Tracking the uplift of the Bolkar Mountains (south-central Turkey): evidence from apatite fission track thermochronology

Authors: FATİH KARAOĞLAN

Abstract: Apatite fission track (AFT) thermochronology is applied to the Horozköy granitoid, which outcrops within the Bolkar Mountains (south-central Turkey). The region comprises the Niğde Massif to the north, the Inner Tauride Suture Zone, and the Central Taurides to the south. The Niğde Massif and the Central Taurides collided during the Eocene following north-dipping subduction of the Inner Tauride Ocean beneath the Niğde Massif. The Ulukışla Basin formed above this suture zone. The AFT ages range between 23 and 16 Ma, although there was no significant uplift or exhumation during this period. During the Oligo-Miocene, the region experienced a slow uplift and the collapse of the Tauride belt, in response to the mantle processes (roll-back, break-off, and/or slab tearing) related to the African plate and linked oceanic slab beneath the Anatolide-Taurides. The Central Taurides reached maximum height during the latest Miocene. The AFT modeling results indicate a fast exhumation in the late Miocene-Pleistocene, consistent with the biostratigraphic and field evidence.

Keywords: Central Taurides, Bolkar Mountains, Horozköy granitoid, apatite fission track, exhumation, uplift

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