Long‐term (17 Ma) turbidite record of the timing and frequency of large flank collapses of the Canary Islands

Abstract

Volcaniclastic turbidites on the Madeira Abyssal Plain provide a record of large-volume volcanic island flank collapses from the Canary Islands. This long-term record spans 17 Ma, and comprises 125 volcaniclastic beds. Determining the timing, provenance and volumes of these turbidites provides key information about the occurrence of mass wasting from the Canary Islands, especially the western islands of Tenerife, La Palma and El Hierro. These turbidite records demonstrate that landslides often coincide with protracted periods of volcanic edifice growth, suggesting that loading of the volcanic edifices may be a key preconditioning factor for landslide triggers. Furthermore, the last large-volume failures from Tenerife coincide with explosive volcanism at the end of eruptive cycles. Many large-volume Canary Island landslides also occurred during periods of warmer and wetter climates associated with sea-level rise and subsequent highstand. However, these turbidites are not serially dependent and any association with climate or sea level change is not statistically significant.

Submarine Mass Movements and their Consequences

“…Studies in the Balearic and Madeira Abyssal Plains have indicated that neither sea level, nor its rate of change are shown to be statistically significant even at the 90 % level using both Generalised Linear and Proportional Hazards Models Hunt et al 2014). This is reasonable given their exponential distribution and apparent lack of clustering.…”

Evidence for mega‐landslides as drivers of island colonization

“…The most detailed longterm data on flank collapses within an archipelago comes from a 17 Myr (million years) record for the Canary Islands. Hunt et al (2014) reveal that the mean recurrence of landslides across the Canary Islands over the last 17 Myr is 135 kyr (thousand years), with the last 7 Myr characterized by a similar mean recurrence of 135 kyr.…”

“…Hunt et al . () reveal that the mean recurrence of landslides across the Canary Islands over the last 17 Myr is 135 kyr (thousand years), with the last 7 Myr characterized by a similar mean recurrence of 135 kyr.…”

The relationship between eruptive activity, flank collapse, and sea level at volcanic islands: A long‐term (>1 Ma) record offshore Montserrat, Lesser Antilles

“…Lebas et al ., ], while resedimented turbidites may be more mixed, including bioclastic material. The latter may also still provide a broad proxy for volcanic activity, since they are more likely to be generated during periods of volcanism, when flanks may be destabilized by eruptive activity and deposition of volcanic products [ Collins and Dune , ; Major et al ., ; Hunt et al ., ].…”

“…Triggers of flank or shelf collapses on volcanic islands are poorly understood, but it has been proposed that their frequency is related to eustatic sea level changes, edifice growth, tectonic activity, and rainfall [ McGuire et al ., ; Masson et al ., ; Sato et al ., ; Marques et al ., ; Quidelleur et al ., ; Hunt et al ., ]. Reconstructing prehistorical earthquake and rainfall records are challenging, resulting in difficulties when comparing these potential triggers to landslide occurrence.…”