Discovery of Middle Permian volcanism in the Antalya Nappes, southern Turkey: tectonic significance and global meaning

Detailed stratigraphic studies on the Middle-Upper Permian rocks of the Tahtalıdağ nappe (Antalya Nappes), largely exposed along the Güzelsu Corridor in central Taurides, have revealed the presence of basaltic volcanic rocks intercalated within the shallow-marine fossiliferous carbonate successions. Vitrophyric basaltic extrusions producing distinct pillows in the Kızılbağ Formation severely dolomitized the associated carbonate rocks.The coeval Çukurköy Formation, devoid of volcanic layers, is also exposed in the same corridor and was probably representing a part of the carbonate platform bordering this volcanic activity. The Middle-Upper Permian successions of the Kızılbağ and Çukurköy Formations have been calibrated based on a foraminiferal zonation and a Capitanian age has been assigned to the basaltic interval. Basalts are also chronostratigraphically located just below a horizon interpreted as the mid-Capitanian mass extinction event. Based on these data, two fundamental conclusions can be driven from this study. The discovery of basaltic volcanism brings a strong evidence for a much longer history about the rift-associated volcanic events in the Antalya Nappes. The Capitanian volcanic rocks are contemporaneous with the Emeishan Large Igneous Province in South China which is linked to the mid-Capitanian mass extinction event.