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Implications of Late Quaternary Sea Level Changes onthe Mediterranean and Black Sea Coasts, MEDBLACKS2014, International Workshop, İstanbul, Turkey, 31 August - 06 September 2014, pp.19, (Summary Text)
ABSTRACT
Çanakkale Strait is an important seaway connection between Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea. The marine terrace (MT) sediments are located at different heights and locations of the both shores of the Çanakkale Strait. In this study, updated optical stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages and paleontological data of different locations of 6 marine terraces on the coasts of Çanakkale Strait are presented. Late Miocene-Early Pliocene lacustrine-shallow marine clastic and carbonate rocks form the basement of the marine terrace deposits in the region.
The marine terraces are wide-spread on both sides of the Çanakkale Strait in the north of Cape Nara. These deposits are marked by abundance of fossil zones and show different facies characteristics. Only one of 6 marine terraces is located on the Gelibolu Peninsula (İyisu MT) and its thickness is 7.5 m. The marine terraces on the coast of Biga Peninsula and its thicknesses are following, from south to north: Çayırdere MT (~8m), İkizlerçeşme MT (~8,60m) , Saltık MT (different thicknesses in different locations), Kaplantepe MT(~8,60m), Çardak MT(~5,70m). The deposits of the MT's are usually starting on a higher level than sea level, except Çayırdere MT, which is starting on the same with sea level. Çardak MT is starting on the highest level by 11.80 m.
24 samples was collected from the quartz-rich levels of MTs for OSL dating. The OSL dating performed in Işık University, Department of Physics, Laboratory of Luminiscens Research and Archeometry. Due to the effects on OSL analyses; U, Th and K element ratios were measured by Acme (Canada) Laboratories. Also the water and total CaCO3 contents are measured.
As a result of the paleontological and petrographical studies from the abundance of fossil zones, Ostrea (Ostrea) edulis Linnaeus, Paphia (Polititapes) senescens Coc., Cerithium vulgatum Bruguiere, Gibbula albida Gmelin ve Donacilla (Donacilla) cornea Poli fossils were determined intensively with poligenic pebble and sand grains among these fossil shells. The results of OSL dating analyses show a range between 72,4±8.0 ka and 392,5±44,9 ka.
The environmental conditions are interpreted by examining the paleoecological properties of the defined species from the abudance fossil zones. Accordingly, shallow and brackish water conditions were dominating. Formation ages of the MT’s by OSL analyses show the interglacial periods between MIS 11 and MIS 5. In this context, since the formation of the marine terraces, the region was uplifted at least ~64.5metres.
Keywords: Çanakkale Strait, Marine terrace, Quaternary, OSL dating
This study was supported in part by Scientific Research Projects Commission of Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University (Project numbers: 2008/39, 2012/008) and is produced from Ph.D. thesis of the first author (M.A.).