Regional uplift and local tectonic deformation recorded by the Quaternary marine terraces on the Ionian coast of northern Calabria (southern Italy)

Abstract The setting of a flight of marine terraces along a 65-km-long section of the Ionian coast of northern Calabria is the result of the interaction between interglacial sea levels, regional uplift, and local fault-related elevation changes. Seven terraces with corresponding palaeoshoreline angles at elevations ranging from 12 m to ∼420 m were recognised by aerial photo interpretation and field surveying. The terraces were correlated to the oxygen isotope stages 1, 5a, 5c, 5e, 7, 9, 15, which correspond to the 7, 81, 102, 124, 215, 330 and ∼600 ka highstands of the palaeosea-level curve. The ∼600-ka-long regional ascent of the terraces took place at an average uplift rate of 0.67 mm/yr; this value slightly but progressively increases southward along the coastline. The elevation of the strandlines is related to the activity of tectonic structures. Three cases were analysed, allowing us: (1) to recognise the height anomalies of the terraces on the Sibari plain as the result of cumulated coseismic deformation caused by the normal Castrovillari fault, and on this basis calculate a minimum slip rate and a mean recurrence time for a single event of deformation; (2) to exclude the presence of significant vertical deformations and consequently activity on the easternmost section of the normal Pollino fault; and (3) to hypothesise the presence of an hitherto unknown active fault responsible for the strong vertical displacements of the flight of terraces near the river Avena. Finally, we find the ratio of the rate of regional uplift to the average rates of local tectonic deformation to be 2 to 3 : 1.

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