The submerged paleolandscape of the Maltese Islands: Morphology, evolution and relation to Quaternary environmental change

Aaron Micallef; Federica Foglini; Timothy Le Bas; Lorenzo Angeletti; Vittorio Maselli; Alessandro Pasuto; Marco Taviani

doi:10.1016/j.margeo.2012.10.017

The submerged paleolandscape of the Maltese Islands: Morphology, evolution and relation to Quaternary environmental change

Aaron Micallef^*, Federica Foglini, Timothy Le Bas, Lorenzo Angeletti, Vittorio Maselli, Alessandro Pasuto, Marco Taviani

^*Corresponding author for this work

Geology and Geophysics

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

75 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

After the end of the Last Glacial Maximum, 450 km(2) of former terrestrial and coastal landscape of the Maltese Islands was drowned by the ensuing sea level rise. In this study we use high resolution seafloor data (multibeam echosounder data, seismic reflection profiles, and Remotely Operated Vehicle imagery) and bottom samples to reconstruct similar to 300 km(2) of this submerged Maltese paleolandscape. The observed paleolandscape is exceptionally well preserved and comprises former coastal landforms - (i) fault-related escarpments, (ii) paleoshore platforms and associated shorelines, (iii) paleoshoreline deposits, and (iv) mass movement deposits - and former terrestrial landforms - (v) river valleys, (vi) alluvial plains, (vii) karstified limestone plateaus, and (viii) sinkholes. These elements indicate that the paleolandscape has been primarily shaped by tectonic activity combined with fluvial, coastal, slope instability and karstic processes; these are the same processes the shaped the current terrestrial and coastal landscape. By correlating the identified landforms with the timing of known changes in sea level during the last glacial cycle, we infer that the alluvial plains and the shallowest limestone plateaus had up to 100 kyr to develop, whereas the paleoshoreline deposits are likely to have formed between 28 kyr and 14 kyr. The most prominent paleoshore platforms, shorelines and river valleys were generated between 60 kyr and 20 kyr. Fluvial erosion is likely to have been prevalent during periods of low sea level (Last Glacial Maximum and stadial conditions during MIS 3), whereas karst processes should have been more effective during warm and humid interstadial periods. Our results have implications for improving the characterization of past environments and climates, as well as providing a much needed background for prehistoric and geoarcheological research in the central Mediterranean region. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	129-147
Number of pages	19
Journal	Marine Geology
Volume	335
Early online date	23 Nov 2012
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2012.10.017
Publication status	Published - 1 Jan 2013

Bibliographical note

Acknowledgments
This research was supported by Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship
PIEF-GA-2009-252702, HERMIONE (grant agreement no. 226354)
and COCONET (grant agreement no. 287844) within the European
Community's 7th Framework Programme (FP7 2007–2013), and by
grant 398 of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Education
Trust. The work was carried out within the project MAPSCAPE
(Mapping the Quaternary landscape of the Maltese Islands) and is also
part of COST (Cooperation in European Science and Technology) Action
TD0902 SPLASHCOS (Submerged Prehistoric Archaeology and Landscapes
of the Continental Shelf), funded by the ESF through the EU
RTD Framework Programme. We kindly acknowledge RPM Nautical
Foundation, the captain and crew of R/V Hercules, R/V Urania and Highland
Geo Solutions for their assistance with data collection. We are
grateful to the Hydrographic Office of the Malta Maritime Authority
and the UK Hydrographic Office for providing access to single-beam
echosounder data of the Maltese coastal waters and the HMS Roebuck
MBES data set. These data have been reproduced by permission of the
Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office and the UK Hydrographic
Office, and they should not be used for navigation. We would like to
thank Mariacristina Prampolini for helping with the MBES data processing,
as well as Fabio Trincardi for discussing an earlier version of this
paper. The MBES, ROV, grab and SCUBA dive surveys were possible
following permits issued by the Malta Resources Authority and the Environment
Protection Directorate of the Malta Environment and Planning
Authority. We are indebted to John Wells, Mauro Soldati and an
anonymous reviewer for their insightful reviews. This is ISMAR-CNR
Bologna scientific contribution no. 1770.

Keywords

submerged paleolandscape
seafloor mapping
Quaternary
Maltese Islands
Mediterranean
sea level change

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Cite this

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title = "The submerged paleolandscape of the Maltese Islands: Morphology, evolution and relation to Quaternary environmental change",

abstract = "After the end of the Last Glacial Maximum, 450 km(2) of former terrestrial and coastal landscape of the Maltese Islands was drowned by the ensuing sea level rise. In this study we use high resolution seafloor data (multibeam echosounder data, seismic reflection profiles, and Remotely Operated Vehicle imagery) and bottom samples to reconstruct similar to 300 km(2) of this submerged Maltese paleolandscape. The observed paleolandscape is exceptionally well preserved and comprises former coastal landforms - (i) fault-related escarpments, (ii) paleoshore platforms and associated shorelines, (iii) paleoshoreline deposits, and (iv) mass movement deposits - and former terrestrial landforms - (v) river valleys, (vi) alluvial plains, (vii) karstified limestone plateaus, and (viii) sinkholes. These elements indicate that the paleolandscape has been primarily shaped by tectonic activity combined with fluvial, coastal, slope instability and karstic processes; these are the same processes the shaped the current terrestrial and coastal landscape. By correlating the identified landforms with the timing of known changes in sea level during the last glacial cycle, we infer that the alluvial plains and the shallowest limestone plateaus had up to 100 kyr to develop, whereas the paleoshoreline deposits are likely to have formed between 28 kyr and 14 kyr. The most prominent paleoshore platforms, shorelines and river valleys were generated between 60 kyr and 20 kyr. Fluvial erosion is likely to have been prevalent during periods of low sea level (Last Glacial Maximum and stadial conditions during MIS 3), whereas karst processes should have been more effective during warm and humid interstadial periods. Our results have implications for improving the characterization of past environments and climates, as well as providing a much needed background for prehistoric and geoarcheological research in the central Mediterranean region. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.",

keywords = "submerged paleolandscape, seafloor mapping, Quaternary, Maltese Islands, Mediterranean, sea level change",

author = "Aaron Micallef and Federica Foglini and {Le Bas}, Timothy and Lorenzo Angeletti and Vittorio Maselli and Alessandro Pasuto and Marco Taviani",

note = "Acknowledgments This research was supported by Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship PIEF-GA-2009-252702, HERMIONE (grant agreement no. 226354) and COCONET (grant agreement no. 287844) within the European Community's 7th Framework Programme (FP7 2007–2013), and by grant 398 of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Education Trust. The work was carried out within the project MAPSCAPE (Mapping the Quaternary landscape of the Maltese Islands) and is also part of COST (Cooperation in European Science and Technology) Action TD0902 SPLASHCOS (Submerged Prehistoric Archaeology and Landscapes of the Continental Shelf), funded by the ESF through the EU RTD Framework Programme. We kindly acknowledge RPM Nautical Foundation, the captain and crew of R/V Hercules, R/V Urania and Highland Geo Solutions for their assistance with data collection. We are grateful to the Hydrographic Office of the Malta Maritime Authority and the UK Hydrographic Office for providing access to single-beam echosounder data of the Maltese coastal waters and the HMS Roebuck MBES data set. These data have been reproduced by permission of the Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office and the UK Hydrographic Office, and they should not be used for navigation. We would like to thank Mariacristina Prampolini for helping with the MBES data processing, as well as Fabio Trincardi for discussing an earlier version of this paper. The MBES, ROV, grab and SCUBA dive surveys were possible following permits issued by the Malta Resources Authority and the Environment Protection Directorate of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority. We are indebted to John Wells, Mauro Soldati and an anonymous reviewer for their insightful reviews. This is ISMAR-CNR Bologna scientific contribution no. 1770.",

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doi = "10.1016/j.margeo.2012.10.017",

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T1 - The submerged paleolandscape of the Maltese Islands: Morphology, evolution and relation to Quaternary environmental change

AU - Micallef, Aaron

AU - Foglini, Federica

AU - Le Bas, Timothy

AU - Angeletti, Lorenzo

AU - Maselli, Vittorio

AU - Pasuto, Alessandro

AU - Taviani, Marco

N1 - Acknowledgments This research was supported by Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship PIEF-GA-2009-252702, HERMIONE (grant agreement no. 226354) and COCONET (grant agreement no. 287844) within the European Community's 7th Framework Programme (FP7 2007–2013), and by grant 398 of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Education Trust. The work was carried out within the project MAPSCAPE (Mapping the Quaternary landscape of the Maltese Islands) and is also part of COST (Cooperation in European Science and Technology) Action TD0902 SPLASHCOS (Submerged Prehistoric Archaeology and Landscapes of the Continental Shelf), funded by the ESF through the EU RTD Framework Programme. We kindly acknowledge RPM Nautical Foundation, the captain and crew of R/V Hercules, R/V Urania and Highland Geo Solutions for their assistance with data collection. We are grateful to the Hydrographic Office of the Malta Maritime Authority and the UK Hydrographic Office for providing access to single-beam echosounder data of the Maltese coastal waters and the HMS Roebuck MBES data set. These data have been reproduced by permission of the Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office and the UK Hydrographic Office, and they should not be used for navigation. We would like to thank Mariacristina Prampolini for helping with the MBES data processing, as well as Fabio Trincardi for discussing an earlier version of this paper. The MBES, ROV, grab and SCUBA dive surveys were possible following permits issued by the Malta Resources Authority and the Environment Protection Directorate of the Malta Environment and Planning Authority. We are indebted to John Wells, Mauro Soldati and an anonymous reviewer for their insightful reviews. This is ISMAR-CNR Bologna scientific contribution no. 1770.

PY - 2013/1/1

Y1 - 2013/1/1

N2 - After the end of the Last Glacial Maximum, 450 km(2) of former terrestrial and coastal landscape of the Maltese Islands was drowned by the ensuing sea level rise. In this study we use high resolution seafloor data (multibeam echosounder data, seismic reflection profiles, and Remotely Operated Vehicle imagery) and bottom samples to reconstruct similar to 300 km(2) of this submerged Maltese paleolandscape. The observed paleolandscape is exceptionally well preserved and comprises former coastal landforms - (i) fault-related escarpments, (ii) paleoshore platforms and associated shorelines, (iii) paleoshoreline deposits, and (iv) mass movement deposits - and former terrestrial landforms - (v) river valleys, (vi) alluvial plains, (vii) karstified limestone plateaus, and (viii) sinkholes. These elements indicate that the paleolandscape has been primarily shaped by tectonic activity combined with fluvial, coastal, slope instability and karstic processes; these are the same processes the shaped the current terrestrial and coastal landscape. By correlating the identified landforms with the timing of known changes in sea level during the last glacial cycle, we infer that the alluvial plains and the shallowest limestone plateaus had up to 100 kyr to develop, whereas the paleoshoreline deposits are likely to have formed between 28 kyr and 14 kyr. The most prominent paleoshore platforms, shorelines and river valleys were generated between 60 kyr and 20 kyr. Fluvial erosion is likely to have been prevalent during periods of low sea level (Last Glacial Maximum and stadial conditions during MIS 3), whereas karst processes should have been more effective during warm and humid interstadial periods. Our results have implications for improving the characterization of past environments and climates, as well as providing a much needed background for prehistoric and geoarcheological research in the central Mediterranean region. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

AB - After the end of the Last Glacial Maximum, 450 km(2) of former terrestrial and coastal landscape of the Maltese Islands was drowned by the ensuing sea level rise. In this study we use high resolution seafloor data (multibeam echosounder data, seismic reflection profiles, and Remotely Operated Vehicle imagery) and bottom samples to reconstruct similar to 300 km(2) of this submerged Maltese paleolandscape. The observed paleolandscape is exceptionally well preserved and comprises former coastal landforms - (i) fault-related escarpments, (ii) paleoshore platforms and associated shorelines, (iii) paleoshoreline deposits, and (iv) mass movement deposits - and former terrestrial landforms - (v) river valleys, (vi) alluvial plains, (vii) karstified limestone plateaus, and (viii) sinkholes. These elements indicate that the paleolandscape has been primarily shaped by tectonic activity combined with fluvial, coastal, slope instability and karstic processes; these are the same processes the shaped the current terrestrial and coastal landscape. By correlating the identified landforms with the timing of known changes in sea level during the last glacial cycle, we infer that the alluvial plains and the shallowest limestone plateaus had up to 100 kyr to develop, whereas the paleoshoreline deposits are likely to have formed between 28 kyr and 14 kyr. The most prominent paleoshore platforms, shorelines and river valleys were generated between 60 kyr and 20 kyr. Fluvial erosion is likely to have been prevalent during periods of low sea level (Last Glacial Maximum and stadial conditions during MIS 3), whereas karst processes should have been more effective during warm and humid interstadial periods. Our results have implications for improving the characterization of past environments and climates, as well as providing a much needed background for prehistoric and geoarcheological research in the central Mediterranean region. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

KW - submerged paleolandscape

KW - seafloor mapping

KW - Quaternary

KW - Maltese Islands

KW - Mediterranean

KW - sea level change

U2 - 10.1016/j.margeo.2012.10.017

DO - 10.1016/j.margeo.2012.10.017

M3 - Article

SN - 0025-3227

VL - 335

SP - 129

EP - 147

JO - Marine Geology

JF - Marine Geology

ER -

The submerged paleolandscape of the Maltese Islands: Morphology, evolution and relation to Quaternary environmental change

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

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