A Geological History for the Alboran Sea Region

The molluscan fauna of Chella Bank and surroundings (Western Mediterranean Sea)

“…For instance, Negri and Corselli (2016) reported only 97 species of molluscs in the thanatocoenosis of 18 samples retrieved with a box-corer at Santa Maria di Leuca (SE Italy). This high biodiversity of the Alboran Sea is probably due to several factors: (i) its location between the Lusitanian and Mauritanian biogeographical regions and the Mediterranean Sea (Ekman 1953, Caballero-Herrera et al 2021); (ii) its hydrological characteristics, which facilitate the transport of larvae from the Atlantic and the presence of persistent populations of species from the NE Atlantic that do not occur in other parts of the Mediterranean Sea (Gofas et al 2011, Gallardo-Roldán et al 2015, Rueda et al 2021; and (iii) the topographical heterogeneity of the bottom, which favours a wide diversity of habitats and, together with the particular hydrological features of the basin, promotes almost constant upwellings of nutrient-enriched deep waters, thereby enhancing nutrient supply to the ocean upper layers (Sarhan et al 2000, Rueda et al 2021, Vázquez et al 2021.…”

“…soft bottoms, rocky outcrops and cliffs), as well as in the circalittoral and bathyal zones (e.g. submarine canyons, banks, knolls, carbonated mounds and mud volcanoes) (Muñoz et al 2008, Palomino et al 2015Vázquez et al 2021). This also promotes a great heterogeneity of benthic habitats and communities that favour the presence of species with different ecological requirements, including some that are highly threatened and vulnerable (Templado 2011, Templado et al 2021, Rueda et al 2021.…”

Iberfault 2022. IV Reunión Ibérica sobre Fallas Activas y Paleosismología. Volumen de resúmenes, Teruel, 7 al 10 de septiembre de 2022 ; 1ª ed.

“…El bloque indentador (Dorsal de Alborán, de dirección ENE-OSO) está limitado al oeste por la falla de Al Idrissi, desgarre sinestro de dirección NNE-SSO, y hacia el este por la falla de Yusuf, desgarre dextroso de dirección NO-SE. Estos dos sistemas de fallas se han propagado hacia el margen septentrional de la cuenca, generando familias de estructuras muy penetrativas, como son el sistema de fallas de Motril-Djibouti (Vázquez et al, 2018) de dirección NNE-SSO con movimiento sinestro, y el…”