts. Alluvial and coastal depositional systems characterize the early lowstand phase of the TDS, which developed during the eustatic sea-level fall between about 120 and 30–26 yr BP. During the late lowstand phase, which is characterized by stillstand and slow eustatic sea-level rise a prograding delta and an aggrading incised-valley fluvial fill developed. The Tiber incised valley was transformed into a wave-dominated estuary during the transgressive phase (TST), whereas a coastal-shelf sedimentation took place during the subsequent highstand phase (HST). This study confirms the lithofacies distribution resulting from transgression and infilling of the wave-dominated estuaries, but also shows how the transition to a wave-dominated delta, prograding at the time of sea-level highstand occurred. Changes in sediment input, climatic variations and, more recently, human activities played a major role in the development of the Tiber delta during the last 20,000 yr BP. In the last 3000 years a relationship between progradational phases of the delta and flood events of the Tiber river has been highlighted, suggesting also the formation and merging of barrier-spits to the mainland.

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