Tethys and Apulia (Adria), 100 years of reconstructions

Abstract

The lost Tethys Ocean was the favorite topic of Jean Dercourt's research. The Tethys project and his 1986 paper displaying detailed reconstructions in 9 plates from the Triassic to the Present was the beginning of a series of projects organized around large consortia associating scientists from the academic and industrial worlds. The most recent evolutions of these reconstructions show unprecedented images of the evolving geology, including tectonics and paleoenvironments, through time of this complex puzzle. Central to Tethyan tectonics, Apulia, or Adria, has been drawn with different geometries and dimensions from the first concepts by Emile Argand, Kenneth Hsü or John Dewey, to the recent reconstructions by Douwe van Hinsbergen or Paul Angrand. We review here the main reconstructions published since 1924 and the evolution of concepts and methods. We finally discuss the importance of this type of syntheses for understanding large-scale geodynamic processes.

Parasironidae fam. nov., a Cimmerian lineage of Mediterranean Cyphophthalmi (Opiliones), with the description of three new genera and four new species

“…Understanding geotectonic dynamics requires a precise description of the succession of tectonic events, achieved through reconstructions (Jolivet 2023). Reconstructions of geotectonic dynamics are European Journal of Taxonomy 921: 173-209 (2024) mainly based on the study of magnetic anomalies that record the age, speed and direction of seafloor spreading and the interpretation of the structure of the corresponding rocks and orogens.…”

The Lithosphere and Upper Mantle of the Western‐Central Mediterranean Region From Integrated Geophysical‐Geochemical Modeling

“…Consequently, the Adria microplate plays a significant role in the geodynamics of the Western-Central Mediterranean region. For a comprehensive review of the current geology and geodynamics of the area the reader is referred to the works of Balling et al (2021), Carminati et al (2012), Carminati and Chiarabba (2023), Chiarabba et al, 2014, Faccenna et al (2001, Handy et al (2015), Jolivet (2023), Schmid et al (2020), van Hinsbergen et al (2019van Hinsbergen et al ( , 2020.…”

“…These microplates subsequently collided with Adria with the extrusion of blocks and slab‐retreat processes resulting in the formation of the present‐day belts and foredeep basins. The Adria microplate is believed to have separated from the African Plate during the early Mesozoic, having drifted toward the NNE with a slight counter clockwise rotation (e.g., Handy et al., 2021; Jolivet, 2023; Le Breton et al., 2017). Consequently, Adria is surrounded by extensively deformed convergent margins, characterized by three plate subductions with different plate polarities.…”

A tribute to Jean Dercourt (1935–2019) — Editorial

“…"The lost Tethys Ocean was the favourite topic of Jean Dercourt's research" said Jolivet [2023] as incipit of his paper. Indeed, Jean Dercourt's first attempts at reconstructing the evolution of the Tethys were carried out with Bernard Biju-Duval and Xavier Le Pichon and presented at the international symposium on the structural history of the Mediterranean basins in 1976 [Biju-Duval et al, 1977].…”

“…In his article, entitled "Tethys and Apulia (Adria), 100 years of reconstructions", Jolivet [2023] reviews the main reconstructions of the Mediterranean Tethys published since 1924, following the evolution of concepts and methods. He also discusses the importance of this type of synthesis for understanding large-scale geodynamic processes.…”