Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey [1st ed.] 978-3-030-03513-6, 978-3-030-03515-0

Table of contents :
Front Matter ....Pages i-xxxi
Front Matter ....Pages 1-1
Introduction to Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey (Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, Attila Çiner, Nizamettin Kazancı)....Pages 3-5
The Physical Geography of Turkey: An Outline (Catherine Kuzucuoğlu)....Pages 7-15
The Tectonic Control on the Geomorphological Landscapes of Turkey (Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, A. M. Celâl Şengör, Attila Çiner)....Pages 17-40
The Geomorphological Regions of Turkey (Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, Attila Çiner, Nizamettin Kazancı)....Pages 41-178
Front Matter ....Pages 179-179
Karstic Landscapes and Landforms in Turkey (Lütfi Nazik, Murat Poyraz, Mustafa Karabıyıkoğlu)....Pages 181-196
Gypsum Karst Landscape in the Sivas Basin (Uğur Doğan, Serdar Yeşilyurt)....Pages 197-206
The Antalya Tufas: Landscapes, Morphologies, Age, Formation Processes and Early Human Activities (Erdal Koşun, Baki Varol, Harun Taşkıran)....Pages 207-218
Pamukkale Travertines: A Natural and Cultural Monument in the World Heritage List (Erhan Altunel, Francesco D’Andria)....Pages 219-229
Front Matter ....Pages 231-231
Coastal Landforms and Landscapes of Turkey (Attila Çiner)....Pages 233-247
The Geology and Geomorphology of İstanbul (A. M. Celâl Şengör, Tayfun Kındap)....Pages 249-263
The Sinop Peninsula: The Northernmost Part of Asia Minor (Cengiz Yıldırım, Okan Tüysüz, Tolga Görüm)....Pages 265-276
Landscape Development and Changing Environment of Troia (North-western Anatolia) (İlhan Kayan)....Pages 277-291
Rapid Delta Growth in Historical Times at Ephesus and Miletus—The Examples of the Küçük and the Büyük Menderes Rivers (Helmut Brückner)....Pages 293-306
Landscape Development of the Eşen Valley and Delta Plain (Letoôn and Patara Sites) (Ertuğ Öner)....Pages 307-321
Front Matter ....Pages 323-323
The Lake Basins of South-west Anatolia (Nizamettin Kazancı, Neil Roberts)....Pages 325-337
Salted Landscapes in the Tuz Gölü (Central Anatolia): The End Stage of a Tertiary Basin (Erman Özsayın, Alper Gürbüz, Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, Burçin Erdoğu)....Pages 339-351
Geomorphological Landscapes in the Konya Plain and Surroundings (Catherine Kuzucuoğlu)....Pages 353-368
Lake Van (Ebru Akköprü, Aurélien Christol)....Pages 369-382
Front Matter ....Pages 383-383
A Fossil Morphology: The Miocene Fluvial Network of the Western Taurus (Turkey) (Olivier Monod, Catherine Kuzucuoğlu)....Pages 385-395
Ice in Paradise: Glacial Heritage Landscapes of Anatolia (Mehmet Akif Sarıkaya, Attila Çiner)....Pages 397-411
Pleistocene Glacier Heritage and Present-Day Glaciers in the Southeastern Taurus (İhtiyar Şahap Mountains) (Ali Fuat Doğu)....Pages 413-422
Aladağlar Mountain Range: A Landscape-Shaped by the Interplay of Glacial, Karstic, and Fluvial Erosion (C. Serdar Bayarı, Alexander Klimchouk, Mehmet Akif Sarıkaya, Lütfi Nazik)....Pages 423-435
Glacial Landscape and Old-Growth Forests of the Mount Kaçkar National Park (Eastern Black Sea Region) (İhsan Çiçek, Gürcan Gürgen, Harun Tunçel, Ali Fuat Doğu, Oğuz Kurdoğlu)....Pages 437-446
The Köroğlu Mountains: The Most Settled Highlands of Anatolia (Nizamettin Kazancı, Yaşar Suludere)....Pages 447-457
Front Matter ....Pages 459-459
Fairyland in the Erzurum High Plateau, Eastern Anatolia (Fuat Şaroğlu, Yıldırım Güngör)....Pages 461-469
Landscape Evolution and Occupation History in the Vicinity of Amasya (M. Korhan Erturaç)....Pages 471-480
The North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone (A. M. Celâl Şengör, Cengiz Zabcı)....Pages 481-494
Morphotectonics of the Alaşehir Graben with a Special Emphasis on the Landscape of the Ancient City of Sardis, Western Turkey (Gürol Seyitoğlu, Nicholas D. Cahill, Veysel Işık, Korhan Esat)....Pages 495-507
The Büyük Menderes River: Origin of Meandering Phenomenon (Alper Gürbüz, Nizamettin Kazancı)....Pages 509-519
Geomorphic Response to Rapid Uplift in a Folded Structure: The Upper Tigris Case (Sabri Karadoğan, Catherine Kuzucuoğlu)....Pages 521-532
Front Matter ....Pages 533-533
A Fascinating Gift from Volcanoes: The Fairy Chimneys and Underground Cities of Cappadocia (Attila Çiner, Erkan Aydar)....Pages 535-549
Quaternary Volcanic Landscapes and Prehistoric Sites in Southern Cappadocia: Göllüdağ, Acıgöl and Hasandağ (Damase Mouralis, Erkan Aydar, Ahmet Türkecan, Catherine Kuzucuoğlu)....Pages 551-563
In the Footsteps of Strabon: Mount Erciyes Volcano—The Roof of Central Anatolia and Sultansazliği Basin (Erkan Aydar, Erdal Şen, Mehmet Akif Sarıkaya, Catherine Kuzucuoğlu)....Pages 565-576
Quaternary Monogenetic Volcanoes Scattered on a Horst: The Bountiful Landscape of Kula (Erdal Şen, Mehmet Korhan Erturaç, Erdal Gümüş)....Pages 577-588
Nemrut Caldera and Eastern Anatolian Volcanoes: Fire in the Highlands (İnan Ulusoy, H. Evren Çubukçu, Damase Mouralis, Erkan Aydar)....Pages 589-599
Front Matter ....Pages 601-601
Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey (Nizamettin Kazancı, Catherine Kuzucuoğlu)....Pages 603-632

Citation preview

World Geomorphological Landscapes

Catherine Kuzucuoğlu Attila Çiner Nizamettin Kazancı   Editors

Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey

World Geomorphological Landscapes Series editor Piotr Migoń, Wroclaw, Poland

More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/10852

Catherine Kuzucuoğlu Attila Çiner • Nizamettin Kazancı Editors

Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey

123

Editors Catherine Kuzucuoğlu Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591) CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec Meudon, France

Nizamettin Kazancı Ankara University Ankara, Turkey

Attila Çiner Istanbul Technical University Istanbul, Turkey

ISSN 2213-2090 ISSN 2213-2104 (electronic) World Geomorphological Landscapes ISBN 978-3-030-03513-6 ISBN 978-3-030-03515-0 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0 Library of Congress Control Number: 2018960303 © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland

Foreword

So far, only five books have been published describing the landscapes of Turkey as a whole (Tchiatcheff 1866a, b; Güldalı 1979; Kurter 1979; Atalay 1982, 2nd edition 1987; Erol 1983). Ardos (1979) is a most inadequate account of the geomorphology of Turkey from a neotectonic perspective only, and Eken et al.’s (2006) magnificently illustrated volumes deal almost exclusively with biogeography and ecology with minimal data on landforms. None of these books could satisfy either the professional or the general reader interested in the landforms of Turkey both in terms of the material presented and in the manner it is presented. The book in your hand is the first trying to fill the void of a geomorphological description of Turkey, but it addresses itself mainly to the educated public. It seems surprising that so little has been written about the geomorphology of a piece of land that is located in the middle of the inhabited world since the inception of human history and along the western shores of which human civilisation was created by its Greek-speaking people. In fact, the famous American classicist William Arthur Heidel (1868–1941) said that Anaximander’s book, the first prose text ever generated in Greek and supposedly called Peqί Uύrex1 (peri phuseus: on nature), was actually a book about geography (Heidel 1921) and it may have contained his famous map (Fig. 1). Geography developed continuously after the Presocratics and reached its apogee in the ancient world with the work of Claudius Ptolemy (c. CE 100–170), entitled Cexcqauijὴ Ὑuήcηri1 (Geographike Ufegesis: guide to geography). However, Ptolemy’s work was mathematical geography only and the associated cartography. The great general geographer of antiquity was Strabo (c. 64 BCE–c. 24 CE) a native of Amaseia (now Amasya, a town in Turkey). In his Cexcqauijά (Geography), consisting of seventeen books, he left us wonderful descriptions of the physical geography of what is today Turkey in books XII and XIII. Strabo divided Asia into two moieties by the transcontinental Taurus (II, 5, 31–32, and XI, 1), which, according to him, had a length of 45,000 stadia1 from one end to the other (XI. 1. 3); he called the northern part Cis-Tauran and the southern part Trans-Tauran (Strabo, II. 5. 31 and XI. 1. 2). From Strabo’s statement that “since Asia is divided in two by the Taurus range, which stretches from the capes of Pamphylia to the eastern sea at India and farther Scythia, the Greeks gave the name of Cis-Tauran to that part of the continent which looks towards the north, and the name of Trans-Tauran to that part which looks towards the south; it is clear that he did not invent these specific designations” (see also XI. 1. 2). He had certain disagreements with his predecessor Eratosthenes (c. 276–196 BCE), the man who had invented the term geography, as to which regions were Cis-Tauran and which Trans-Tauran,

1

Here, Strabo uses the Eratosthenian stadia, i.e. 1 stade being considered here equivalent to 157.50 m. (1/250,000 of the length of the equator following Berthelot 1930). Thus, for 45,000 stadia, we obtain roughly 7000 km length for the Taurus (Berthelot 1930, p. 91). While the modern equivalent of the Greek stade is still a matter of much dispute today, it ranges from 185 to 148 m in the modern literature of the history of cartography. For literature, see Harley and Woodward (1987, p. 148, note 3). v

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Fig. 1 Şengör’s (2000) attempt at a reconstruction of Anaximander’s world map (pinax)

because Strabo appreciated the breadth of the Taurus better than Eratosthenes had done (see, for example, Strabo, XI. 12. 5). This appreciation led him to the concept of a plateau, an oropedia (=mountain plain) as he expressed it, as opposed to just a range of mountains (Fig. 2). According to Strabo, the Taurus begins where the Reşadiye Peninsula (Rhodian Peraea: identification after Kiepert 1878, p. 123) joins the mainland (Fig. 1). “From here the (mountain) ridge continues [presumably westward and/or northward], but it is much lower and is no longer regarded as part of the Taurus” (Strabo, XIV. 2.1). Both here and in a later place (Strabo, XIV, 3.8), Strabo combats the view that the Taurus mountains begin at the Hieran promontory (Identification after Jameson 1971, Fig. 1; Cape Kilidonya or Gelidonya or Kırlangıç or Yardımcı: Fig. 2). This view had supporters “not because of the loftiness of the promontory, and because it extends down from the Pisidian mountains that lie above Pamphylia, but also because of the islands that lie off it [Chelidoniae], presenting as they do, a sort of conspicuous sign in the sea, like the outskirts of a mountain” (Strabo, XIV, 3. 8). This island=mountain equivalence encourages me in thinking that both Strabo and his predecessors probably considered island genesis (i.e. uplift out of the sea) and mountain genesis as parts of the same process of uplift on Mediterranean examples. Strabo knew that the Taurus, all along its length, does not form a singular ridge of mountains. He justifies his singling out of the Taurus to name the entire mountain system that traverses Asia from west to east as follows (a justification that may have been employed also by his predecessors Dicaearchus {c. BCE 350–285} and Eratosthenes): “…neither are the parts outside [i.e. to the south of] the Taurus and this side [i.e. north] of it so regarded, because of the fact that the eminences and depressions are scattered equally throughout the breadth and length of the whole country, and present nothing like a wall of partition [as does the Taurus]” (Strabo, XIV. 2. 1). In Caria and Lycia (present provinces of Aydın and Denizli and the western part of Muğla, and the eastern part of Muğla and western part of Antalya, respectively, in Turkey), the Taurus “has neither any considerable breadth nor height, but it first rises to a considerable height opposite the Chelidoniae … [present Beşadalar or the Devecitaşı Islands] and then stretching towards the east encloses long valleys, those in Cilicia [present Karaman, İçel, and Adana], and then on one side the Amanus Mountain splits off it and on the other the Antitaurus Mountain…. Now the Antitaurus ends in Cataonia [present northern Kahramanmaraş], whereas the mountain Amanus extends to the Euphrates river and Melitinê [present

Foreword

Foreword

vii

Malatya]2… And it is succeeded in turn by the mountains on the far side of the Euphrates, which are continuous with those aforementioned, except that they are cleft by the river [i.e. Euphrates] that flows through the midst of them. Here its [i.e., of the Taurus] height and breadth greatly increase and its branches are more numerous. At all events, the most southerly part is the Taurus proper, which separates Armenia [i.e., east Anatolian high plateau] from Mesopotamia [i.e., roughly the Border Folds region in Ketin’s 1966, sense; Assyrides of Şengör et al. 1982]” (Strabo, XI, 12. 2) (Fig. 2). Then, Strabo assumes following Dicaearchus and Eratosthenes “that the Taurus extends in a straight line… as far as India” (Strabo, XIV, 5.11). “It is said that the last part of the Taurus, which is called Imaïus and borders on the Indian Sea, neither extends eastwards farther than India nor into it” (Strabo, XI. 11. 7). As von Humboldt (1843, p. 58, note 1) pointed out, it was Strabo’s important contribution to have distinguished “mountains” from “plateaux”: for the latter, he introduced the technical term oropedia.3 He noted that Eratosthenes’ Taurus System “has in many places as great a breadth as three thousand stadia”4 (Strabo, XI. 1. 3). He also knew that “the Taurus has numerous branches toward the north” (Strabo, XI. 12. 4), which he described under the names Antitaurus (XI. 12. 4), Scydises (XI. 2. 15), Moschici (XI. 2. 4) and Pariadres (XII. 3. 18; some topographic details at XII. 3. 28). East of these, he noted a number of parallel chains in the present-day eastern Turkey, which, according to Strabo, “comprise many mountains [ore], many plateaux [oropedia]” (XI. 12. 4), all of which comprising the main trunk of the Taurus System of Eratosthenes here (Fig. 2). Farther west, Strabo names a number of mountains roughly along the strike of the Paryadres (Lithrus and Ophlimus: XII. 3. 40; farther west Arganthonius and Olympus: XII. 4. 3, and finally Ida: XII. 8. 8; on the Kapıdağ Peninsula, Dindymus: XII. 8. 11; Fig. 5) that define an independent train north of the dry interior plains of central Anatolia (Strabo’s “waterless plateaux of Lycaonia”: XII. 6. 1). All of these ranges are considered a part of the Taurus and not parts of an independent chain, probably on account of their connexion with the Paryadres in the east and their inferior hypsometry compared with the main Taurus range in the south. Although Strabo talks about the “sacred mountain” Hieros (present Ganosdağ; formerly Tekfur Dağı; now changed to Işıklar Dağı) in Thrace, he makes no connexion between the Thracian mountains and those of northern Anatolia. This is probably because the main mountain range just north and west of Thrace, the Haemus (the Balkan), runs out to the sea (Strabo, VII, 6. 1) and because Strabo thought that the Taurus was confined to Asia. Strabo describes at length the waterless plateaux of Lycaonia as “cold, bare of trees, and grazed by wild asses” (XII. 6. 1), and here, he clearly recognises a distinctive landform contrasting with the mountains to the south and to the north, for which he again employs the term oropedia. This oropedia of Lycaonia is bordered on the south by the Taurus proper (Strabo, XII, 6. 1), yet it is enclosed within the Taurus System (Fig. 2). In the description of the Taurus in Asia Minor, we note that Strabo recognised the branching out of a mountain stem, the various branches enclosing plateaux (e.g. XI. 2. 15; XII, 2. 2), thus first indicating what

2

We know now that Amanos really ends at a tributary called Aksu of the Ceyhan just to the south of the town of Kahramanmaraş, and the ranges grouped under the designation Antitaurus reach much farther north and east than the ancient Cataonia, even on the basis of Strabo’s own data. 3 In two manuscripts of the Hippocratic treatise Peqί aέqxm, tdάsxm, sόpxm (=Airs, Waters, Places), namely in the Codex Vaticanus Graecus 276 (twelfth century AD) and Codex Barberinus (fifteenth century AD), we read in paragraph XVIII, “ἡ dὲ Rjthέxm ἐqηlίη jaketlέmη pediάs ἐrsi jaὶ keilajώdη1 jaὶ ὑwηkὴ jaὶ ἔmtdqor pesqίxs” instead of “ἡ dὲ Rjthέxm ἐqηlίη jaketlέmη pediάs ἐrsi jaὶ keilajώdη1 jaὶ wikὴ jaὶ ἔmtdqor pesqίxs” (see Jones 1923 [1984], p. 118). Jones (1923 [1984], pp. 118 and 119) translates “ὑwηkὴ” as “plateau”. Thus, the first sentence would read in English “What is called the Scythian desert is level grassland, a plateau (ὑwηkὴ), and fairly well-watered,” whereas the second, Jones’ preferred reading, “What is called the Scythian desert is level grassland, without trees (ὴ bare), and fairly well-watered”. If the ὑwηkὴ reading is correct, as it appears in most manuscripts, then the concept of a plateau as a highland would have to be dated some five centuries before Strabo, but even in that case we do not see a special technical term. The introduction of a special term to express the concept of a plateau in all cases belongs to Strabo. 4 I.e. 472 km width!

viii

was to be called later virgations by von Humboldt, Ritter and Suess (Fig. 2), a concept that was to play a critical rôle in the tectonic interpretation of all Asiatic mountain ranges. East of Asia Minor, the Taurus continues in the present Transcaucasia (Armenia and Azerbaijan) and northern Iran as the Parachoathras Mountains (in Strabo’s terms from Armenia to the east of the Hyrcanian Sea, i.e. the present Caspian Sea) and he points out that they continue in a straight line from Cilicia in Asia Minor (Strabo, XI. 8. 1). Farther south, he recognised in the eastern Anatolian high plateau another branch, the so-called Gordyaean Mountains (mountains of Cordyene, i.e. of Kurds, as first noticed by the English historian and theologian George Rawlinson (1817–1902), the younger brother of Sir Henry Creswicke Rawlinson (1810–1895), the founder of Assyriology, in the nineteenth century: Rawlinson undated [1876?], p. 308), including the Mt. Masius5 (not to be confused with Mt. Masis in Armenian, which is a volcanic cone much farther north: Mt. Ağrı, inappropriately known as Mt. Ararat6), which eventually joined with the Zagros in Iran (Strabo, XI. 12. 4). In Strabo’s account, we thus recognise a rather large number of mountain ranges, high plateaux surrounded by them and coastal plains along the course of “Dicaearchus and Eratosthenes” Taurus. Strabo thought that most of the mountain ranges he wrote about, extended east-west although he knew of important exceptions such as the Anti-Taurus and the Amanus. All of these he considered a part of the east–west trending Taurus System, although he often made a distinction between the Taurus System and the Taurus proper. Farther east, still Strabo’s knowledge becomes less comprehensive: “Now the Macedonians gave the name Caucasus to all the mountains which follow in order after the country of the Arians7; but among the barbarians the extremities on the north were given the separate names Paropamisus and Emoda and Imaus; and other such names were applied to separate parts.” (Strabo, XI, 8. 18). Unfortunately, Strabo offers little in terms of an interpretation of the origin of these mountains and the various structures he distinguishes within them.9 He does describe, however, the earthquakes, hot springs,10 the former volcanic activity and the associated changes in the landscape in western Turkey, for example (Strabo, XII. 8. 17, 18, 19), and in connexion with what he says on the overall tectonic phenomena known to him, in the first two books of his Geography, there is little reason to think that his tectonic views differed considerably from those of Eratosthenes. We are thus led to think that Strabo too considered the Taurus a product of vertical uplift associated with plutonic forces. He believed in a non-uniformitarian, in fact

5

These are what today we call the south-eastern Taurus Mountains in south-eastern Turkey that delimit the Tethyside orogenic belt against the Arabian platform. The designation south-eastern Taurus occurs in The Times Atlas of the World, twelfth comprehensive edition, 2007, directly in Turkish as Güney Doğu Toroslar. In the Brockhaus Enzyklopädie (19th edition) Weltatlas, they are named the Äußerer Osttaurus (Outer East Taurus). The main authority for the toponym south-eastern Taurus is the Yeni Türkiye Atlası (Ankara 1977) published by the Cartographic Command of the Turkish Army. 6 Genesis VIII, 4; in fact, the whole of eastern Turkey may have been meant by “Ararat”=Urartu: for this tradition, see Jackson and Morgan (1990, p. 267, note 1). 7 Present-day Iran and Turkmenia plus northern Afghanistan. 8 Berthelot (1930, p. 92) quotes this passage from Strabo, but before the Paropamisus he lists an Agriens mountain. In the two Strabo translations I have at hand writing this article (Hamilton and Falconer in the Bohn’s Classical Library 1856, v. II; and Jones in the Loeb Classical Library 1969, The Geography of Strabo, v. V), these mountains are not mentioned, as neither also in the Loeb Greek text in any form. The same is true in the new Strabo edition and translation by Radt (2004, pp. 340–341). I thus do not know from what source Berthelot derived the name Agriens. 9 One can hardly blame Strabo for this, because his intent was to write a historical and political geography as an outgrowth of his earlier historical studies and travels, which he hoped would be of use to the rulers of his country (i.e. to Pythodoris, the Queen of Pontus, and not to the Romans: Jones 1917, pp. xxv–xxvi). 10 In Hierapolis (present Pamukkale), Strabo mentions the famous white travertine deposits as “plutonium”, i.e. as products of Pluto, the god of the netherworld (XIII. 4. 14). He clearly makes a connexion between the “plutonia” and volcanic phenomena, because he also calls “plutonium” the “vapours” (fumaroles, here the type locality of Solfatara!) rising in the Phlegraean Fields (or Phlegraean Plain: Campi Flegrei, volcanic region west of Naples and east of Cumae) in Italy, an active volcanic province containing some 19 low craters, the last of which, appositely called Monte Nuovo, was formed as late as 1538 AD (cf. Scrope 1862, pp. 319ff. and fig. 60 on p. 232; Bullard 1980, p. 187). This volcanic district was recognised by Strabo as such (Strabo, V. 4. 5).

Foreword

Foreword

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Fig. 2 Strabo’s view of the geomorphology of Turkey as reconstructed by Şengör (in Şengör et al. 2008)

catastrophic behaviour of nature,11 but one that displayed a great regularity of behaviour. Von Humbolt (1843, pp. 132–133) finds this confidence in regularity expressed in the straight course ascribed by Eartosthenes and Strabo to the Taurus System that supposedly unerringly followed the 36th parallel. Von Humboldt searches the source of this confidence in a “certain predilection for the regularity of forms” and thus underlines the influence of Plato and Aristotle on our geographers (Fig. 2). Although Rome was already in intellectual decline (Strabo was only followed within the same century by the Spaniard Pomponius Mela {died 45 CE} with his De situ orbis libri III, which is an incomparably poorer performance), the rise of Christianity and the gradual decline

In his first book, Strabo wrote: “… but such changes as Eratosthenes mentions do not in any particular alter the earth as a whole (changes so insignificant are lost in great bodies) though they do produce conditions in the inhabited world that are different at one time from what they are at another, while the immediate causes which produce them are different at different times” (Strabo, I. 3. 3; italics are mine). I interpret this as a non-uniformitarian statement, for Strabo later on (II. 3. 6) applauds Posidonius for thinking that the story about the disappearance of Atlantis (in a single day and night: Plato, Timaeus, 25; especially Taylor 1928 (1972), p. 56, where Taylor stresses that “The earthquake and the deluge are the constituents of one sudden convulsion of nature”. See his entire discussion there under the entry 25c6) is not a fiction. Kidd (1988, p. 259), in his commentary on this passage of Posidonius quoted by Strabo, rightly expressed some surprise at Strabo’s credulity in this particular case, for he is much more conservative in general. His credulity here can only be explained, I think, by the conformity of Plato’s catastrophism to his own views. Lyell, in all editions of his Principles of Geology (Lyell 1830, 1875), makes Strabo an uniformitarianist, because of Strabo’s criticism of Strato and Eratosthenes. But Lyell (e.g. Lyell 1830, p. 19) paraphrases the great geographer out of context. Strabo, in his criticism, is made by Lyell to say that “It is proper to derive our explanations from things which are obvious, and in some measure of daily occurrence, such as deluges, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and sudden swellings of the land beneath the sea”. This is also how Ellenberger (1988, p. 26; also see the third motto on p. 11) reads him. The very literal translation of Jones (1917, v. I, p. 199) reads, however, as follows: “…it is necessary for me to bring my discussion into closer connexion with things that are more apparent to the senses and that, so to speak, are seen every day. Now deluges; and earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and upheavals of the submarine ground raise the sea, whereas the settling of the bed of the sea lowers the sea. For it cannot be that burning masses may be raised aloft, and small islands, but not large islands; nor yet that islands may thus appear, but not continents” (my italics). The sentence I italicised, when considered in connexion with Strabo’s views on the Atlantis, constitutes an attack on uniformitarianism, not an argument in its favour. Strabo was defending a common-sense catastrophism without resorting to fabulous causes. Ellenberger (1988, p. 26) considers Strabo an uniformitarianist–moderate catastrophist. I would agree with this judgement provided emphasis is placed on the word catastrophist in Cuvier’s sense.

11

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and eventual collapse of the Roman Empire dealt a severe blow to human civilisation and very adversely affected the people living in what is present-day Turkey. Two structures perhaps best characterise the frame of mind that reigned from the time of St. Basil the Great (330–379), the bishop of Caesarea Mazaca in Cappadocia, to the end of the Ottoman Empire in the early twentieth century: the rock-cut dwellings and temples of Cappadocia and the Topkapı Palace in İstanbul. Both are turned away from the grand landscapes surrounding them and imprisoned their dwellers in human imagination enslaved by primitive myths. Geography of any kind made essentially no progress in Turkey beyond what the Greeks of antiquity had left well into the time of the great geographical discoveries following and paralleling the later phases of the Renaissance. A few bright spots represented by such individuals as Maximos Planudes (c. 1260–1305), Ahmed Muhiddin Pirî Reis (c. 1465/70—1553), Mustafa bin Abdullah, known as Kâtip Çelebi or Haji Khalifa (1609–1657) and Mehmed Zilli known as Evliya Çelebi (1611–1682) could not illuminate the dark centuries in geography and the sciences in general represented by the duration of the Eastern Roman and the Ottoman empires. It is surprising that the Muslim Ottomans did not even benefit from the great Muslim heritage in geography. An awakening interest in the earth sciences concerning the area of Turkey began with the onset of scientific travelling in the lands of the Ottoman Empire by Europeans beginning mainly in the eighteenth century and greatly accelerating during the nineteenth century (e.g. von Hammer 1830; von Hammer-Purgstall 1844; Weber 1952, 1953; Tayanç 1972a, b; Brentjes 2002). Until the twentieth century, the Ottomans themselves took very little interest in such travels with a few exceptions such as the painter and archaeologist Osman Hamdi (1842–1910) who followed, and himself undertook, archaeological field studies. When the Ottomans travelled, the purpose was almost never scientific (see Coşkun 2002; Ak 2006). The great geographer Carl Ritter (1779–1859) was the first who attempted a synthesis of the meagre information then available concerning the landforms of Turkey (Ritter 1858, 1859). Although, following Strabo, he held on to the idea that all the mountain ranges of Anatolia (his Klein-Asien) belonged to a single Taurus System (Ritter 1858, p. 27), he clearly distinguished two independent trains of coastal ranges of the Taurus, which he named: (1) the Pontic–Bithynian Mountain System in the north and (2) the Cilician–Lycian Taurus System in the south. Ritter indicated, exactly as Strabo had done before him, that the two coastal ranges were separated by a high plateau country (Strabo’s Lycaonian oropedia: Ritter 1858, p. 19). Ritter delimited Asia Minor against the bulk of Asia by means of the Anti-Taurus (which he terminated at the Hınzırdağ; Ritter 1858, p. 16) and pointed out that farther east the mountains showed a more massive rather than linear character that really looked like a high tableland (Ritter 1858, p. 37). By contrast, the area of western Anatolia, Ritter noted, was characterised by an east–west lineated fabric where many small mountain ridges alternated with broad valleys. This, he thought, represented a failed attempt by the plutonic forces at plateau building (Ritter 1858, pp. 40–41). His two countrymen were to interpret that pattern half a century later in two contrasting manners: Alfred Philippson (1864–1953) as due to normal faulting and rift building (Philippson 1918); Walther Penck (1888–1923) as due to crustal folding (Penck 1918: Großfaltung), of which the former eventually prevailed. I think that Ritter was the first to view the east-to-west decline of the regional elevation in Turkey as a consequence of tectonics, which he interpreted to be a result of plutonic forces that supposedly had become weaker westwards. In the east Anatolian high plateau, Ritter thought he was witnessing the full force of the uplifting agencies. This weakened westwards, but was still sufficient to create the two coastal ranges and the high central Anatolian plains. In the west, the plutonic forces were able to create only some low, parallel axes of uplift, but no well-defined mountain range, much less a high plateau.

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These three main regions were connected by transitional areas. William John Hamilton’s (1805–1867) and Prince Piotr Alexandrovich Tchichatcheff’s (1808–1890) observations were available to Ritter, and he seems to have been impressed with their observations on the “diagonal ranges” in Anatolia (see Tchichatcheff 1887, for a convenient summary of his observations; see Ritter 1858, p. 42, note 18 for reference to Hamilton), which, Ritter noted, characterised his “transitional regions” (Fig. 12). This divergence from the “normal” east–west trends “is similar to the divergence of the Anti-Taurus in east Asia where through the transition zone from high mountains to high plains there occurs a divergence towards the southwest from normal parallel ranges, so here in west Asia in the transition zone from the compact high plains to the area differentiated into east-west elements, there occurs a divergence towards the north-west” (Ritter 1858, p. 42). Following Pliny the Elder (23–79 CE), Ritter thought that the mountain systems of Anatolia continued across the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus into the European ranges. This continuation, however, was accompanied supposedly by a further weakening in the intensity of tectonism, so that neither plateaux of east Anatolian type nor high plains of central Anatolian type occurred in Europe (Ritter 1858, pp. 40–41). With his incredibly perceptive views on the tectonics of Anatolia, Carl Ritter bequeathed to us a number of concepts that became a part of nearly all morphological and tectonic classifications of Turkey after him. These may be summarised as follows: 1. He emphasised the existence of two mountain systems that parallel the Black Sea and the Mediterranean coasts of Asia Minor, although he followed the old tradition, coming from Strabo, of considering them as parts of a united Taurus System. 2. He pointed out that the high plateau of eastern Turkey resulted from the fusion and enlargement of these two strands. 3. He showed that the mountain ranges of Asia Minor continued into the Balkan Peninsula across the Aegean Sea and the two straits of the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. 4. He noticed the tectonic independence of western, central and eastern Turkey, which he ascribed to a decreasing degree of tectonism from east to west (owing to a parallel weakening of the causative plutonic forces, Ritter thought, in the framework of Élie de Beaumont’s theory of tectonism). For all his perceptiveness, Ritter remained committed to the dominant east–west trend of the Taurus System and the overwhelming parallelism of its various branches in Turkey, forming the northern and the southern coastal ranges. Although when he wrote his volumes on Asia Minor (Ritter 1858, 1859), he knew about it only a little more than Strabo had known, and by the second half of the century it had become possible to draw a geological map of Anatolia (de Tchihatcheff 1869) and offer a classification of its tectonic units (Naumann 1896). The first volume of Prince Tchitchaff’s monumental Asie Mineure was in fact the first physical geography book ever written on Anatolia (Tchihatcheff 1866a, b). All of this work was done by foreigners from Europe and the USA with not one contribution from the natives. The Austrian political refugee from the 1848 revolution Karl Eduard Hammerschmidt (1800–1874) came to Turkey became Muslim for political reasons and changed his name to Abdullah. Under his new name, he lectured on geology in the Imperial Medical School (Mekteb-i Tıbbiye-i Şahane), published on the geology of Istanbul and the areas around it and amassed a great collection of fossils (some 10,000 pieces! See Montero 1998), which were destroyed during the 1918 fire in the Geological Institute of the University of Istanbul. Abdullah was the first permanent resident of Turkey to publish on the geomorphology of the country describing the Yarımburgaz karstic cave west of Istanbul (Abdullah Bey 1869). He had no immediate successors among the natives of his adopted country until the twentieth century.

xii

The faculty members of both the University of Istanbul (founded in 1900 under the name Darülfünun) and the old Imperial School of Engineering (Mühendishâne-i Hümâyun founded 1773; after 1909 Mühendis Mekteb-i Âlisi) undertook geological teaching and some local research in the 1920’s. A Geographical Institute, founded by Karl August Erich Obst (1886– 1981) in the University of Istanbul, proved less active in research. The founding of the Republic of Turkey breathed new life into scientific activity in the country, neglected and indeed stifled for centuries. Both geology and geography greatly benefitted, and systematic research began with the invitation of the French geologist Ernst Chaput (1882–1943) in 1928 to the University of Istanbul. Chaput undertook extensive excursions in Anatolia with İbrahim Hakkı Akyol (1888–1950; professor of geography) and Hamit Nafiz Pamir (1893–1976; professor of geology) as his habitual companions. His great book Voyages d’Études Géologiques et Géomorphogèniques en Turquie, published in 1936 and translated into Turkish by Ali Tanoğlu in 1947, is really the first modern description of the geology and very especially geomorphology of the country in the twentieth century. Before Chaput, the only reconnaissance geomorphology done in Turkey was that by the great Serbian geographer Jovan Cvijić (1865–1927) in the surroundings of Istanbul and along the southern rim of the Sea of Marmara in two excursions in 1899 and 1905 (Cvijić 1908) and later by Alfred Philippson and Walther Penck in western Turkey. When Frédéric Dubois de Montpéreux (1798–1850) and Otto Wilhelm Hermann Abich (1806–1886) had worked in eastern Turkey (Dubois de Montpéreux 1839a–c, 1840, 1843a–e; Abich 1882), geomorphology had not yet advanced far enough to supply useful observations to the future generation of geographers and geologists except in regard to volcanic landforms. What is remarkable is that Dubois already shows volcanic flow directions around Mt. Ağrı and Mt. Sirak to the west of Ağrı. He also mapped cendres volcaniques, trass and lapillis! It was this richness in volcanic products and the detail in which Dubois was able to show them that in part attracted Abich, who had been enthused by Alexander von Humboldt’s work on the volcanic regions of Latin America, to work in eastern Turkey. Two developments occurred in 1933 and 1935 in Turkey: one with unfortunate and the other with beneficial consequences for the development of geology and geography in Turkey. The first one occurred in 1933 when the Darülfunun was closed and the new University of Istanbul was opened with a new organisation. During that reorganisation of the higher education in Turkey, the Turkish geographers decided to follow the French model and placed themselves into the Faculty of Letters instead of into the Faculty of Science (Akyol 1943; Darkot 1951; Erinç 1973). This had devastating consequences for the development of geography in Turkey in the long run, which dwindled into almost total insignificance as a branch of higher learning and research by the end of the twentieth century (see İzbırak 1976, Hütteroth 1992; Erinç 1997, for the later developments till 1997). Özey (1998) and Kayan (2000) review the development of geographical education in the Turkish universities till the end of the first millennium reflecting its gradual deterioration. The decline of geography in Turkey was felt so acutely that the Turkish Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association (=Türkiye Sanayicileri ve İş Adamları Derneği: TÜSİAD) felt that it had to intervene and made a misguided effort to have a model high-school text written (see Pérouse 2005). The second, but this time beneficial, development was the founding in 1935 of the geological survey of Turkey under the name Maden Tetkik ve Arama Enstitüsü (Institute of Mineral Research and Exploration of Turkey: see Acun 1947; Anonymous 1956, 2010). This organisation (turned into a General Directorate to curtail its independence for short-sighted political reasons in 1984) gave an immense impetus to geological mapping and research and provided employment not only for Turkish geologists but also for geomorphologists coming from a geographical background. As geography declined in universities, the geomorphologists of this institute (later General Directorate) carried on the geomorphological research in the country. Gradually, as geomorphology became increasingly more technology-dependent and quantitative, more and more geomorphology in Turkey has shifted into geology departments

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and institutes and, as the majority of the papers in the present volume testify, it is they that now undertake by far the greatest portion of modern geomorphological research in Turkey. Topographical mapping in Turkey remains largely in the hands of the Turkish Army (Anonymous 1959, 1962, undated [1993?]) and marine bathymetric mapping in the hands of the Office of Navigation, Hydrography and Oceanography of the Turkish Navy (Anonymous [Barkınay, A. H.] 1932). Both organisations have been producing superb maps. The following bibliographies are useful to obtain an overview of the development of geomorphological research and teaching in Turkey: Trak (1942), Mansel (1948 (1993)), Ödekan (1975), Brinkmann (1981, 1984), Doğu (1981, 1988), Erol (1984), Sözer (1974), Nazik (1985), Coşkun and Özbek (1986), Hakyemez (1991), Doğaner (1992), Ulu (1992), Tunçel (1994) İhsanoğlu et al. (2000), Bayrak (2001), Tunçel et al. (2010). The present volume is the first modern synthesis of the geomorphology of Turkey after the rise of plate tectonics and the revolution in our understanding of the dependence of the climate on orbital parameters and atmospheric composition. It is also the first after computers and the GPS. Its editors have undertaken a herculean task in gathering the authors and editing the manuscripts both scientifically and linguistically—a task much more difficult in Turkey than in scientifically more advanced countries. Few in more fortunate circumstances can appreciate the massive hindrances in front of doing and organising science in places where there has been no scientific tradition. That is why not only the readers of this book, but also all those hoping to do and to improve science in Turkey will be forever in the debt of the editors of the present book not only for what they provide, but also for their example. Istanbul, Turkey

A. M. Celâl Şengör İTÜ Maden Fakültesi Jeoloji Bölümü and Avrasya Yerbilimleri Enstitüsü [email protected]

References Abdullah Bey [Hammerschmidt, KE] (1869) Die Umgebung des See’s Kütschücktschekmetché in Rumelien: Verhandlungen der kaiserlich und königlichen Geologischen Reichsanstalt in Wien: No. 12, 263–265 Abich H (1882) Geologie des Armenischen Hochlandes. I. Westhälfte mit Atlas: Alfred Hölder, Wien, X:478 (19 tables, 5 Maps) Acun N (1947) Toprakaltı Servetlerimiz “Maden Tetkik ve Arama Enstitüsü” Çalışmaları I: Sinan Basımevi, İstanbul, 132[III] pp Ak M (2006) Osmanlı”nın Gezginleri: 3F, İstanbul, 192 pp Akyol İH (1943) Son yarım asırda Türkiye”de Coğrafya: Cumhuriyet devrinde Coğrafya: Türk Coğrafya Dergisi, No. 3/4, 247–276 Anonymous (1932) Türkiye Hidrografi Şubesi Tarihçesi-Türk Deniz Mesahacıları ve Yaptıkları Eserler: Harita Umum Müdürlüğü Deniz Şubesi Külliyatından Sayı XI, Harita Matbaası, Ankara, 60 pp Anonymous (1956) Maden Tetkik ve Arama Enstitüsü 1935–1956: M.T.A. Enstitüsü, Ankara, 83 pp (4 photographic plates) Anonymous (1959) 1909–1959 Harita Umum Müdürlüğü: no publisher, no place of publication, 64 unpaginated pp Anonymous (1962) 1909–1962 Harita Umum Müdürlüğü: Harita Genel Müdürlüğü, no place of publication, 46 pp (5 plates of maps) Anonymous (2010) Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü-MTA”nın 75 Yılı: Maden Tetkik ve Arama Enstitüsü Genel Müdürlüğü, Ankara, [IX]:196 pp Anonymous (undated [1993?]) M. S. B. Harita Genel Komutanlığı: no publisher, no place of publication, 35 pp Ardos M (1979) Türkiye Jeomorfolojisinde Neotektonik: İstanbul Üniversitesi Yayın No: 2621, Coğrafya Enstitüsü Yayın No: 113, İstanbul, 228 pp (4 foldout plates) Atalay İ (1982) Türkiye Jeomorfolojisine Giriş: Ege Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Fakültesi Yayınları No: 9, İzmir, VI:284 pp Atalay İ (1987) Türkiye Jeomorfolojisine Giriş, genişletilmiş 2. baskı: Ege Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Yayınları No: 9, İzmir, XXI:456 pp Bayrak D (2001) MTA Dergisi Bibliyografyası (1936–2000): Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü Yayınlarından, Ankara, [II]:97 pp

xiv Berthelot A (1930) L”Asie Ancienne Centrale et Sud-Orientale d”après Ptolémée: Payot, Paris, 427 pp (1 foldout map) Brentjes S (2002) Western European travelers in the Ottoman Empire and their scholarly endeavors (sixteenth-eighteenth centuries). In: Güzel HC, Oğuz CC, Karatay O (eds) The Turks, vol 3. (Ottomans), Yeni Türkiye Publications, Ankara, pp 795–803 Brinkmann R (1981) Türkiye Yerbilimleri Bibliyografyası - Geowissenschaftliche Bibliographie der Türkei Geoscience Bibliography of Turkey 1825–1975, part I, Foreign Geoscience Literature on Turkey: Türkiye Bilimsel ve Teknik Araştırma Kurumu yayınları no 486, TÜRDOK Bibliyografya Serisi no 32, Ankara, XII:492 pp Brinkmann R (1984) Türkiye Yerbilimleri Bibliyografyası - Geowissenschaftliche Bibliographie der Türkei Geoscience Bibliography of Turkey 1976–1980, part I, Foreign Geoscience literature on Turkey: Türkiye Bilimsel ve Teknik Araştırma Kurumu yayınları no 585, TÜRDOK Bibliyografya Serisi no 41, Ankara, XII:207 pp Bullard FM (1980) Volcanoes of the Earth, revised edition. University of Texas Press, Austin and London, 579 pp Chaput E (1936) - Voyages d”Études Géologiques et Géomorphogeniques en Turquie. Mémoires de l”Institut d”Archéologie de Stamboul, II: E. De Boccard, Paris, VIII:312 p (XXVII photographic plates) Coşkun A, Özbek N (1986) Deniz Bilimleri ve Coğrafya Enstitüsü”nde yaptırılan bazı yüksek lisans tezleri: İstanbul Üniversitesi Deniz Bilimleri ve Coğrafya Enstitüsü Bülten, vol 2, no 3, pp 105–120 Coşkun M (2002) Manzum ve Mensur Osmanlı Hac Seyahatnameleri ve Nâbî”nin Tuhfetü”l-Harameyn” i: T. C. Kültür Bakanlığı yayınları 2900,Yayınlar Dairesi Başkanlığı, Kültür Eserleri Dairesi 375, Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi, Ankara, XV:359 pp Cvijić J (1908) Grundlinien der Geographie und Geologie von Mazedonien und Altserbien nebst Beobachtungen in Thrazien, Thessalien, Epirus und Nordalbanien: Ergänzungsheft Nr 162 zu Petermanns Mitteilungen, Justus Perthes, Gotha, VIII:392 pp (16 photographic plates, 2 foldout maps) Darkot B (1951) Türkiye coğrafyasının kuruluşuna bir bakış: İstanbul Üniversitesi Coğrafya Enstitüsü Dergisi/Review of the Geographical Institute of the University of Istanbul, vol 1, no 1, pp 59–62 de Tchihatcheff P (1866a) Asie Mineure-Description Physique de Cette Contrée-première partie géographie physique comparée: L. Guérin, Paris, XXIII:609[iv] pp de Tchihatcheff P (1866b) Asie Mineure-Description Physique de Cette Contrée-première partie géographie physique comparée, Atlas: L. Guérin, Paris, 28 plates de Tchihatcheff P (1869) Carte géologique de l’Asie Mineure: Bulletin de la Société Géologique de France, sér. 2, v 26, pp 737–744 de Tchihatchef P (1887) Klein-Asien: G. Freytag, Leipzig and F. Tempsky, Prag, 188 pp (1 map) Doğaner S (1992) Türk Coğrafya Kurumu Yayınları Bibliyografyası (1943–1975) (Bibliography of the Turkish Geographical Society (1943–1975)): Türk Coğrafya Dergisi, no 27, pp 215–225 (1 folded map) Doğu AF (1981) Ankara Üniversitesi Dil ve Tarih-Coğrafya Fakültesi coğrafya yayınları Bibliyografyası (1935–1981) [Bibliography of the Geographical Publications of the Faculty of Linguistics and History-Geography of the University of Ankara (1935–1981)]: Coğrafya Araştırmaları Dergisi, no 10, pp 167–197 Doğu AF (1988) Ankara Üniversitesi Dil ve Tarih Coğrafya Fakültesi coğrafya yayınları bibliyografyası (1981–1986) II.Kısım [Bibliography of the Geographical Publications of the Faculty of Linguistics and History-Geography of the University of Ankara (1981–1986) Part II]: Coğrafya Araştırmaları Dergisi, no 11, pp 177–179 Dubois de Montpéreux F (1839a) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc., tom I: Librairie de Gide, Paris, XXV:435 pp (1 foldout table) Dubois de Montpéreux F (1839b) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc., tom II: Librairie de Gide, Paris, 462 pp Dubois de Montpéreux F (1839c) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc., tom III: Librairie de Gide, Paris, 491 pp Dubois de Montpéreux F (1840a) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc., tom IV: Librairie de Gide, Paris, 562 pp (foldout table) Dubois de Montpéreux F (1840b) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc. Atlas Série de Géographie Ancienne and Moderne ou Ie Série: Neuchâtel en Suisse, chez l”Auteur, Paris, chez Gide Librairie-Editeur, 4 pp (XXI plates) Dubois de Montpéreux F (1840c) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc. Atlas Série d”Architecture ou IIIe Série: Neuchâtel en Suisse, chez l”Auteur, 5 pp (XXXII, XXXIIbis plates) Dubois de Montpéreux F (1843a) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc., tom V: Librairie de Gide, Paris, 464 pp

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xv Dubois de Montpéreux F (1843b) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc., tom VI: Librairie de Gide, Paris, 461 pp Dubois de Montpéreux F (1843c) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc. Atlas Série pittoresque ou IIe Série: Neuchâtel en Suisse, chez l”Auteur, Paris, chez Gide Librairie-Editeur, 9 pp (LXV plates) Dubois de Montpéreux F (1843d) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc. Atlas Série d”Archéologie ou IVe Série: Neuchâtel en Suisse, chez l”Auteur, Paris, chez Gide Librairie-Editeur, 5 pp (XXXIII plates) Dubois de Montpéreux F (1843e) Voyage Autour du Caucase, chez les Tcherkesses et les Abkhases en Colchide, en Géorgie, en Arménie et en Crimée; avec un Atlas géographique, pittoresque, archéologique, géologique, etc. Atlas Série de Géologie ou Ve Série: Neuchâtel en Suisse, chez l”Auteur, Paris, chez Gide Librairie-Editeur, 4 pp (XXVI plates) Eken G, Bozdoğan M, İsfendiyaroğlu S, Kılıç DT, Lise Y (eds) (2006) Türkiye”nin Önemli Doğa Alanları: Doğa Derneği, Ankara, v. 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Bohn, London, v. 2, 410 pp Harley JB, Woodward D (eds) (1987) The History of Cartography, v. I (Cartography in Prehistoric, Ancient, and Medieval Europe and the Mediterranean), The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, xxi:599 pp Heidel WA (1921) Anaximander’s book, the earliest known geographical treatise: Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, vol 56, pp 239–288 Hütteroth W [-D.] (1992) Cumhuriyet dönemi”nde coğrafya biliminin gelişmesine dışarıdan bir bakış: Ata Dergisi, no 2, pp 21–28 İhsanoğlu E, Şeşen R, Bekar MS, Gündüz G, Furat AH (2000) Osmanlı Coğrafya Literatürü Tarihi (History of Geographical Literature During the Ottoman Period), edited by E. İhsanoğlu: İslâm Tarih, Sanat ve Kültür Araştırma Merkezi (IRCICA), İstanbul, v. I (LXXXIX:396 pp [16 coloured plates]) and v.II. ([I] p:pp 397– 912 [8 coloured plates]) İzbırak R (1976) Türkiye”de son yarım yüzyıl içinde coğrafya alanında gelişmeler: in 50. Yıl Konferansları, Ankara Üniversitesi Dil ve Tarih-Coğrafya Fakültesi Yayın No 257, Ankara, pp 29–44 Jackson P, Morgan D (1990) The Mission of Friar William of Rubruck-His Mission to the Court of the Great Khan Möngke 1253–1255 translated by Peter Jackson, introduction, notes and appendices by Peter Jackson and David Morgan: The Hakluyt Society, London, xv[i]:312 Jameson SA (1971) Lycia and Pamphylia: An Historical review. In: Campbell AS, (ed) Geology and History of Turkey, The Petroleum Exploration Society of Libya, Tripoli, pp 11–31 Jones HL (1928) The Geography of Strabo, v. 5 Books X-XII: The Loeb Classical Library v. 211, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, viii:541 pp (two coloured foldout maps in the back [labelled as map X, map XI]) Jones HL (1929) The Geography of Strabo, v. 6 Books XIII-XIV: The Loeb Classical Library v. 223, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, viii:397 pp Jones WHS 1923(1984) Airs Waters, Places: in Hippocrates, v. I, The Loeb Classical Library, 147, Harvard University Press, Cambridge and William Heinemann, London, pp 65–137 Kayan İ (2000) Türkiye Üniversitelerinde coğrafya eğitimi-amaç, yeni hedefler, sorunlar ve öneriler: Ege Coğrafya Dergisi, no 11, pp 7–22 Ketin İ (1966) Tectonic units of Anatolia. Bulletin of the Mineral Research and Exploration Institute of Turkey, no 66, pp 23–34 Kidd IG (1988) Posidonius II. The Commentary: (i) Testimonia and Fragments 1–149: Cambridge Classical Texts and Commentaries, v. 14A, At the University Press, Cambridge, xii:551 pp

xvi Kiepert H (1878) Lehrbuch der Alten Geographie: Deitrich Reimer, Berlin, XVI:544 pp Kurter A (1979) Türkiye”nin Morfoklimatik Bölgeleri: İstanbul Üniversitesi Yayın No: 2585, Coğrafya enstitüsü Yayın No: 106, Edebiyat Fakültesi Matbaası, İstanbul, VIII:111 pp (7 foldout plates) Lyell C (1830) Principles of Geology, being an attempt to explain the former changes of the earth’s surface, by reference to causes now in operation, v. 1: John Murray, London, xv:511 pp Lyell C (1875) Principles of Geology or the modern changes of the earth and its inhabitants considered as illustrative of geology, 12th edition, v. 1: John Murray, London, xxii[1]:655 pp Mansel AM 1948[1993] Türkiye”nin Arkeoloji, Epigrafi ve Tarihî Coğrafyası için Bibliyografya: Atatürk Kültür, Dil ve Tarih Yüksek Kurumu Türk Tarih Kurumu Yayınları XII. Dizi-Sa. 1a, XVI:616 pp (reprinted in 1993) Montero A (1998) La collection de fosiles devonicos de Turquia donada por A. Bey al Gabinete de Historia Natural de Madrid en 1872: Llull, c. 21, ss. 183–194 Naumann E (1896) Die Grundlinien Anatoliens und Zentralasiens: Geographische Zeitschrift, v. 2, pp 7–25 (2 plates) Nazik L (1985) Jeomorfoloji Dergisi Yazı Dizini 1969-1984 Sayı 1–12 (Bulletin of Geomorphology Bibliography) 1969–1984 Number 1–s12: Türkiye Jeomorfologlar Derneği, Ankara, 29 pp Ödekan A (1975) Türkiyede 50 Yılda Yayınlanmış Arkeoloji, Sanat Tarihi ve Mimarlık Tarihi ile İlgili Yayınlar Bibliyografyası (1923/1973): İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi - Mimarlık Fakültesi, Mimarlık Tarihi ve Restorasyon Enstitüsü Telif Yayınlar: 1, İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi Matbaası, Gümüşsuyu, XVI:578 pp Özey R (1998) Türkiye Üniversitelerinde Coğrafya Eğitimi ve Öğretimi: Özeğitim Yayınları no: 33, Konya, XIII:263 pp Penck W (1918) Die Tektonischen Grundzüge Westkleinasiens-Beiträge zur Anatolischen Gebirgsgeschichte auf Grund Eigener Reisen: J. Engelhorns Nachf., Stuttgart, VII:120 SS Pérouse J-F (2005) Histoire édifiante du manuel de Géographie du patronat Turc. In: Bacqué-Grammont J-L, Pino A, Khoury S (eds) D’un Orient l’Autre - Actes des troisièmes journées de l’Orient Bordeaux, 2–4 octobre 2002, Cahiers de la Société Asiatique nouvelle série IV, Peeters, Paris-Louvain, pp 285–299 Philippson A (1918) Kleinasien In: Steinmann G, Wilckens O. (eds). Handbuch der Regionalen Geologie, v. V, part 2, 22nd issue, Carl Winters Universitätsbuchhandlung, Heidelberg, 183 pp (3 foldout plates) Radt S (2004) Strabons Geographika, v. 3 Buch IX-XIII: Text und Übersetzung: Vandenhoeck and Ruprecht, Göttingen, 680 pp (1 p of Korrigenda) Rawlinson G undated [1876?], The Seven Great Monarchies of the Ancient Eastern World; the History, Geography, and Antiquities of Chaldæa, Assyria, Babylon, Media, Persia, Parthia, and Sassanian, or New Persian Empire: John W. Lovell Company, New York, xii:729 pp (5 foldout plates) Ritter C (1858) Die Erdkunde im Verhältniß zur Natur und zur Geschichte des Menschen, oder Allgemeine Vergleichende Geographie as Sichere Grundlage des Studiums und Unterrichts in Physicalischen und Historischen Wissenschaften- Achzehnter Teil, Drittes Buch. West-Asien. Klein Asien v. I: G. Reimer, Berlin, XXOIV:1024 pp (3 foldout plates) Ritter C (1859) Die Erdkunde von Asien, v. 19 klein-Asien, Teil II: G. Reimer, Berlin, XVIII:1200 pp Scrope GP (1862) Volcanos. The Character of their Phenomena, their Share in the Structure and Composition of the Surface of the Globe, and their Relation to its Internal Forces with a Descripitve Catalogue of All Known Volcanoes and Volcanic Formations: Longman, Green, Longmans and Roberts, London, xi:499 pp (1 p of corrigenda) Şengör AMC (2000) Ben neredeyim, sen neredesin, o nerede? Kültür ve uygarlık tarihinin bir parçası olarak haritalar ve haritacılık (Where am I? Where are you? Where is that? Maps and mapmaking as elements of the history of culture and civilization): in Yeryüzü Suretleri Images of the Earth F. Muhtar Katırcığlu Harita Koleksiyonu (F. Muhtar Katırcıoğlu Map Collection), Yapı Kredi Kültür Sanat Yayıncılık, İstanbul, pp 11–29. (bilingual publication) Şengör AMC, Özeren MS, Keskin M, Sakınç M, Özbakır AD, Kayan İ (2008) Eastern Turkish high plateau as a small Turkic-type orogen: implications for post-collisional crust-forming processes: Earth Science Reviews v. 90, pp 1–48 Doi: 10.1016/j.earthscirev.2008.05.002 Şengör AMC, Yılmaz Y, Ketin İ (1982) Remnants of a pre-late Jurassic ocean in northern Turkey: fragments of Permo-Triassic Paleo-Tethys? Reply: Geol. Soc. America Bull., v. 93, pp 932–936 Sözer AN (1974) Doğu ve Güneydoğu Anadolu Coğrafya Bibliyografyası: Atatürk Üniversitesi Yayınları, no. 328, V:73 pp Tayanç MM (1972) Türkiye ile ilgili seyahatnameler (bibliyografya denemesi): Belgelerle Türk Tarihi Dergisi Dün/Bugün/Yarın, v. 10, no 57, pp 42–47 Tayanç MM (1972) Türkiye ile ilgili seyahatnameler (bibliyografya denemesi) II: Belgelerle Türk Tarihi Dergisi Dün/Bugün/Yarın, v. 10, no 58, pp 39–42 Taylor AE 1928[1972] A Commentary of Plato’s Timaeus: Clarendon, Oxford, xvi:700 pp Trak S (1942) Türkiye Coğrafya Eserleri Genel Bibliyoğrafyası, Prof. Dr. H. Louis”in Önsözüyle birlikte ilâveli IIinci basım: Dil ve Tarih Coğrafya Fakültesi, Coğrafya Enstitüsü Neşriyatı, no 1, Ankara, 272 pp Tunçel H (1994) “Türk Coğrafya Kurumu yayınları bibliyografyası (1943–1975)”na ek: Ankara Üniversitesi Türkiye Coğrafyası Araştırma ve Uygulama Merkezi Dergisi, no 3, pp 371–380 Tunçel H, Yiğit A, Çelikbağ S (2010) Türkiye Coğrafya Bibliyografyası - Kitaplar ve Makaleler: Bilecik Üniversitesi Yayınları, no 2, Ankara, iv:584 pp

Foreword

Foreword

xvii Ulu Ü (1992) Türkiye Jeoloji Bülteni Dizini ISSN 1016–9164 Bibliography, Geological Bulletin of Turkey: TMMOB Jeoloji Mühendisleri Odası Yayınları, no 24, 41 pp von Hammer-Purgstall J (1844) Kleinasien: Jahrbücher der Literatur (Wien), v. 105, pp 1–43, v. 106, pp 51– 107 von Hammer J (1830) Reisen ins osmanische Reich: Jahrbücher der Literatur (Wien), v. 49, pp 1–72; v. 50, pp 1–88 von Humboldt A (1843) Asie Centrale - Recherches sur les Chaînes des Montagnes et la Climatologie Comparée, tome premier: Gide, Paris, LVIII:571 pp Weber SH (1952) Voyages and Travels in the Near East Made During the XIX Century-Being a part of a larger Catalogue of works on Geography, Cartography, Voyages and Travels, in the Gennadius Library in Athens: The American School of Classical Studies at Athens, Princeton, New Jersey, x:252 pp Weber SH (1953) Voyages and Travels in the Near East Made Previous to the Year 1801-Being a part of a larger Catalogue of works on Geography, Cartography, Voyages and Travels, in the Gennadius Library in Athens: The American school of Classical Studies at Athens, Princeton, New Jersey, vii:208 pp

Series Editor Preface

Landforms and landscapes vary enormously across the earth, from high mountains to endless plains. At a smaller scale, nature often surprises us creating shapes, which look improbable. Many physical landscapes are so immensely beautiful that they received the highest possible recognition—they hold the status of World Heritage properties. Apart from often being immensely scenic, landscapes tell stories which not uncommonly can be traced back in time for tens of million years and include unique events. In addition, many landscapes owe their appearance and harmony not solely to the natural forces. For centuries, and even millennia, they have been shaped by humans who have modified hillslopes, river courses and coastlines, and erected structures, which often blend with the natural landforms to form inseparable entities. These landscapes are studied by geomorphology—“the science of scenery”—a part of earth sciences that focuses on landforms, their assemblages, surface and subsurface processes that moulded them in the past and that change them today. To show the importance of geomorphology in understanding the landscape, and to present the beauty and diversity of the geomorphological sceneries across the world, we have launched a book series World Geomorphological Landscapes. It aims to be a scientific library of monographs that present and explain physical landscapes, focusing on both representative and uniquely spectacular examples. Each book will contain details on geomorphology of a particular country or a geographically coherent region. This volume presents the geomorphology of Turkey, a large country blessed with a multitude of extraordinary landscapes, from the world-famous “fairy chimneys” of Cappadocia and travertine terraces of Pamukkale—appreciated by an ever-increasing number of tourists every year—to many hidden gems scattered across the Anatolian Plateau, the Pontides and the Taurus. Whatever your specific interests in geomorphology, you will not be disappointed. Turkey is a perfect candidate for a geomorphology textbook, having it all: tectonic landforms at all scales, volcanoes and lava plateaus, amazing karst, deep fluvial gorges, badlands, legacy of mountain glaciation, spectacular coastal scenery and impressive testimony of human interference with natural processes. But this book goes beyond simply showing the scenery. It helps to read and understand the landscape, unravelling millions of years of history of landform evolution controlled by the movement of tectonic plates and climate change in one of the global geodiversity hotspots. The World Geomorphological Landscapes series is produced under the scientific patronage of the International Association of Geomorphologists (IAG)—a society that brings together geomorphologists from all around the world. IAG was established in 1989 and is an independent scientific association affiliated with the International Geographical Union (IGU) and the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS). Among its main aims are to promote geomorphology and to foster dissemination of geomorphological knowledge. I believe that this lavishly illustrated series, which sticks to the scientific rigour, is the most appropriate means to fulfil these aims and to serve the geoscientific community. To this end, my great thanks go to the editors of this volume—Profs. Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, Attila Çiner and Nizamettin Kazancı—who launched this massive and time-consuming project and made every effort to deliver a high-quality final product. I am sure they see the result of their hard work as

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rewarding. Turkey did not have a book about its geomorphological richness in English before, and now, this impressive natural legacy can be enjoyed by the global geomorphological community. I am also grateful to all individual contributors who agreed to add the task of writing chapters to their busy agendas and delivered high-quality final products. Piotr Migoń

Contents

Part I

Outlines

1

Introduction to Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, Attila Çiner, and Nizamettin Kazancı

3

2

The Physical Geography of Turkey: An Outline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Catherine Kuzucuoğlu

7

3

The Tectonic Control on the Geomorphological Landscapes of Turkey . . . . . Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, A. M. Celâl Şengör, and Attila Çiner

17

4

The Geomorphological Regions of Turkey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, Attila Çiner, and Nizamettin Kazancı

41

Part II

Karst

5

Karstic Landscapes and Landforms in Turkey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181 Lütfi Nazik, Murat Poyraz, and Mustafa Karabıyıkoğlu

6

Gypsum Karst Landscape in the Sivas Basin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197 Uğur Doğan and Serdar Yeşilyurt

7

The Antalya Tufas: Landscapes, Morphologies, Age, Formation Processes and Early Human Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207 Erdal Koşun, Baki Varol, and Harun Taşkıran

8

Pamukkale Travertines: A Natural and Cultural Monument in the World Heritage List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219 Erhan Altunel and Francesco D’Andria

Part III 9

Coastal Landforms

Coastal Landforms and Landscapes of Turkey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233 Attila Çiner

10 The Geology and Geomorphology of İstanbul . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249 A. M. Celâl Şengör and Tayfun Kındap 11 The Sinop Peninsula: The Northernmost Part of Asia Minor . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265 Cengiz Yıldırım, Okan Tüysüz, and Tolga Görüm 12 Landscape Development and Changing Environment of Troia (North-western Anatolia) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277 İlhan Kayan 13 Rapid Delta Growth in Historical Times at Ephesus and Miletus—The Examples of the Küçük and the Büyük Menderes Rivers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293 Helmut Brückner

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14 Landscape Development of the Eşen Valley and Delta Plain (Letoôn and Patara Sites) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307 Ertuğ Öner Part IV

Lakes

15 The Lake Basins of South-west Anatolia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325 Nizamettin Kazancı and Neil Roberts 16 Salted Landscapes in the Tuz Gölü (Central Anatolia): The End Stage of a Tertiary Basin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339 Erman Özsayın, Alper Gürbüz, Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, and Burçin Erdoğu 17 Geomorphological Landscapes in the Konya Plain and Surroundings . . . . . . 353 Catherine Kuzucuoğlu 18 Lake Van . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 369 Ebru Akköprü and Aurélien Christol Part V

Highlands

19 A Fossil Morphology: The Miocene Fluvial Network of the Western Taurus (Turkey) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385 Olivier Monod and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu 20 Ice in Paradise: Glacial Heritage Landscapes of Anatolia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397 Mehmet Akif Sarıkaya and Attila Çiner 21 Pleistocene Glacier Heritage and Present-Day Glaciers in the Southeastern Taurus (İhtiyar Şahap Mountains) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 413 Ali Fuat Doğu 22 Aladağlar Mountain Range: A Landscape-Shaped by the Interplay of Glacial, Karstic, and Fluvial Erosion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 423 C. Serdar Bayarı, Alexander Klimchouk, M. Akif Sarikaya, and Lütfi Nazik 23 Glacial Landscape and Old-Growth Forests of the Mount Kaçkar National Park (Eastern Black Sea Region) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 437 İhsan Çiçek, Gürcan Gürgen, Harun Tunçel, Ali Fuat Doğu, and Oğuz Kurdoğlu 24 The Köroğlu Mountains: The Most Settled Highlands of Anatolia . . . . . . . . . 447 Nizamettin Kazancı and Yaşar Suludere Part VI

Tectono Geomorphology

25 Fairyland in the Erzurum High Plateau, Eastern Anatolia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461 Fuat Şaroğlu and Yıldırım Güngör 26 Landscape Evolution and Occupation History in the Vicinity of Amasya . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471 M. Korhan Erturaç 27 The North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone . . . . . . . . . 481 A. M. Celâl Şengör and Cengiz Zabcı 28 Morphotectonics of the Alaşehir Graben with a Special Emphasis on the Landscape of the Ancient City of Sardis, Western Turkey . . . . . . . . . 495 Gürol Seyitoğlu, Nicholas D. Cahill, Veysel Işık, and Korhan Esat 29 The Büyük Menderes River: Origin of Meandering Phenomenon . . . . . . . . . 509 Alper Gürbüz and Nizamettin Kazancı

Contents

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30 Geomorphic Response to Rapid Uplift in a Folded Structure: The Upper Tigris Case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521 Sabri Karadoğan and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu Part VII

Volcanics

31 A Fascinating Gift from Volcanoes: The Fairy Chimneys and Underground Cities of Cappadocia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 535 Attila Çiner and Erkan Aydar 32 Quaternary Volcanic Landscapes and Prehistoric Sites in Southern Cappadocia: Göllüdağ, Acıgöl and Hasandağ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 551 Damase Mouralis, Erkan Aydar, Ahmet Türkecan, and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu 33 In the Footsteps of Strabon: Mount Erciyes Volcano—The Roof of Central Anatolia and Sultansazliği Basin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 565 Erkan Aydar, Erdal Şen, Mehmet Akif Sarıkaya, and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu 34 Quaternary Monogenetic Volcanoes Scattered on a Horst: The Bountiful Landscape of Kula . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 577 Erdal Şen, Mehmet Korhan Erturaç, and Erdal Gümüş 35 Nemrut Caldera and Eastern Anatolian Volcanoes: Fire in the Highlands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 589 İnan Ulusoy, H. Evren Çubukçu, Damase Mouralis, and Erkan Aydar Part VIII

Geoheritage

36 Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 603 Nizamettin Kazancı and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu

Editors and Contributors

About the Editors Catherine Kuzucuoğlu is Directrice de Recherche at the Centre National for Scientific Research (CNRS). Geomorphologist, she works in the fields of physical geography, geoarchaeology and Quaternary climate/environments/volcanism. She is a member of the Laboratoire de Géographie Physique at Meudon (LGP, UMR 8591 of the CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec). After a Ph.D. thesis (1980) performed in Turkey under the directions of Profs. R. Coque (Paris 1) and O. Erol (Istanbul University) and the support of Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA), she has developed several research programmes within French–Turkish collaboration projects with MTA, the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) and various Turkish universities. The topics she specialised in are (1) the recent geomorphologic evolution of river terraces, (2) the geomorphological impacts of volcanoes on landscapes and on past human societies, (3) the reconstructions of climate and environment since the LGM and their impacts on past civilisations (using lake and marsh records). Her researches concentrate in central Anatolia from Beyşehir/Konya to Cappadocia (in its largest territorial meaning), also developing towards Mediterranean Anatolia and Eastern Anatolia. She has been the Deputy Director in charge of Archaeology at IFEA in Istanbul (French Institute for Anatolian Studies: 2000–2003) and the Director of the Laboratory of Physical Geography (2009–2013). Attila Çiner is a Professor of Sedimentology and Quaternary Geology and Director of the Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences at Istanbul Technical University, Turkey. After graduating from the Middle East Technical University in Ankara (1985), he obtained his M.Sc. degree at the University of Toledo, USA (1988), and his Ph.D. at the University of Strasbourg, France (1992). He works on the tectono-sedimentary evolution of basins and uses a process-oriented approach in order to understand the depositional environments. He also works on Quaternary depositional systems such as moraines, fluvial terraces, alluvial fans and deltas, where he uses cosmogenic nuclides to date related deposits. He is mostly concentrated on the glacial deposits and landscapes and tries to understand palaeoclimatic and palaeoenvironmental changes since the Last Glacial Maximum. His main research fields are based in the Taurus Mountains of Turkey, Bosnia, Indonesia, Greece, Tunisia, Chile and Argentina. Lastly, he was part of the Turkish Antarctic Expedition where he spent 2 months to work on the site recognition and decision of the future Turkish scientific research station to be implemented on the continent. He has published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles and chapters. Nizamettin Kazancı is a Professor at the Geological Engineering Department of Ankara University. His major research topic is clastic sedimentology focusing on fluvial processes, deltas and basin analyses. His recent interests are lakes, Quaternary landscape evolution, cultural geology and geoconservation. He is a Founder and Head of Turkish Association for Conservation of Geological Heritage as known with initials of JEMIRKO since 2000. He is a board member of National Commission of UNESCO responsible for natural sciences, geoheritage and geoparks. He is a national representative and executive member of Pro-GEO, the European Association for the Conservation of the Geological Heritage. His is also the Head of National Committee of Stratigraphy in Turkey. xxv

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Contributors Ebru Akköprü is an Assistant Professor of Physical Geography and Geomorphology at the Department of Geography, Van Yüzüncü Yıl University. Her research topics are geoarchaeology and paleoenvironmental reconstructions and Quaternary geomorphology in Lake Van Basin. Her principal present-day field interests are volcanic setting and spatial diffusion of the obsidian in Eastern Anatolia. Erhan Altunel is a Full Professor of Geology at the Department of Geological Engineering, Eskişehir Osmangazi University, Turkey. He graduated in Geology and obtained his Ph.D. in Earth Sciences at Bristol University, UK. His research is focused on active tectonics, and he has conducted research in various fields including tectonic geomorphology, paleoseismology, archaeoseismology, travitonics and earthquake geology. He has been in charge of numerous national and international research projects. He has published over 60 papers and 10 chapters. Erkan Aydar is a Professor in Geological Engineering Department at Hacettepe University. His main researches focus on all aspects of volcanology, as structural and dynamic volcanism, pyroclasts, ashes, petrology, geochemistry and geophysical applications. He holds many administrative positions in Hacettepe University. He has published around 50 scientific papers, with numerous congress-meeting presentations. C. Serdar Bayarı is a Full Professor of Hydrogeology at the Department of Geological Engineering in Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey. His research interests include evaluation of environmental and noble gas isotopes and groundwater age dating in regional karst systems, exploration of coastal submarine and deep karst aquifers, Quaternary climate in west-central Taurus Karst Belt of Turkey. He is the author and co-author of more than 150 publications. Helmut Brückner is a Full Professor of Physical Geography at the Institute of Geography, University of Cologne. His research interests are focused on coastal geomorphology, geoarchaeology and geochronology. As a member of different excavation teams, he has been carrying out fieldwork in Turkey annually since the early 1990s. He is the author of two monographs and more than one hundred articles in peer-reviewed journals. He is a member of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina. Nicholas D. Cahill is an Archaeologist, Professor of Art History at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and Director of the Archaeological Exploration of Sardis, sponsored by Harvard and Cornell Universities. He is particularly interested in city planning and city organisation, and with historical urban development of Sardis. Aurélien Christol is a Lecturer of Physical Geography and Geomorphology at the University of Lyon 3-Jean Moulin where he teaches since 2014. He did his Ph.D. about Lake Van Level Variations during Upper Pleistocene at the Paris Diderot University until 2011. Since 2012, he works on environments and societies’ interactions during the Holocene on the Peruvian Coast and in Burgundy. İhsan Çiçek is a Professor in Physical Geography at the Department of Geography and Dean of the Faculty of Language, History and Geography at the Ankara University. His professional activities and research interests deal with fluvial and glacial geomorphology and urban climatology. He is the author of many publications on the mentioned topics. He is the Vice President of the Turkish Geography Society and the author of more than 70 publications. H. Evren Çubukçu is an Associate Professor of Mineralogy and Petrology at the Department of Geological Engineering, Hacettepe University. His research activity focuses on assessment of spatio-temporal characterisation of petrologic processes on Miocene–Quaternary Anatolian volcanic rocks. Francesco D’Andria is a Professor Emeritus of Classical Archaeology at the University of Salento, Lecce, Italy; from 2001 until 2010, he was the Director of CNR Institute of Archaeological Heritage—Monuments and Sites (IBAM). He directs excavations at various sites in Apulia (southern Italy) and has taken part in excavations at Luni, Magna Graecia

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(Metaponto, Sibari), Sicily (theatre of Segesta) and Mediterranean, on Malta, Cyprus and Turkey. From 2000 to 2016, he was the Director of Italian Archaeological Mission at Hierapolis, Turkey. He has provided accounts of archaeological research in the Mediterranean in about 250 publications. Uğur Doğan is a Professor in Physical Geography at the Department of Geography, Ankara University. He has conducted research in various fields of geomorphology and Quaternary environments. The main researches concern fluvial, karst, coastal and tectonic geomorphologies and geoarchaeology. Ali Fuat Doğu is a Professor in Physical Geography at the Department of Geography, Van Yüzüncü Yıl University. His research interests are mainly focused on fluvial, glacial and karst geomorphology. He has been in charge of numerous national and international research projects and has published over 80 papers. He holds many administrative positions in the Ankara University and Van Yüzüncü Yıl University. Burçin Erdoğu is a Professor in the Department of Archaeology at Trakya University, Edirne, Turkey. He obtained his Ph.D. in Durham University, UK. He is specialised in Anatolian, Aegean and Balkan Neolithic. He worked on several projects including Çatalhöyük and Musular in central Anatolia and directed the Central Anatolian Salt Project. He is currently excavating in Uğurlu on the island of Gökçeada. M. Korhan Erturaç is an Associate Professor of Physical Geography and Geomorphology Department at Sakarya University. He received his bachelor’s degree as a geologist from Ankara University and M.Sc. and Ph.D. from Istanbul Technical University. The main scope of his research is Quaternary geology where he focuses on basin formation, fluvial and tectonic geomorphology in strike-slip environments, luminescence dating, prehistoric archaeology and cultural geology, geomorphometry, GIS and digital photogrammetry. Korhan Esat is a Researcher at Tectonics Research Group at the Department of Geological Engineering in Ankara University. His current research interests include the neotectonics of Turkey, mechanics and modelling of crustal deformation processes, tectonic geomorphology, seismotectonics and remote sensing—GIS. Tolga Görüm is an Assistant Professor in Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences at Istanbul Technical University, Turkey. His research interests lay in hillslope and mass wasting processes in different tectonic and geomorphic environments. His present principal field of interest is on linking long-term variability of erosion rates and landslide episodes at regional and local scales. In 2016, he was awarded the Distinguished Young Scientist from the Turkish Academy of Sciences for his field research in Physical Geography—Geomorphology. He has authored or co-authored over 70 scientific contributions. Erdal Gümüş is an Associate Professor of GIS at Manisa Celal Bayar University, holding a Ph.D. in Geomorphology and specialised on Geopark and Geoheritage. He is the Founder and the Scientific Coordinator of the Kula UNESCO Global Geopark and is the Founder–Manager of the Geopark Application and Research Centre of Manisa Celal Bayar University. He represents Turkey at European Geoparks Network and UNESCO Global Geoparks level. Yıldırım Güngör is an Assistant Professor in the Geology Department at Istanbul University. He received his Ph.D. (1997) from the Istanbul University, Turkey. His main research topics include geochemistry, petrogenesis and geodynamics of magmatic rocks. He has published a number of research papers about these subjects. In addition, recently he works in geopark areas, especially in the Eastern Anatolia. He is also an alpinist, cave explorer and photographer. Alper Gürbüz is an Assistant Professor of Geology at Nigde University since 2012. He graduated from the Department of Geological Engineering of Kocaeli University in 2005 and earned his Ph.D. in 2012 from the Ankara University. He is mainly interested in tectonics, geomorphology, geodynamics, basin analysis and modelling, and Quaternary geology.

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Gürcan Gürgen is a Professor of Physical Geography at the Ankara University. His scientific activity covers different fields of physical geography, geomorphology, environmental studies and geography education. He is currently the Head of the Turkish and Social Sciences Education Department at the Faculty of Education Sciences. Veysel Işık is a Professor of Structural Geology and Tectonics at Ankara University. His primary research interests are nature of active/passive fault zones and shear zones, metamorphic core complexes and exhumation/denudation processes at the earth crust. His current projects include crustal-scale active fault zones (North Anatolian and East Anatolian Fault Zones in Turkey; Tabriz, Bozqush and Aras Fault Zones in Iran), Taurides and Arabian platform. Mustafa Karabıyıkoğlu is currently an Associate Professor of Physical Geography and Geology at the Geography Department in the Ardahan University. Formerly, he worked at the Geological Research Department, General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration before taking up a post as an Assistant Professor and Head of Anthropology Department at the University of Yüzüncü Yıl. In the late 1970s and 1980s, he acted as the President of the Turkish Association of Geomorphology. His research and teaching activities mainly cover geomorphology, sedimentology and Quaternary studies. Sabri Karadoğan graduated from Ege University in the Department of Geography in 1987. He received his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in Physical Geography from Fırat University in 1999 and 2005. After his doctorate studies, he joined the Geography Teaching Department of Dicle University, Diyarbakır, first as a Teaching Assistant and later as an Associate Professor in 2012. He is currently an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Education of Dicle University, where he is the Head of the Department of Geography Teaching since 2014. His areas of interest include geomorphology, geoarchaeology, geographic information systems and remote sensing. İlhan Kayan is a retired professor from the Department of Geography of Ege University, İzmir, Turkey. His research interests are mainly focused on coastal geomorphology, paleogeography and geoarchaeology. He studied the interactions between geographical changes and cultural developments on the archaeological sites of the Aegean coastal region of Anatolia, especially on Troia and Ephesus. His research activities continue on coastal geomorphology, Holocene sea level and shoreline changes on the coast of western Anatolia. Tayfun Kındap is a Full Professor of Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences at the Department of Climate and Marine Sciences, Istanbul Technical University. His research interests are mainly focused on meteorological and air quality modelling, climate change, Saharan dust transport, long-range anthropogenic aerosol transport. His main study areas are located in the Eastern Europe, Black Sea, Mediterranean Region and Sahara. He is the author of more than 30 publications. He has been the Vice-Rector for Human Resources, Construction and Technical Works, Health-Culture and Sport Works and Strategy Development since 2012. Alexander Klimchouk (Ph.D., Dr. Sci.) is a Leading Scientist at the Institute of Geological Sciences of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, a member of the National Council of Ukraine for Science and Technology and the past-President of the Commission on Karst Hydrogeology and Speleogenesis of the International Union of Speleology. His research interests lay in karst hydrogeology and geomorphology and particularly focus on speleogenesis and hypogene karst. He authored and co-authored over 300 scientific publications and edited several major international paper collections. Erdal Koşun is an Associate Professor of Sedimentology at the Geological Engineering Department of Akdeniz University. His research topics are mainly facies analyses on the siliciclastic sedimentary rocks and spring water deposits as travertine/tufa. He has conducted research in various fields of geology (paleoclimate reconstruction from both cave deposits and travertine deposits, Permian–Triassic boundary and mass extinction traces around the Eastern Mediterranean, lake deposits, etc.).

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Oğuz Kurdoğlu is an Assistant Professor of Forest Policy and Nature Conservation in the Faculty of Forestry at Karadeniz Technical University. His research interests are mainly focused on protected areas, ecotourism, old growth forests and environmental degradation. He is the author or co-author of more than 40 academic papers and numerous public educational articles. He conducted 23 research, environmental education and nature conservation projects in the north-eastern Black Sea Mountains. Olivier Monod is a retired researcher geologist from the Institut des Sciences de la Terre d’Orléans University (ISTO), France. One of his main research topics concerned tectonics and stratigraphy in the Taurus chain, especially in the western Taurus Mountains and in south-eastern Turkey. He was also interested in the surrounding Miocene basins and described a related fossil geomorphology that is still preserved in the higher parts of the chain. Damase Mouralis is a Professor of Physical Geography at the Department of Geography, Land Planning and Environment, University of Rouen Normandy, France. His research interests concern Pleistocene and Holocene landscape evolution, palaeoenvironments and geoarchaeology, mainly in volcanic environments. A large part of his research focuses on the way former civilisations interacted with their environment and used lithic resources, especially in Anatolia. Lütfi Nazik is an Assistant Professor of Geomorphology at the Department of Geography, Ahi Evran University of Kırşehir, Turkey. He led cave and karst exploration group of Turkish Geological Survey between 1979 and 2010 during which thousands of karst caves were discovered, explored and mapped. His main interests involve the evolution of the surface and subsurface morphology of the karst systems with particular reference to Taurus Karst Belt of Turkey. He and his team published numerous reports on the karst geomorphology of Turkey. Ertuğ Öner is a Professor of Physical Geography at Ege University, Department of Geography, Faculty of Literature. His research interests are mainly focused on coastal geomorphology, alluvial geomorphology, paleogeography and geoarchaeology. Currently, he studies these topics along the western and southern coasts of Turkey. He has published over 80 articles, papers, chapters and books. Erman Özsayın is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geological Engineering at Hacettepe University in Ankara, Turkey. He obtained his Ph.D. on Structural Geology in Hacettepe University and concluded his post-doctorate study in the University of Potsdam, Germany. His is specialised in mapping, structural geology, neotectonics, tectonic geomorphology and palaeoseismology. He also worked on several projects related to landslide and flood hazard potential assessment of northern central Anatolia. He is working on soft sediment deformation structures related to regional tectonics. Murat Poyraz is a Ph.D. student and Lecturer of Physical Geography at the Geography Department, Ahi Evran University. He is the Co-Head of Geography Department of Ahi Evran University. His research interests are focused on physical geography, karst geomorphology and GIS. Neil Roberts is a Professor of Physical Geography at the University of Plymouth, UK. He researches Holocene climatic and environmental change, specifically derived from lake sediment archives. He is the author of >100 papers and editor of Quaternary Science Reviews. He has served on national and international committees concerning past global changes, including the US. National Academies Committee on Surface Temperature Reconstructions for the Past 2000 Years (2006). He was also a Visiting Blaustein Research Fellow at Stanford University. Mehmet Akif Sarıkaya is an Associate Professor of Geology at the Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences of the Istanbul Technical University. He graduated from the Geological Engineering Department of the Hacettepe University in 1998 and received his Ph.D. in 2009 from the University of Arizona, USA. His main interests are in Quaternary geomorphology and geochronology in

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different environments including glacial, fluvial and tectonic settings. He uses cosmogenic isotopes to infer the evolution of landforms and remote sensing techniques to observe recent changes of glaciers. Fuat Şaroğlu (Ph.D.) is a geologist. He works on neotectonics, active faults systems and seismicity of Turkey. He is also interested in geoheritage, geopark, cultural geology and geotourism. He has more than one hundred publications related to these areas. He is a member of the Turkish Association for Protection of Geological Heritage (JEMIRKO) and the Turkish National Commission Working Group for UNESCO. Erdal Şen is an Associate Professor of Mineralogy and Petrography at the Department of Geological Engineering, Hacettepe University. His research interests commonly focus on physical volcanology and magmatology. His main study areas are located in the Central (Cappadocia Volcanic Province) and Western Anatolia. A. M. Celâl Şengör is a Professor of Geology in the Istanbul Technical University. His main areas of interest are structural geology and tectonics, particularly the tectonic evolution of the Old World, although he is also active in global tectonics. The modern episode in the study of the geology of Turkey is commonly acknowledged to have begun with his 1981 Tectonophysics paper (with Y. Yılmaz), the most frequently cited paper in the history of that journal. He has further introduced important new interpretations into the Tethyan and Altaid studies and wrote their trend-setting papers in the last three decades with thousands of citations worldwide. He is also a laureate historian and philosopher of geology. He is a member of the Science Academy (İstanbul) and also a member or foreign member of the Academia Europaea, U.S. National Academy of Sciences, American Philosophical Society, Russian Academy of Sciences, German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, Leibniz-Sozietät der Wissenschaften and the Austrian Academy of Sciences. He holds honorary doctorates from the University of Neuchâtel and the University of Chicago plus numerous international awards. Gürol Seyitoğlu is a Structural Geologist/Tectonician and a Full Professor at Tectonics Research Group at the Ankara University, Department of Geological Engineering. Extensional tectonics of Aegean region, internal deformation of Anatolian plate and Turkish—Iranian plateau, seismotectonics of Eastern Mediterranean are among his current research interests. Yasar Suludere is a Senior Geologist who worked at General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA) and General Directorate of Mining (MIG). His main topics are hydrogeology, geothermal energy, industrial minerals and mining rules. His present interests are geological heritage and geoparks. He is a board member of Turkish Association for Conservation of Geological Heritage (JEMIRKO). Harun Taşkıran is a Professor of Prehistoric Archaeology at the Department of Archaeology, Faculty of Languages History and Geography, Ankara University. His research concentrates on Quaternary archaeology in Anatolia, especially in Lower and Middle Palaeolithic lithic assemblage. He is directing archaeological excavations in Karain where the most important Palaeolithic cave settlement in Turkey is present. He has published over 80 articles, many of them presented at international and national congresses and meetings. Harun Tunçel graduated from Ankara University, Department of Physical Geography and Geology, and obtained his Ph.D. in Human Geography at Ankara University. He is a Full Professor of Human Geography at the Geography Department of University of Bilecik where he is since 2009. His research interests are focused on mental maps, perception of urban spaces, renaming of the place and transhumance. He is the author of several publications on the mentioned topics. Ahmet Türkecan is a geological engineer retired from the General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA). Between 1976 and 2017, he worked in General Geology and Volcanology division of MTA and was the Chairman of the Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth’s Interior Commission of Turkey Wipe (TUVAK). He participated in the preparation of geological maps of Turkey with a scale of 1/500.000 and 1/1000.000. His main interest is the

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volcanic rocks of Turkey, and he is the author/co-author of numerous articles and books. Recently, he published the book entitled “Türkiye’nin Senozoyik Yaşlı Volkanitleri”. Okan Tüysüz is a Professor of Geology at the Istanbul Technical University, Faculty of Mines and Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences. His research interests are mainly focused on structural geology, tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, petroleum and geothermal geology, and geographical information systems. He has been conducting geological field studies mainly on the Black Sea region, and Central and Western Anatolian regions since 40 years. He authored and co-authored more than 100 papers in national and international journals and books, and more than 200 presentations in international and national meetings. İnan Ulusoy is an Assistant Professor of Geophysics, Mineralogy and Petrography at the Department of Geological Engineering at Hacettepe University. His research interests are mainly focused on volcanology, physical and structural volcanology, geophysics, remote sensing, thermal remote sensing, geoarchaeology and geomorphological and geological mapping. Baki Varol is a Professor Emeritus of Geological Engineering Department of Ankara University. His research interests are mainly focused on carbonate and evaporate rocks and their environmental modelling. He also carried out research projects in the Anatolian Neogene basins concerning with siliciclastic hosted evaporate deposits. Messinian evaporate and associated facies exposed in the eastern Mediterranean region (İskenderun, Hatay; Northern Cyprus) have been currently studied and published in international journals. He is the author and co-author of over 90 international and national publications. Serdar Yeşilyurt is a Research Assistant of Institute of Geological Sciences at University of Bern, Switzerland. He is currently registered as a Ph.D. student at the Physical Geography Division, Ankara University. He is geographer and geomorphologist who is interested in Quaternary landscapes, especially glacial morphology. He studies glacial geomorphology and reconstruction of the chronology of glaciations. He recently initiated a new project on the detailed mapping and monitoring of active mass movements and rock glaciers in Turkey. Cengiz Yıldırım is a geomorphologist who works in the Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences at Istanbul Technical University. His main research topics are Tectonic Geomorphology and Quaternary Geology. Geospatial technologies, geomorphic mapping, morphometric analysis and radiometric dating techniques (e.g. Cosmogenic, OSL, U-Th and 14C) are at the hypocenter of his studies. He intensely employs tools of fluvial, coastal and glacial geomorphology to understand tectonic and climate interaction in margins of the Central Anatolian Plateau, Western Anatolia, Cyprus, Dinarites, Great Caucasus, Southern Chile and Antarctica. Cengiz Zabcı is an Assistant Professor of Geology at Istanbul Technical University. His researches are mainly focused on the reconstruction of historical and prehistorical earthquake history, inversion of geologic slip rates and neotectonics of the North Anatolian Fault. He is also interested in the intra-plate deformation of the Anatolian Scholle.

Part I Outlines

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Introduction to Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, Attila Çiner, and Nizamettin Kazancı

Abstract

This chapter (Introduction) presents the content and organization of the information provided by the book “Landforms and landscapes of Turkey”. The book is divided in two groups of chapters. The first group assembles three chapters which have in common to present thematic data concerning the main types of processes that have been at work in shaping today’s landforms and landscapes of Turkey, and that have given each of the geomorphological regions of Turkey its specificity. Going back to Miocene is necessary for Turkey as the two main processes that led to today’s landscapes have been active since the late Miocene: tectonism and climate. Late Miocene period acted as a turning point both in terms of tectonism, with the start of the “neotectonic period”, and in terms of climate which changed diversely during Pliocene and Pleistocene, with processes affecting diversely the tectonically deformed reliefs, as well as the erosion and preservation of landforms in the country. Three chapters expose this history with: its impacts on today’s physical geography of Turkey (Chap. 2), the structural evolution and tectonic regions of Turkey (Chap. 3) and the geomorphological regions of Turkey (Chap. 4). The second group is composed of 31 chapters composed each with an example of well-known and less-known remarkable landscapes of Turkey, grouped into six themes. Each

C. Kuzucuoğlu (&) Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, Meudon, France e-mail: [email protected] A. Çiner Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences, Istanbul Technical University, Maslak, 34469 Istanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] N. Kazancı Geological Engineering Department, Ankara University, 06830 Gölbaşı, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

chapter presents the state of the art and knowledge about the formation of the landscapes and the evolution of the landforms composing them. The last Chap. 32 concerns the risks affecting the landscapes of Turkey today. Keywords











Content and organization of chapters Thematic approaches Geomorphological regions of Turkey Outstanding sites of Turkey Evolution of landscapes Landscapes at risks




The distribution of landscapes in Turkey responds to a strong factor: the structural history of Anatolia. This history is articulated on a partition into two phases, before and after a major tectonic disruption, which occurred during the late Miocene. This partition and the Plio-Quaternary history that followed impacted the genesis and evolution of today’s Anatolian reliefs, with rising/subsiding areas, generating a frequent redistribution of river watersheds. During the Quaternary, climatic conditions and changes accentuated regional contrasts also generated by the unique situation of Anatolia at the crossroads between climate influences from several seas and continents while the Anatolian “block” acted as a water tower for all regions surrounding its centre, which remains surprisingly dry in the shadow of the mountain ranges surrounding the peninsula. As a result, the addition of the geological contexts (tectonism, lithology) with their consecutive structural reliefs (tectonic, volcanic, lithologic) and fossil topographies on the one hand, and the geomorphologic dynamics (erosion and accumulation processes responding to the structural dynamics interacting with climatic agents) on the other hand, resulted in rapidly changing geomorphological landscapes. The roles of the morphogenetic factors varied with time and space, and also with the scales of their impacts. Consequently, geomorphological dynamics in Turkey present a high variety of landscapes. Which integrate both the local and regional geographic contexts, as well as changes in the morphogenetic factors and processes determined by changes

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_1

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C. Kuzucuoğlu et al.

Fig. 1.1 Position of chapters on the administrative map of Turkey

in climatic systems during the Pleistocene, and to man’s land use practices since the early Holocene. In order to present the basic context framing the dynamics of the geomorphological landscapes, first the physical geography of Turkey, accompanied with thematic maps on the country’s scale, is explained (Chap. 2). These maps illustrate the regional distribution of the geographical specifics (relief, climate, phytogeography, hydrography) that form the basis of the geomorphological regions of Turkey. Later, the structural context is explained in the tectonic control on the geomorphological landscapes of Turkey (Chap. 3), which is divided in two chapters: (1) tectonic history and resulting tectonic regions and (2) tectonically controlled geomorphological landscapes. Structure controls the Turkish landscapes through a wide variety of morphologies expressing structural contrasts inherited from the tectonic history. The geomorphogenic dynamics (erosion and accumulation processes) thus respond to the interaction of tectonism with climatic factors during the Pleistocene. Meanwhile, karstic processes affecting carbonate series combine with tectonism to produce a very high variety of karstic landscape types and contexts often controlled by the impacts of uplift and conditioned by the origin, thickness and sedimentology of these limestones.

In addition to tectonism and lithology, climate and human impacts are two other important factors taking part in the shaping of these geomorphological landscapes and in their regional distribution through time. Roles of these factors of course varied with time and space, and also with the scale of the territories concerned by their impacts. In this context, after a countrywide presentation, the description of the characteristics of the six geomorphological regions of Turkey is explained in detail in Chap. 4. Documentation refers to relief, climate, hydrography, phytogeography, tectonic history and forcing, role of heritages such as erosional surfaces and stresses original features pertaining to the region. Morphogenetic processes and landscape constructions are described with special reference to time. The regional presentations characterize the Turkish geomorphological landscapes on the basis of their evolution and processes reconstructed from Pleistocene archives recording the combination of the impacts of climate change and of the structural context, as well as modifications introduced by human societies through history. Regional landscapes are thus described according to their lithological context and dynamics, as observed in karstic areas (Part III), in volcanic areas (Part VII) where magmatic activity intermingles with archives of lakes (Part IV) and rivers. Several chapters that explain in detail tectonism-driven

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Introduction to Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey

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Fig. 1.2 Position of chapters on the physical geography map of Turkey

morphologies (Part VI), coastal geomorphological landscapes (Part III) and the glacial geomorphological archives in the highlands (Part V) are also presented. In Part VIII, the geomorphological landscapes of Turkey that are at risk and their preservation measures aiming at their conservation for the future are discussed. The chapters in this book group more than 50 scientists, mostly Turkish, all specialists of earth sciences in Turkey. Below, locations and areas concerned by these chapters are presented first on the administrative map of Turkey (Fig. 1.1) and second on the physical geography map of Turkey (Fig. 1.2). This book is the first and most comprehensive attempt in Turkey to unite scientists specialized in several aspects of earth sciences, such as geomorphology and geology, for an international public. This book is dedicated to two scientists who were professors of geography: Sırrı Erinç and Oğuz Erol. Sırrı Erinç can without exaggeration be considered the father of modern Turkish geography. He did original research in almost all branches of geography in Turkey and played a critical role in communicating information about Turkey’s geomorphology and climatology to the world at large. Sırrı Erinç was also an outstanding teacher, and his textbooks on geomorphology, climatology and vegetation geography still retain their pedagogic value and are frequently consulted for research

purposes. One can perhaps best compare him with the great Serbian geographer Jovan Cvijić in terms of the impact he had on the development of geography in his country. Oğuz Erol was a scientist of a different mould. Although a professor of geography, he was as much a geologist and a geographer. He was the co-discoverer of the Ankara Mélange with his doctoral advisor William J. McCallien and Sir Edward Bailey, and spent his life on detailed studies on individual geomorphological problems in Turkey and in the Eastern Alps in Germany. Oğuz Erol taught Turkish geologists and geomorphologists how to undertake a study in incisive detail and with meticulousness. His geological and geomorphological maps were among the gems of their kind and the few that the great Turkish geologist İhsan Ketin would implicitly trust in Turkey. If Sırrı Erinç was the great architect, Oğuz Erol was the great mason who realized the architect’s plans in Turkish geomorphology. This introduction also allows us to express our sincere appreciations to all authors that contributed to the chapters of this book. We also acknowledge several governmental and non-governmental organizations that helped us in finding maps and field pictures. We also appreciate generous help by many colleagues, such as A.M.C. Şengör, K. Kadir Eriş and Erkan Aydar, during the editing of the chapters. Several people also supplied pictures that we use with their permissions, to whom we are indebted.

2

The Physical Geography of Turkey: An Outline Catherine Kuzucuoğlu

Abstract

The following outline of the physical geography of Turkey is a broad introduction about the four main factors that produce the present characteristics of the Turkish landscapes, i.e. relief, climate, vegetation and hydrography. The nationwide contrasts and spatial variability between the geomorphological regions of Turkey and their present landscapes are indeed rooted in the processes and evolution which have constructed them on the long timescale, within the Anatolian peninsula context. The chapter also discusses two important characteristics of these landscapes on the peninsula scale: the treeless landscapes of many areas from central to eastern Anatolia, and the exceptional richness of Anatolia in endemic flora and fauna species, which makes Turkey a hotspot of biodiversity within the Europe, Middle East and Turano-Iranian areas.




Keywords

Turkey Relief Hydrography

2.1




Climate




Vegetation

Introduction to Physical Geography of Turkey

Geographically, Turkey forms a bridge between Europe and Asia, with the division between the two running from the Black Sea (Karadeniz) to the north down along the Bosphorus Strait (İstanbul Boğazı) through the Sea of Marmara (Marmara Denizi) and the Dardanelles Strait (Çanakkale Boğazı) to the Aegean Sea (Ege Denizi) and the Mediterranean Sea (Akdeniz) to the south (Fig. 2.1). Anatolian peninsula or C. Kuzucuoğlu (&) Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, Meudon, France e-mail: [email protected]

Anatolia (Anadolu) consists of a high central plateau (ca. 1000–1200 m a.s.l.) fringed by narrow coastal plains, surrounded by mountain ranges in the north (the Black Sea Mountains—Karadeniz Dağları—from the Kaçkar highlands to the Rhodope massif) and in the south (the Taurus Mountains—Toros Dağları—to the south and south-east). As a result of altitudes rising steadily eastwards, the eastern part of the peninsula presents high mountainous landscapes, home to the sources of rivers such as the Euphrates (Fırat), the Tigris (Dicle) and the Araks (Aras), as well as it is home to remarkable landscapes as Lake Van (Van Gölü) and Mount Ararat (Ağrı Dağı), Turkey’s highest peak at 5137 m.

2.1.1 Relief Most of the Turkish relief is formed by high plateaus and mountain ranges, which rise sharply above surrounding seas (Mediterranean, Aegean, Marmara, Black Sea) (Fig. 2.2). Inland, the summit altitudes of the plateaus increase towards the eastern Anatolian highlands, which connect to the Caucasus and Zagros ranges. On the seashores, low coastal zones are narrow, mostly restricted to deltas or large rivers and to wide valleys whose sediments progress seawards. As a result of this distribution, the mean altitude of the country is quite high (1132 m) (Fig. 2.3).

2.1.2 Climate The topographic barriers formed by the mountains running parallel to the coasts, together with the general topographic rise eastwards, cause a high climatic variability in Turkey (Figs. 2.4 and 2.5). The coastal and mountainous land stripe forming the Aegean and Mediterranean regions face the NAO influenced atmospheric circulation (Mediterranean cyclonic tracks). The northern Black Sea region faces the humidity tracks from the Black Sea in addition to influences of the Siberian High System (Türkeş and Erlat 2003; Şahin

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_2

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Fig. 2.1 Limits of the geomorphological regions of Turkey presented in the book

Fig. 2.2 N-S topographic cross section through Anatolia. Dashed box shows region sampled for topographic swath profile (below) indicating minimum, mean, and maximum elevations across the swath width for

the Anatolian plateau. NAF: North Anatolian Fault, EAF: East Anatolian Fault, BZCZ: Bitlis–Zagros Collusion Zone. Arrows indicate plate motions (Section by Cengiz Yıldırım)

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The Physical Geography of Turkey: An Outline

Fig. 2.3 Distribution of altitude groups in Turkey

and Çığızoğlu 2012). In central Anatolia, the rain shadow of the surrounding highlands generates humidity depletion, while temperatures decline with increasing elevation. Temperature range, an indication of climatic continentality, is large in central Anatolia. As a result, climatic regions are defined by high contrasts, which draw a picture mixing both the impacts of rapidly changing topographies and variable sources of humidity (Fig. 2.6). These climatic regions respond to the effects of (i) the rain shadow of the highlands encircling the central plateaus, (ii) the origin of the precipitations: Atlantic and Mediterranean in the W and SW, Pontic and Siberian in the N and NE, Mesopotamian in the SE, and (iii) the eastward rising continentality.

2.1.3 Hydrography The river network and general drainage, on the peninsula scale, are organized in relation to the three surrounding seas (Fig. 2.7a). Proper Turkey’s longest rivers are the Kızılırmak, the Yeşilırmak and the Sakarya, all flowing north into the Black Sea. There are two other basins of the peninsula, which are proper to Turkey: the Aegean and the Mediterranean basins. In addition, the country comprises three exogenous basins flowing (i) eastward to the Caspian Sea (the Aras River upper basin) and southward to the Persian Gulf (the Euphrates and Tigris upper basins). After drawing the limits of these outflowing basins, a large area inside the peninsula has no outlet to any sea (Fig. 2.7b). Corresponding to the southern parts of the central plateaus, it is composed of the Lake District, the Konya plain, the Tuz Gölü plain and a wide part of Cappadocia.

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slopes as soon as rainfall increase with altitudes allows them to grow (Davis et al. 1965–1988) (Fig. 2.8). Within these wooded land, Turkish pine (Pinus brutia) forests cover ca. 5.4 million hectares in Turkey. Forests cover 27% of the country, while arable, permanent cropland covers another 35%. Above the forest limit in the highlands, Alpine pastures (called “yaylas” in Turkish1) are associated with seasonal human migrations from lower areas (Fig. 2.9). These migrations occur both in the coastal areas vs. central plateaus (Aegean and Taurus Mountains), in the long range between remote places (e.g. northern Syria) vs. highlands (e.g. eastern Anatolia), but also within the central plateaus in the steppe areas.

2.1.4.1 The Treeless Landscape of Anatolia: What Role for Human Deforestation? Since when and how much man’s pressures on the wood resources contributed to the treeless Anatolian landscape, which characterizes especially the rolling hills between Ankara, Kayseri and Konya? The subject is debated (Roberts 2002). Man’s impact on the Anatolian landscapes started indeed very soon within the Neolithic period (Woldring and Bottema 2001/2002), as in the near East in general (Assouti and Kabukçu 2014). Deforestation accentuated with the development of complex agriculture since the Bronze Ages (Bottema and Woldring 1984; Eastwood et al. 1999), continuing during the Classic Ages unto the Byzance period (Haldon 2007; England et al. 2008). During the Seldjuk and Ottoman Empires (thirteenth to nineteenth centuries), the increasing importance given to sheep husbandry in the interior lands, allowed some renewal of the forests on the highest areas, while steppe was exploited for pasturing on the lower parts (including camels in the Konya plain). On the coastal areas, however, ever since the Roman period, the forests declined because of tree cutting for civil and military needs such as housing, boats. With the growth of rural population and of socio-economic demand during the twentieth century, the forest remains in the central plateaus which were destroyed again, mainly for fuelwood and soils. The situation worsened after the 1990s with the development of irrigation and the development of touristic resorts in first in the coastal areas, and recently in high-altitude summer resorts. 2.1.4.2 A High Botanic Diversity and Amount of Endemic Species Anatolia is the transition point between the European and Irano-Turanian vegetation groups. As such, it is part of the

2.1.4 Phytogeography The spatial distribution of the vegetation in Turkey resembles that of the relief, with steppe in the inner parts of the country, and forests covering the surrounding mountain

The “yayla” word means seasonal habitats and pasturing grounds related to animal herding during spring to summer displacements, whatever is the region concerned.

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Fig. 2.4 a 1981–2010 mean annual precipitation values over Turkey (mm/yr) (Şensoy 2016). b 1981–2010 mean annual temperature values over Turkey (°C/yr) (Şensoy 2016)

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The Physical Geography of Turkey: An Outline

Fig. 2.5 1981–2010 mean seasonal precipitation values over Turkey (Şensoy 2016)

Fig. 2.6 Climatic regions of Turkey (based on Thornthwaite’s Humidity/Aridity Index) (Şensoy 2016)

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Fig. 2.7 a Main rivers of Turkey and positions of chapters related to rivers and lakes. b Hydrography map of Turkey: river drainage basins. Legend of colours: green: Black Sea Basin; pink: Marmara, Aegean and Mediterranean seas Basins; blue: Arab Gulf Basin (Chott-el-Arab: light blue: Euphrates River Basin; dark blue: Tigris River Basin); brownish: Caspian Sea Basin; white: No access to the sea (endorheic basins)

Irano-Anatolian region, which is a significant biodiversity hotspot (Kareiva and Marvier 2003). In 1988, Davis et al. calculated that nearly one third (30.6%) of Turkish plant species is endemic to Turkey and the nearby Aegean Islands. This high endemism ratio contributes to the high level of plant biodiversity of the Turkish territory (9300 species of vascular plants (Pils 2013)), which is also explained by (i) a high degree of climatic and edaphic variability on local

scales, (ii) isolated and fragmented contexts such as deep river valleys between high mountains, closed depressions, and (iii) the fact that during the Last Glacial period, the ranges surrounding the Anatolian peninsula as well as the southern lowlands now most partly immerged by the sea, constituted important refuges where plants survived the glacial period (e.g. several species of cereals and fruit trees).

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Fig. 2.8 Phytogeographic regions of Turkey: (1) Eu Mediterranean vegetation; (2) Montane forests; (3) Mixed broad-leaved and needle-leaved woodland resistant to cold; (4) Open tree and shrub vegetation; (5) Cold-deciduous forests; (6) Subalpine and alpine

vegetation; (7) Dwarf shrubland (steppe); (8) Lakes. Modified from (i) van Zeist and Bottema (1991) and (ii) the 1:1.000.000 Map of Phytogeographic Regions of Turkey, Forestry Ministry of Turkey

In addition, a dividing line known as the “Anatolian diagonal” runs across central and eastern Turkey from the north-eastern corner of the Mediterranean Sea to the south-eastern corner of the Black Sea. Many species of plants existing west of the diagonal are not present to the

east and vice versa (Davis et al. 1965–1988). In 1989, Ekim and Güner confirmed this distribution, with 135 out of 550 species they analysed found to be “eastern” and 228 “western”. In addition, 400 plant species are endemic to the diagonal itself (Öztürk et al. 2015).

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Fig. 2.9 Some “Yayla” examples (seasonal settlements associated with summer pastures). a Yayla in the high-altitude landscapes of the Hasandağ volcano in central Anatolia (Altunhisar, Bor); b ArdanuşKutul Yayla in the Kaçkar range (Artvin); c Yayla at the southern edge of the Konya plain (Ayrancı, Ereğli); d Yayla (equipped in electricity)

in the high central plateaus south of Aksaray; e Subaşı Yayla in the Akdağ Mountain (western Taurus); f Şafşat-Mereta Yayla (Kaçkar, Artvin). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (a, c, d, e) and O. Kurdoğlu (b, f). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (a, c, d, e) and O. Kurdoğlu (b, f)

References

England A, Eastwood EJ, Roberts CN, Turner R, Haldon JF (2008) Historical landscape change in Cappadocia (central Turkey): a palaeoenvironmental investigation of annually-laminated sediments from Nar lake. Holocene 18(8):1229–1245 Haldon J (2007) “Cappadocia will be given over to ruin and become a desert”. Environmental evidence for historically-attested events in the 7th–10th centuries. In: Byzantina Mediterranea. Böhlau Verlag, Wien, pp 215–230 Kareiva P, Marvier M (2003) Conserving biodiversity coldspots. Am Sci 91:344–351 Öztürk M, Hakeem KR, Faridah-Hanum I, Efe R (eds) (2015) Climate change impacts on high-altitude ecosystems. Springer Verlag, Berlin Pils G (2013) Endemism in mainland regions—case studies: Turkey. In: Hobhom C (ed) Endemism in vascular plants. Springer Verlag, Dordrecht, pp 240–255

Assouti E, Kabukçu C (2014) Holocene semi-arid oak woodlands in the Irano-Anatolian region of Southwest Asia: natural or anthropogenic? Quat Sci Rev 90:158–182 Bottema S, Woldring H (1984) Late Quaternary vegetation and climate of southwestern Turkey. Part II. Palaeohistoria 26:123–149 Davis PH et al (eds) (1965–1988) Flora of Turkey and the East Aegean Islands, 10 vols. University Press, Edinburgh Eastwood WJ, Roberts N, Lamb HF, Tibby JC (1999) Holocene environmental change in southwest Turkey: a palaeoecological record of lake and catchment related changes. Quat Sci Rev 18:671– 696 Ekim T, Güner A (1989) The anatolian diagonal: fact or fiction? Proc R Soc Edinb B Biol Sci 86:69–77

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Roberts N (2002) Did prehistoric landscape management retard the postglacial spread of woodlands in South-west Asia? Antiq 76:1002–1010 Şahin S, Cığızoğlu HK (2012) The sub-climate regions and the subprecipitation regime regions in Turkey. J Hydrol 450–451:180–189 Şensoy S (2016) Climate of Turkey. Turkish State Meteorological Service, Ankara, 13 pp. Unpublished yearly report Türkeş M, Erlat E (2003) Precipitation changes and variability in Turkey linked to the North Atlantic Oscillation during the period 1930–2000. Int J Climatol 23:1771–1796

15 Zeist W van, Bottema S (1991) Late Quaternary vegetation of the Near East. Beihefte zum Tubinger Atlas des Vorderen Orients, Reihe A, Naturwissenschaften 18. L. Reichert, Wiesbaden Woldring H, Bottema S (2001/2002) The vegetation history of East-Central Anatolia in relation to archaeology: the Eski Acıgöl pollen evidence compared with the Near Eastern environment. Palaeohistoria 43/44: 1–34

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The Tectonic Control on the Geomorphological Landscapes of Turkey Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, A. M. Celâl Şengör, and Attila Çiner

Abstract

The multifarious landforms making up the landscapes of Turkey are largely controlled by tectonic activity since the last 11 Ma, at most 23 Ma making surface correlation by elevation alone hazardous. This “neotectonic episode” is characterized by tectonic escape that created five neotectonic provinces in the country: (1) the shortening east Anatolian province corresponds to the eastern Anatolian highlands; (2) the gently E–W-shortening north Turkish province; (3) extensional west Anatolian province; (4) the gently NE–SW-shortening and NW–SE-extending Ova Province; and (5) the border folds (Assyrides) of the northernmost Arabian Plate. In each of these provinces, the rate and history of uplift, history of climate and rock types have dictated the details of land sculpture. Volcanic landforms dominate in the east, and karst dominates in the south. The other regions display more varied morphological types controlled mainly by rock type and climate. Although Turkey is moderately endowed in fossil glacial and periglacial forms, active glaciers are few and restricted to the high mountains in the extreme south-east of the country. Keywords

Neotectonics Turkey




Tectonic provinces




Tectonic escape

C. Kuzucuoğlu (&) Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, Meudon, France e-mail: [email protected] A. M. C. Şengör
A. Çiner İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Avrasya Yerbilimleri Enstitüsü, Ayazağa, 34469 İstanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] A. Çiner e-mail: [email protected] A. M. C. Şengör İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Maden Fakültesi, Jeoloji Bölümü, Ayazağa, 34469 İstanbul, Turkey




3.1

Tectonic History and Resulting Tectonic Regions

The very high variety of Turkish geomorphological landscapes results mainly from the conjunction of (i) a complex geological structure and (ii) various impacts of tectonic activity and climate on the geomorphological evolution of different regions of the country. In this system, the structural context fixes the general frame, not only of the regional distribution of the geomorphological landscapes in Turkey, but also of its evolution through time and space (Fig. 3.1). The history of tectonic activity in Turkey is marked by a complete reorganization of relief during the Late Miocene, which separates a “palaeotectonic period” from a “neotectonic period”, two words which bear commonly, in the Turkish literature in the field of geology, a clear temporal meaning, since they were so defined by Şengör (1980): before and after the Late Miocene. Indeed, after the Late Miocene, complete rejuvenation of relief occurred, which has been of very high magnitude both in height and space displacements of formations and structures. This rejuvenation continued during the Pliocene and Quaternary and still continues in many regions, along lineaments and also localized spots throughout the country.

3.1.1 Palaeozoic The geological history of Turkey actually starts during the Archaean, but only a few zircon grains have been preserved from that remote era in the western Taurus Mountains (Kröner and Şengör 1989). Proterozoic events are more widely known (e.g. Ketin 1966; Kröner and Şengör 1989), but because of patchy preservation of respective rock series it has not yet been possible to generate a coherent history of this phase of evolution. Therefore, it is sensible to start the discussion on the geological history of Turkey with the Palaeozoic.

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_3

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Fig. 3.1 Geological map of Turkey. From the General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA)

Fig. 3.2 Distribution of basement types and accretionary complexes in Turkey

The Palaeozoic rocks form the basement in almost all parts of Turkey, except what has been called the Eastern Anatolian Accretionary Complex, which is much younger (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Şengör et al. 2008) (Fig. 3.2). In some areas, the Palaeozoic rocks have either not been metamorphosed or only very gently (up to lower greenschist grade) as in the İstanbul–Zonguldak Fragment, in parts of the Sakarya Continent and in the Taurus Mountains. In others, they have been gently to highly metamorphosed and even subjected to

anatectic melting as in the Strandja, Menderes, Kırşehir, Alanya and Bitlis massifs and in parts of the Sakarya Continent as, for example, in the core of the Uludağ Massif. In the Pontides (i.e. a part of the larger Rhodope–Pontide Fragment; Şengör and Yılmaz 1981), they have not been either metamorphosed or metamorphosed and intruded by younger magmatic rocks. In the entire country, the Palaeozoic rocks have been gently to highly deformed during various tectonic (taphrogenic, keirogenic and orogenic) events.

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3.1.2 Mesozoic and Palaeogene The tectonic phase that initiated the structural frame of today’s relief of Turkey occurred during the Mesozoic and Cenozoic. It was dominated by subduction and collision events (Fig. 3.2). Initial subduction started in the Late Jurassic(?)–Early Cretaceous south of the Pontides (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981) (Fig. 3.3). During the Middle Cretaceous, another subduction zone commenced its activity between the Sakarya Continent and the Kırşehir Massif (Görür et al. 1984). Those subduction zones eliminated a part of the Neo-Tethys along the İzmir–Ankara–Ulukışla–Erzincan line, where many patches of the suture-related ultramafic volcanic rocks (ophiolites) crop out today (Fig. 3.4). The subduction ended with collisions during the Middle Eocene, that took place between the Pontides and the Sakarya Continent in the west and between the Pontides and the Kırşehir Massif in the east (Fig. 3.5). The shortening across Turkey that followed these collisions lasted into the Burdigalian west of the Eastern Anatolian Plateau, while it is still continuing today in the Eastern Anatolian Plateau and highlands (Fig. 3.6) and in the SE Turkish Border folds (Assyrides; Şengör et al. 1982). In the meantime and also following the continental collision that occurred after the elimination of the Neo-Tethyan Ocean (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981), an extensive volcanic

Fig. 3.3 Structural relationships between the Menderes–Taurus block (SW of Turkey) and the fragments of the Rhodope-Pontide/Sakarya– Palaeozoic continents (NW of Turkey). Cross section (A-A′) illustrates the fragments of the Rhodope-Pontide and Sakarya–Palaeozoic

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period ensued that followed an evolution through time from an areal type to more central stratovolcano types (Yılmaz et al. 1987). Regionally, these volcanic landscapes are concentrated in three sectors: western, central and eastern Anatolia.

3.1.3 Neogene and Quaternary: The Neotectonic Control In the beginning of the Miocene (ca. 20 Ma ago), when western and central Turkey was still shortening, western Turkey had a probable height of 3000 m (a.s.l. of the time; Şengör 1991). By contrast, eastern Turkey was still under seawater until the Serravalian (Gelati 1975). During the Miocene, another collision phase started in SE Turkey, resulting from the Arabian Plate sliding north under the Anatolian plate. Eastern Turkey began rising, while western Turkey experienced extension and subsidence at the same time. This displacement provoked the westward escape of an Anatolian block from the east Anatolian convergent zone onto the oceanic lithosphere of the eastern Mediterranean Sea, mainly along the North and East Anatolian Fault Zones (NAFZ and EAFZ; Şengör et al. 1985) (Fig. 3.7). This rotational movement of the Arabian Plate continues today.

continent. Cross section (B-B′) illustrates the formation of the variously aged nappes originating from the Pontides over the Menderes–Taurus block

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Fig. 3.4 Suture zone between the Sakarya Continent (at the right of the photograph) and the Central Anatolian Crystalline Complex (CACC) (in the background). Foreground: fragments of the Mesozoic ophiolite thrust formed during the collision of the Sakarya/Kırşehir collision. On the horizon: the denudational surface truncating the

crystalline Kırşehir Massif and Mesozoic sediments. Other denudational surfaces truncate only Mesozoic series. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu, taken from the hills of the ancient capital of the Hittite Kingdom (Boğazkale = Hatuša) near Çorum in north-central Anatolia

3.1.4 Five Tectonic Provinces of Turkey

followed by the NAFZ, until the NAFZ reaches Bolu (Şengör et al. 2005). West of it, only the northern strand of the NAFZ follows the intra-Pontide Suture. (3) In the extensional west Anatolian province, N–S extension has caused the opening of rifts-orientated E– W towards the Aegean Sea (Fig. 3.9). Remnants of older structures are still partly preserved, in part because of the dissection of past reliefs (e.g. in the Menderes Metamorphic Massif). Before the Middle Miocene, the region was subjected to shortening that started during the Late Cretaceous. Afterwards, N–S extension caused the opening of E–W-trending rifts (e.g. Büyük Menderes and Küçük Menderes valleys) and NW–SE (e.g. Denizli and Soma) to NE–SWdirected relatively short cross-grabens (e.g. Gördes and Uşak–Güre basins) (Gürbüz et al. 2012). Controversial reconstructions propose three different time intervals for the development of these grabens: (i) during the Late Miocene (McKenzie 1972; Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Şengör et al. 1985; Şengör 1987, 1991); (ii) during the Late Oligocene–Early Miocene, continuously evolving ever since (Seyitoğlu et al. 1992; Şen and Seyitoğlu 2009; Demircioğlu et al. 2010); and (iii) since the Plio-Quaternary (Erinç 1955; Yılmaz et al. 2000; Gürer et al. 2009; Bozkurt et al. 2011). At the same time as the rifting, local shoulder uplift occurred in the region (Erinç 1955; Şengör 1991; Bozkurt 2001; Westaway et al. 2004). (4) According to Şengör (1980) and Şengör et al. (1985), the gently NE–SW-shortening and NW–SE-extending

According to Şengör (1980) and Şengör et al. (1985), these movements and related tectonic features, notably the North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ) and East Anatolian Fault Zone (EAFZ), determine five neotectonic provinces in Turkey (Fig. 3.8). In Fig. 3.2, these units are drawn from the viewpoint of the Alpide evolution; i.e. they represent continental and arc fragments, accretionary complexes and sutures of the Neo-Tethyan Ocean. The five neotectonic provinces are: (1) The shortening east Anatolian province corresponds to the eastern Anatolian highlands that rise eastwards currently up to above 3000 and 4000 m high a.s.l. and form also the vast Eastern High Plateau, which head towards Iran (Fig. 3.6). Its average elevation is 2100 m. This province is mainly to the east of the junction point of the NAFZ and the EAFZ near Karlıova (the “Triple Junction”). Comprising the Lake Van Basin between the cities of Bingöl and Erzurum, it also corresponds to a mantle dome in Lake Van area (Şengör et al. 2008). (2) The gently E–W-shortening north Turkish province (mean altitude of 500–700 m at most, rising from west to east) is characterized by limited E–W shortening. A contemporary N–S shortening gave birth southwards to the northern part of the Pontide Range. Note that the common geographic name “Pontide Mountains” corresponds to the Turkish “Black Sea Mountains”. They correspond in part to an ancient tectonic unit north of the intra-Pontide/ Erzincan Suture Zone (Fig. 3.2), which is in large part

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Fig. 3.5 Two landscapes in the Middle Taurus region, featuring nappes originating from northern Turkey. a View of the Alanya Nappes (Alanya Massif, Middle Taurus), looking north. Photograph by A.

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Okay from Okay and Özgül (1984); b NE Nappes of the Antalya Plain (Upper Manavgat Valley). Original drawing by O. Monod

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Fig. 3.6 Shortening thrusts resulting from Eocene collision (eastern Anatolian highlands). At Hoşap (Van), a half-washed earth brick wall by Urartu (eighth century BC) runs on the backbone of the thrusted units (Karasu River watershed, a tributary of Lake Van). b The eastern Anatolian contractional province (Lake Erçek Basin, Van). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Ova Province includes two distinct geomorphological regions: (i) the western and central Taurus Range (Fig. 3.10) and (ii) the Central Anatolian Plateau (Fig. 3.11). At the junction of these regions, the Taurus comprises an Alpide basement fold in the sense of Argand (1924), which formed until the Burdigalian (the so-called “Courbure d’İsparta” or “İsparta Angle”: a concept introduced in Blumenthal 1963, p. 649; for the later literature, see Monod 1977; Poisson 1977; Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Barka et al. 1995). In this area (the southern branch of the Neo-Tethys), both the Taurus Range and the Tauride belt consist of autochthonous units largely buried under nappes (Fig. 3.5), which partly have their roots in the İzmir–Ankara–Erzincan Suture zone in the north (Fig. 3.4). Accordingly, the highest Taurus nappes make the Menderes Massif a large tectonic window. This is also true in part for the Kırşehir Massif, although the nappes covering parts of it do not extend as far south as the Taurus. On both the Menderes and its easterly extension, as far as the Tuz Gölü Basin and on top of the Kırşehir Massif, Mio-Pliocene lacustrine and continental sediments form typical extensive plateaus and lake plains (Fig. 3.11) developed in central Anatolia. In these windows, remains of the Neo-Tethyan

Suture Zone (especially ophiolites) crop out at many places (e.g. the surroundings of Çorum and Ankara) (Fig. 3.4). In its eastern parts, towards the Bitlis Suture Zone which is cut by the EAFZ and shortened by the Arabian Plate thrusting under Anatolia (Fig. 3.7), the altitudes of the plateau forming the heart of the Ova Province rise eastward (Fig. 3.12). 5. The northern part of the Arabian Plate forms the south-east Anatolian lowlands (Fig. 3.13). The Eastern Anatolian Plateau being thrust over the northern part of the Arabian Plate, shortening movements created a series of border folds and thrusts, which form the “Assyrides” region of SE Turkey (Şengör et al. 1982) (Fig. 3.14).

3.2

Tectonically Controlled Geomorphological Landscapes

During the Middle Miocene, the “neotectonic period” started in Turkey with differential movements across and along today’s Anatolian Peninsula. This “neotectonic period” is triggered and expressed by two aspects of tectonic dynamics (Şengör 1980; Şengör et al. 1985):

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Fig. 3.7 Western escape of the Anatolian Plate under the pressure of the collision caused by the sliding north of the Arabian Plate and the slab pull exerted by the Hellenic subduction (drawing modified from internet)

Fig. 3.8 Neotectonic provinces of Turkey (after Şengör 1980 and Şengör et al. 1985)

(1) The collision of the Arabian continental fragment with Anatolia, triggering the westward expulsion of the Anatolian Plate along two important transform fault zones (NAFZ and EAFZ). (2) The general uplift of the peninsula, which caused differential elevation (triggering complex deformation of older erosional landscapes) between (i) the southern part of the peninsula (Taurus Range),

which rose extremely fast to 3000 m, and the rest of the peninsula (e.g. Schildgen et al. 2014) and (ii) the western part of the peninsula which began subsiding, although small areas rose owing to footwall uplift of very large normal faults. By contrast, the east began ascending rapidly. This caused a general slope reversal of the earlier Miocene erosional landscapes westwards.

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Fig. 3.9 Geological map of western Turkey (after Bozkurt et al. 2011). This map illustrates the E–W graben structure of the Aegean region, organized as faulted uplifted and subsided blocks, also partly controlled by remains of old continents (e.g. the Menderes Massif) and the extension of the Taurus nappes. a Simplified geological map of Turkey showing the major metamorphic massifs and fault zones. BM—Bitlis Massif; CACC—Central Anatolian Crystalline Complex;

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PM—Pulur Massif. b Geological map of western Turkey showing the Menderes Massif and its subdivision. BG—Bakırçay Graben; DB—Demirci Basin; GB—Gördes Basin; GG—Gediz Graben; KG—Kütahya Graben; SB—Selenci Basin; SG—Simav Graben; BMG—Büyük Menderes Graben; CMM—Central Menderes Massif; KMG—Küçük Menderes Graben; NMM—Northern Menderes Massif; SMM—Southern Menderes Massif; UCB—Uşak–Güre Basin

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Fig. 3.10 High mountain landscapes of Mt. Bolkar in the central Taurus Range (Ulukışla, Niğde). Photograph by M. A. Sarıkaya

Fig. 3.11 Salted landscapes in the central Anatolian “Ova” tectonic province (Tecer, Sivas). A series of closed depressions, partially connected through karstic underground circulations in gypsum bedrock, forms a line of fresh to saline shallow lakes. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

As a result of structural reorganization subsequent to this uplift and plate movements, the combination of structural changes with the activity of geomorphological agents and environmental systems produced, during the Pliocene and Pleistocene, a surprising variety of tectonically controlled landforms, landscapes and geomorphological features (Fig. 3.15).

3.2.1 Geomorphological Landscapes Responding to Uplift The intense faulting and uplift that started ca. 20 Ma ago initiated a complete transformation of the relief in Anatolia

(e.g. Yılmaz 2017 and references therein). During the Late Miocene, eastern Turkey rose out of the sea as it shortened, while western Turkey started stretching and subsiding. Therefore, during the Pliocene, the general geomorphological slope that had been eastwards until the beginning of the Miocene in the entire country switched to westwards. The morphological contrasts induced by this reversal caused the denudational processes to commence during the Early Miocene in the west when the land emerged from the Oligocene sea, and only during the Late Miocene in the east when eastern Anatolia started uplifting. Therefore, parts of the current morphology already began forming during the Palaeotectonic era in Turkey.

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Fig. 3.12 Malatya plain, west of the EAFZ. The photograph illustrates the contact between the Central Anatolian Plateau tectonic province (left and background of the photograph) and the highlands of the

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eastern Anatolian contractional province (right and foreground of the photograph). The photographer turns her back to these latter highlands. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 3.13 Geological map of the south-eastern region of Turkey (after Okay 2008). This region corresponds to the northern part of the Arabian Plate, deformed by folds under the pressure of the Anatolian Plate thrust over the Arabian Plate

3.2.1.1 Remains of Palaeozoic and Pre-Miocene Reliefs According to Şengör et al. (1985), during the mid-Miocene, the erosion phase continued in the west in the same way as during the Late Oligocene, in spite of the commencing collision in the south-east. For this reason, remains of Palaeozoic and pre-Miocene landscapes occur today mostly in north-western and western Anatolia, where they form isolated massifs composed of old metamorphic and

crystalline rocks emerging from younger deposits of various ages and origins (e.g. the Strandja–Kocaeli mountains east and west of the Bosphorus; e.g. Şengör and Özgül 2010; Şengör 2011). In addition, Erol (1991) attributes an Oligocene age to parts of an erosion surface preserved in the transition zone between north-western and northern Anatolia on the one hand and Central Anatolian Plateau on the other hand (northern Neo-Tethyan Suture Zone) (Fig. 3.16). It must be noted that age attribution by Erol (1991) is based on

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Fig. 3.14 Landscapes in the Arabian Plate south of its tilted and folded northern parts (Mardin). The landscape illustrated here extends over Plio-Quaternary formations forming the Kızıltepe (Turkey) and north Syrian lowlands. The photograph is taken from the southern

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flanks of the Mardin anticline deforming Cretaceous to Eocene limestones and clastic sediments. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu, taken from the Deyrulzafaran Monastery

Fig. 3.15 Position of photographs in different chapters illustrating tectonically controlled landscapes. Faults and thrusts are compiled from several sources cited in text

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Fig. 3.16 Mio-Pliocene denudational morphology over an uplifted block in the hinterland of the Aegean region (Simav Plain, Kütahya). The rectilinear edge of the mountain in the background is the fault scarp related to the active fault that forms the southern limit of the Simav plain (Simav, Kütahya). Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

the relative altitudinal position of a given surface within a staircase system. This interpretation proposes that the erosional stepped systems present in the Anatolian landscapes result from incision crises triggered by successive uplifts (and by high-magnitude climatic alternations during the Plio-Pleistocene). As a result, Erol (1991) considers that the uppermost surface is the oldest of all, and the lowest surface is the youngest of all, with a regular descent of age downslope for each consecutive erosional surface.

3.2.1.2 Impact of the Mio-Pliocene Climate Sediments recording erosion related to the formation of these Mio-Pliocene landscapes are found both over summit surfaces and on the slopes dominating lowlands associated with the denudational surfaces. Using facies differentiation of these sediments, Erol (1991) distinguishes two types of morphogenetic environments: (i) humid tropical during the Early to Middle Miocene, a period of relative tectonic stability, previous to the Late Miocene uplift, and (ii) semi-arid from the Late Miocene to the Pliocene. This semi-aridity of the climate during the “neotectonic” period in Turkey favoured the deposition of continental coarse-grained deposits, feeding wide piedmont areas at the foot of the rising mountains. These reddish continental deposits crop out very often in road sections or on fault scarps, as along the Aksaray Fault scarp in central Anatolia (Fig. 3.17). In central Anatolia, such deposits are characteristic of the environment that preceded or interrupted Miocene lacustrine or volcanic deposits. In the Aegean and the Mediterranean regions, they are also indicative of post-Miocene erosion during uplift.

3.2.1.3 Impact of Mio-Pliocene Uplift on Karstic Processes During the Early Pliocene, the uplift of the area extending from central to eastern Anatolia was accompanied by abundant volcanism. This context created in the east an area that became higher than the former highlands that subsided in the west. In the meantime in western Anatolia, which had already been uplifted and eroded during the Late Miocene, local faulting was responsible for some additional footwall uplift, while the province as a whole was subsiding. As a result, in this region, old surfaces were preserved on top of the rising massifs. In areas where limestones older than the uplift were thick, karstic evolution started either before or during the Miocene. In addition to the desiccation and fossilization of these surfaces, rapid and high-magnitude incision of the landscapes by Plio-Quaternary rivers brought about the development of complex underground circulations associated with multiple storey cave systems (Erinç 1960b; Zwittkovits 1966; Şengör 1975; Eroskay and Günay 1979; Ekmekçi 2003). 3.2.1.4 Geomorphological Impact of Mio-Pliocene Volcanism on the Denudational Surfaces From the Miocene to the Quaternary, volcanic emissions in central and eastern Anatolia have been abundant at places (Fig. 3.18) (Ketin 1961; Şengör and Dyer 1979). Ignimbritic deposits (e.g. in Cappadocia), complex volcanoes and/or basaltic flows (e.g. in the Kars area in eastern Anatolia) destroyed old continental landscapes on the one hand, also burying them on the other hand. For example, in Cappadocia, Aydar et al. (2013) and Lepetit et al. (2014) dated buried

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Fig. 3.17 The fault scarp line of the Aksaray Fault stimulates headward erosion of the Melendiz River (Aksaray), thus allowing outcrops of the thick reddish continental formation correlative to erosion of the Kırşehir Massif during the Early to Late Miocene (for location of the massif, see Fig. 3.2). The Upper Miocene Cappadocian

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ignimbrite flows overlie this formation. In the river bed some 5 km upstream the photograph, the formation covers uncomformably a metamorphic (marble) and granitic bedrock pertaining to the Kırşehir Massif. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 3.18 Major volcanic provinces of Turkey, with identification of volcanic areas active during the Pleistocene. Compiled from several sources, especially Pasquare et al. (1988), Yılmaz (1990), Dhont et al. (1998), Piper et al. (2013) and Türkecan (2015)

Mio-Pliocene surfaces using radioelements from both the ignimbrite flows and the formations correlative of the erosion phases. Besides, Sarıkaya et al. (2015) dated the surface exposures of the initial stage of fairy chimney landscape development and their erosion rates. In Cappadocia, Göz

et al. (2014), and in south-eastern Anatolia Derman (1999), have shown that the study of such correlative sediments permits reconstructing Miocene to Pliocene geomorphological processes.

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3.2.1.5 During Pliocene and Quaternary Break-up of earlier erosional surfaces as well as regular destruction and transformation of landscapes continued everywhere in the peninsula and in eastern Turkey in relation to both tectonic activity and volcanism. Incision was particularly intense in the rising landscapes as in the northern Black Sea and the Taurus Ranges, as well as in the highlands of eastern Anatolia. At the same time and in comparison with the borders of the peninsula, in central Anatolia uplift was neither as high in magnitude (Çiner et al. 2015) nor so much accompanied by impressive fault systems. During this elevation, the plateau became disconnected from the outer piedmonts of the chains and became endorheic. The plateau, isolated from the seas, became covered by vast lakes. Lake occurrences and longevity were favoured by subsidence of tectono-karstic depressions. In the meantime, older series were buried entirely or partially, following the activity of Plio-Pleistocene structural deformations. Today, remains of the pre-Late Miocene erosion surfaces form horizontal tracts of terrain truncating the tops of metamorphic, crystalline and older sedimentary and volcanic rocks in the transitional parts between the Central Anatolian Plateau westwards (e.g. the Menderes Massif in central western Anatolia) and eastwards (e.g. the Kırşehir Massif) (Fig. 3.2). In the inland parts of the Aegean and Mediterranean regions, dismantled remains of past topographies crop out both on top of the massifs and in the lowlands, where the material resulting from the destruction of the old topographies has accumulated (Erol 1986/1989). On top of the Taurus highlands, reconstructions of Miocene landscapes allow one to restore palaeogeographic connections (including networks of valleys orientated completely differently from the present one) (e.g. in the Taurus; Monod et al. 2006; Cosentino et al. 2012; Doğan et al. 2017). In the transition zones between central Anatolia towards east, north and west, geomorphological connections can be identified in landscapes that join (i) Mio-Pliocene bare erosion surfaces truncating old basement in the transition zones and (ii) Mio-Pliocene deposits on the slopes of these basement-cut surfaces recording erosion towards central Anatolia and river deposits inter-fingering with lake deposits (Erol 1991). In turn, in the central Anatolian landscapes, old pre-Miocene to Pliocene surfaces are exhumed from under younger sediments or as surfaces truncating the tops of rapidly uplifted surfaces, which during the Quaternary did not reach such altitudes as to be remodelled by Quaternary glaciers (Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015, 2017).

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3.2.2 Antecedent and Superimposed River Courses Since the Late Miocene, uplift has generated many occurrences of epigeny. Along the Aegean and Mediterranean shores, for example, the distribution of epigenic gorges resembles an inland belt line around Anatolia (Kayan 1999). This “borderline” results from the cumulative effect of uplift of the peninsula centre (triggering the proper epigeny) and variations in sea level. Both phenomena triggered also headward erosion of rivers. The geological and geomorphological contexts of the Turkish landscapes point to the persistence of the tectonic component during river incision in hard bedrock, with or without the presence of a possible cover. Consequently, it is often difficult to show in Turkey whether the genetic process was superimposition over a sediment cover above harder rocks or antecedence of the river/stream with regard to the uplift (Erinç 1953). Superimposition is difficult to assess in Turkey mainly because the pre-uplift sediments fossilizing old erosion surfaces were eroded rapidly during the uplift phases. Erinç (1970) cites the examples of the Çoruh River in the surroundings of İspir (NE Anatolia) and of the Kızılırmak River between Bala and Kaman in central Anatolia. Other examples of superimposition are found along the Anatolian boundary thrust in south-eastern Anatolia, where parallel tributaries to the Euphrates have incised deep gorges in Eocene carbonates covered by Miocene clastics (Erinç 1953; Şengör and Kidd 1979). In the Aegean region, all rivers flow into coastal areas and the sea after having passed through gorges cut into hard rocks, a few tens of kilometres upstream the coast (Kraft et al. 1980; Kayan 2001). Above these gorges, post-Miocene continental sediments still occur above erosion surfaces preserved on top of the relief. Such is the case of the Esen River and of the Araplar Gorge of the Küçük Menderes between Ezine and Pınarbaşı. The age of the continental sediments burying these surfaces points clearly to a narrow and deep incision starting during the Pliocene. Therefore, the variations in the valley width at the epigeny location provoked accumulation of alluvium and the formation of river terraces upstream the gorges. Antecedence cases are also very common in Turkey, because of the extreme youth and rapidity of uplift. Examples occur in the following places: • In the Marmara region, the terraces of the Garsak River, a tributary to Lake İznik east of the Marmara region, record a progressive incision through a dome-like tectonic feature (Erinç 1970).

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• In the Aegean inland, several examples of gorges interrupt strike-slip half-grabens along major block-forming faults. • In the Taurus as well as in the NE Black Sea Mountains, the main rivers are antecedent to the uplift. In the central Taurus, for example, 1000-m-deep canyons cross at right angles the hanged remnants of a now totally dried Miocene continental topography. • In central Anatolia, meanders of the Çarşamba River incise deeply into the Cretaceous limestone separating the Beyşehir and Konya Quaternary depressions. No Plio-Pleistocene sediments occur on the surface of the uplifted Cretaceous reliefs. The epigeny by antecedence thus points to the presence of a Mio-Pliocene river prior to the regional uplift (Fig. 3.19). In such situations, karstic processes have been active during uplift since the limestone bedrock favours the development of underground water circulation. In the case of Çarsamba River that was connecting today’s Lake Suğla polje drainage area to the Konya area, part of the Çarsamba gorge has

dried up in the course of the epigeny. This phenomenon resembles the evolution of the mid-Miocene fossil valleys preserved on top of the Taurus Mountains (Monod et al. 2006). The sudden disappearance of water in the bottom of this gorge responded to a rapid infiltration at the base of the gorge, a karstic process triggered by high-magnitude uplift. Today, an artificial channel dug in the dry part of the gorge at the beginning of the twentieth century, has restored the continuity between Suğla and Konya plains through the Çarsamba Valley (Doğan and Koçyiğit 2018). • In south-eastern Anatolia (see especially Şengör and Kidd 1979), deep meandering gorges of the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers cut into limestone folds of the Arabian Plate sedimentary cover. As a result of uplift and karstic evolution of the substratum, hanging valleys and hanging lakes are quite common in the whole eastern Taurus Range. In the upper drainage basin of the Tigris River, Plio-Pleistocene sediments date to the end of the Pliocene or beginning of the Pleistocene the

Fig. 3.19 Dry gorge of the Çarşamba River, incising meanders into an erosion surface truncating Cretaceous limestones between the Konya Plain and the Suğla polje (Beyşehir, Konya). The upper part of this river used to flow from the Suğla polje into the Konya Plain. Because of uplift of the block separating the Suğla and Konya fault-controlled karstic depressions, the karstic network descended underground in the

limestones forming the basement, and the meanders at the surface dried. Downstream the surficial drainage of the lower part of the Çarşamba River valley remained active because of water input from an important left bank tributary merging with the Çarşamba at a 45° angle. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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antecedence of river incision into older fossil karstic landscapes. In the southern part of the EAFZ, Erinç (1970) documented also the antecedence of the Kısık gorge incised by the Ceyhan River through the Berit and Engizek mountains in southern Turkey.

3.2.3 Uplift and Control on Karstic Landscapes Tectonic control over karstic areas is responsible for a high variety of landscapes in all limestone regions of Turkey where it favours, both the enclosure of depressions and captures of rivers on the surface, and in the underground the formation of stepped karstic systems triggering fossilization of surface morphology (Şengör 1975; Ekmekçi 2003). The most important geomorphological features and landscapes associated with the tectonic control over karstic systems are:

Fig. 3.20 Karstic swallow holes and springs at each side of anticlines forming elongated mounds west of the Ergani Plain (Ergani, Diyarbakır). The map illustrates both the descent and the changes in directions of a river network, today dismantled because some parts of it, previously superficial, have become underground through the anticlines as these were upfolding. 1. Anticline axis; 2. Mound corresponding to

i. The development of partly tectonically controlled karstic depressions, often occupied by lakes in the Central Anatolian Plateau. All plains forming the Lake District, as well as the closed depressions of Konya, Tuz Gölü and Sultansazlığı in Cappadocia, belong to these landscapes. Similarly, smaller landscapes like poljes are quite common, not only in central Anatolia but even more in the Aegean, Mediterranean and eastern regions, where several flat-bottomed depressions hollowing the mountain ranges have formed (Penck 1918, pp. 105– 106; Alagöz 1944; Louis 1956; Erinç 1960a, b; Şengör 1975; Ekmekçi 2003; Doğan et al. 2017). ii. Stepped cave systems and underground networks forming several storey edifices in thick limestone series, especially in the Taurus, from its western to eastern extremities. Karstic systems descend while landscapes rise, generating fossil networks at higher altitudes. At the uppermost level, i.e. on the surface of the uplifted reliefs, large dry valleys inherited from older periods

anticline; 3. Palaeo network (dry valley preserved on the summit of fold); 4. Superficial stream; 5. Cluse (i.e. a valley misfit to structure); 6. Swallow hole; 7. Karstic spring; 8. Wetland developed on the sediment fill of a syncline; and 9. Urban area. Drawing: C. Kuzucuoğlu, with a Google Earth background image

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(Miocene or Early Pliocene) occur when warm and humid climates favoured the rapid weathering of limestone accompanying lateral development of drainage. Such valleys can usually be dated to the Miocene in the western Taurus and to the Pliocene in the eastern Taurus. In all cases, such landscapes are associated with hanging dry valleys, also preserved at higher latitudes because of uplift. In the case of the valleys to the north of Manavgat, uplift caused hanging of dry Miocene valleys ca. 1000 m above Plio-Pleistocene canyons (Monod et al. 2006). iii. At places, uplift has been so rapid that it has generated rivers disappearing (through sinkholes) below and resurging (through karstic springs) at opposite feet of ridges. Such cases occur in the western Taurus in relation to uplifted limestone massifs (e.g. Lake Beyşehir, Akdağ Massif). They also occur in the folded parts of south-eastern Anatolia, where underground karstic drains secure the continuity of river flow from one flank of anticlines to the other. Such a subterranean drainage system running through parallel folds is also visible in the Ergani area in the south-eastern Anatolian highlands (Fig. 3.20). iv. In the Taurus, where limestone series are the thickest in Turkey, some mountainous landscapes seem to be formed exclusively of widely expanding deep lapiez surfaces keeping away wanderers (e.g. the “Geçitvermez” Mountain—the “mountain that cannot be crossed”—on top of the fault scarp overlooking the Suğla Plain in the central Taurus), as already noted by some Byzantine historians: “… the Taurus, which is very steep and craggy, difficult to cross and rugged, and capable of dispersing an army so that it could not be reassembled, and of destroying the hoofs of the horses” (Michael Attaliates, History, XVIII.16).

3.3

Geomorphological Landscapes Directed by Tectonic Networks

The five structural provinces of Anatolia (Fig. 3.8) are still active today, with rising highlands, subsiding basins, fault-controlled depressions and valleys, river incisions and stepped karstic slopes. The combination of the impacts of tectonics with the action of other geomorphological agents and environmental systems during the Pliocene and Pleistocene has produced a surprising variety of tectonic landforms, landscapes and geomorphological features. This variety owes also to local and regional geographic contexts as well as to changes in the acting processes of morphogenetic factors in relation to lithology (e.g. karstic processes; Öztürk et al. 2018), climate, sea-level changes and uses of

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natural resources by man during a few thousands of years (e.g. water control practices such as irrigation and dams, which are in use in Turkey since the 2nd mill. BC).

3.3.1 Depressions and Lakes Along the North and East Anatolian Fault Zones 3.3.1.1 The NAFZ and EAFZ: Active Fault Zones The 1600-km-long dextral strike-slip North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ) runs along the transform boundary between the Eurasian and Anatolian plates (Stein et al. 1997; Şengör et al. 2005). The NAFZ formed ca. 13–11 Ma ago in the east and reached the Sea of Marmara not earlier than 200 ka ago. Since the Late Pleistocene, it has been running only about 20 km south of İstanbul (the closest it comes to İstanbul is 8 km south of Yeşilköy, the old San Stefano) and now extends into the Aegean Sea after developing below the Marmara Sea (Faridfathi and Ergin 2012; Vardar et al. 2014; Le Pichon et al. 2016). Since the seventeenth century at least, it has shown cyclical seismic behaviour, with century-long cycles beginning in the east and progressing westwards (Şengör et al. 2005). Recent studies of the twentieth-century seismic record show that earthquakes concentrate their displacement at the western tips of its 19 broken segments (Fig. 3.21). After the last events, which occurred on 17 August and 12 November 1999 on the Adapazarı–İzmit segment, the activity of the NAFZ is considered to be one of the most dangerous natural hazards in Turkey. The left lateral strike-slip Eastern Anatolian Fault Zone (EAFZ) forms the tectonic boundary between the Anatolian block or Scholle and the north-westward moving Arabian Plate. North-westwards, it cuts at a very acute angle the thrust boundary of the old Anatolian basement bordered by the Bitlis Suture Zone, and southwards, it follows the limit of the tilted Cenozoic marine cover of the Arabian Plate thrust under the Anatolian Plate. At its SE extremity near Kahramanmaraş, the EAFZ joins the Dead Sea Transform Fault Zone (Fig. 3.7) at a triple junction (Şengör et al. 1985). During the last decade, the EAFZ has been responsible for a series of important earthquakes at Bingöl and Elazığ, although the Bitlis–Zagros Suture Zone (along which the Arabian Plate converges towards the Anatolian Plate) seems to be currently not as active (Bulut et al. 2012). However, after the manuscript of this paper was completed, a magnitude 7.3 thrust fault earthquake hits the Zagros south of Halabjah in Iraq near the Iranian border on 12 November 2017 at 18:18 GMT killing at least 530 people and injuring several thousands. Its hypocentre was at a depth of 19 km according to the USGS. Earthquakes larger than M = 6 also occur (e.g. the M = 6.7 1976 Lice earthquake) (Şengör et al. 1985). In the early 2007, a series of M > 5 events occurred in the Sivrice segment, followed in 2010 by M = 6.0 in

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Elazığ (Bulut et al. 2012). This deceleration of the northward push of the Arabian Plate is in step with the acceleration of the westward movement of Anatolia (from 6.5 mm/yr during the last 13 Ma to 18–25 mm/yr) (Hubert-Ferrari et al. 2002; Muller and Aydın 2004). As in the case of the NAFZ, active seismicity along the EAFZ concerns a band with a width of roughly 20 km along the NE–SW path of the EAFZ. The band is clustered in distinct segments that are sub-parallel to the EAFZ trend and are typically ca. 30 km long (Bulut et al. 2012) (Fig. 3.22). Several smaller sub-segments are, however, orientated N–S and E–W. The main segments are Bingöl, Palu, Sivrice and Kahramanmaraş. Among the segments of the EAFZ, the segments forming the Pütürge– Elazığ Basin (central part of the EAFZ lineament) have hosted the highest seismicity rate for the 2007–2010 time period (Bulut et al. 2012). It is worth noticing that the geomorphological records around Lake Hazar (as well as the sediment filling of the lake; Eriş 2013) show the episodically active movement of the Sivrice segment of this Pütürge– Elazığ Basin. Besides, in places along the segments, landscapes on both sides of the EAFZ are remarkably contrasting, reflecting the juxtaposition of completely different bedrock (e.g. at Palu; Fig. 3.23).

Fig. 3.21 Progressive failure of the North Anatolian Fault during the twentieth-century earthquake cycle by stress concentration at the tips of failed segments. Red regions are where the stresses are high representing likely places where the next break will take place. Courtesy of Ross Stein and Serkan Bozkurt

3.3.1.2 Structural Intramontane Basins Along the NAFZ and the EAFZ Along the path of the NAFZ, elongated strike-slip basins started to form following the Miocene collision. Subsidence in these basins has triggered continuous accumulation during the Pleistocene and Holocene, often in lake environments that are in places still present today (see Şengör et al. 2005 for a summary). Several of these basins have delivered high-resolution records of Upper Pleistocene and Holocene vegetation history based on pollen assemblages (Bottema et al. 1993/1994; Nazik et al. 2011; Ülgen et al. 2012; Beug and Bottema 2015). Also, a variety of researches have concentrated on past climates (Yaltırak et al. 2012). Along the EAFZ path, similar Quaternary sedimentary sequences are rare because of the less frequent opening of strike-slip basins. A few palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic researches have been performed in the Lake Hazar (Eriş et al. 2016), in the Gölbaşı area and in the Antakya Plain (the Lake Amuk plain that marks the junction of the Dead Sea rift system and the EAFZ; Bridgland et al. 2012). After the 1999 earthquake at Yalova near İstanbul, the NAFZ has been subject to a large number of researches about its activity and functioning. Some of them concerned the sediment dynamics within the basins (e.g. Roeser et al. 2012; Ülgen et al. 2012; Viehberg et al. 2012; Yaltırak et al. 2012) and in the river valleys affected by faulted structures (Kıyak and Erturaç 2008; Erturaç and Tüysüz 2012).

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Fig. 3.22 Segments of the Eastern Anatolian Fault between Gölbaşı (Adıyaman) and Bingöl. 1. Lake dam; 2. Natural lake; 3. Natural wetlands (tectonic basin); 4. Natural wetlands not completely submerged by lake dam; 5. Concentration of earthquakes during the 2002– 2007 period; 6. Active segment of the EAFZ; 7. Dead Sea Fault Zone; 8. Faults of the EAFZ; 9. North Anatolian Fault; 10. Meeting points of

Fig. 3.23 Palu segment on the EAFZ (Palu, Elazığ). The left lateral strike-slip eastern fault juxtaposes two distinct landscapes at Palu: the metamorphic Bitlis Suture Zone (left of the picture) and the Cenozoic marine to lake carbonate series (right of the picture). The Euphrates River flows toward the south-east, following the EAFZ faulted contact. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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the EAFZ with the Dead Sea transform fault zone (south) and the NAFZ (north); 11. Suture line between the Arabian Plate thrusted over the Anatolian Plate; and 12. Dam. Redrawn, modified and completed from Bulut et al. (2012) on a Google Earth background image and checked with 1:25.000 topographic maps

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Most of them concerned river paths and escarpment morphologies resulting from the strike-slip movements of the faults (triangular facets, diversion of streams, displacement of blocks, disconnected morphologies along faults, etc.). These studies succeeded mostly in defining and measuring the physical impacts of the faulted system on the landscapes (uplift, displacements, captures, incisions) (e.g. Gürbüz and Gürer 2008; Erturaç and Tüysüz 2012; Sarp et al. 2014; Selim 2013; Tarı and Tüysüz 2016). Along the EAFZ path, fault-controlled landscapes also comprise elongated depressions occupied by wetlands, which correspond to the subsiding parts of segments of the fault zone. While lakes or marshes occupy some of them, major rivers, especially the head tributaries or main trunks of the Seyhan and the Euphrates rivers, drain others. Flanks of ruptured reliefs as well as fluvial landforms record both the morphological and the sedimentological impacts of the activity of the segments. Today, several of these wet depressions are filled with dam lake reservoirs. In the central part of the EAFZ, the largest strike-slip faulted basin (Pütürge–Sivrice–Elazığ basin) hosts the Lake Hazar (20 km long, 212 m deep and 4 km wide), dated to approximately 148–178 ka (Çetin et al. 2003; Aksoy et al. 2007). Around and in the faulted basins, several morphotectonic features record both uplift (deformed lake terraces) and strike-slip fault-controlled parallel escarpments and triangular slopes.

3.3.2 River Paths, Captures and Mobility of Water Divides The activity of faults favours not only the presence of lakes, but also the diversion and versatility of past outlets of lakes (e.g. the spring of the head-tributaries of the Tigris River; the drainage network deformation along the NAFZ near Gerede; Erinç et al. 1961).

3.3.2.1 Changes in Base Levels and Headward Erosion In Turkey, changes of base level in river networks occurred because of (i) relief discontinuities produced by vertical tectonic movements (uplift/subsidence and faulting) or (ii) hydraulic connections occurring either upstream, when backward erosion reaches upper isolated plains, or downstream, when sea level decreases or increases, for example as during the Messinian salinity crisis of the Mediterranean followed by the post-Messinian sedimentary fills observed in the Antalya and Adana basins (Görür 1982; Öğrünç et al. 2000; Çiner et al. 2008; Cosentino et al. 2012; Schildgen et al. 2012, 2014). Görür (1982) in particular emphasized the importance of the Messinian crisis on the petroleum potential of these basins. Later, during the Quaternary, additional sea-level changes were also triggered by changes in global

C. Kuzucuoğlu et al.

climate due to glacial/inter-glacial intervals in the Mediterranean (Hughes and Woodward 2017), in the Bosphorus (Şengör 2011) and in the Black Sea (Ryan et al. 1997). All these processes redistribute watersheds. In Anatolia, examples are numerous for each of these processes (river flow disconnections vs. connections), whether on the surface or underground. Examples of fault disruption-induced changes in watersheds are more frequent in eastern Anatolia, while examples of headward erosion due to uplift of headwater areas or to sea-level decrease are more frequent in the Black Sea (e.g. Kızılırmak River; Berndt et al. 2017), Aegean (e.g. Büyük Menderes River; Kazancı et al. 2011; Gürbüz et al. 2012) and Mediterranean regions (e.g. Aksu and Göksu rivers). These examples are characteristic of the impact of differential uplift, which has caused repeated river captures in the regions surrounding the Central Anatolian Plateau, at the expense of the endorheic parts of the plateau.

3.3.2.2 River Network in Young Tectonic Context River-capturing processes, still quite common in the dynamic tectonic environment of Turkey, are also under the control of major faults. Those who ever worked on drawing watershed divides in mountainous areas of Turkey (whether using Internet resources or any map at any scale) have been confronted with confusing relationships between relief volumes and river paths. This puzzling situation arises from alignments of straight river courses, which are separated by subtle watershed thresholds or by small to large closed depressions whose connections with hydrologic networks remain far from clear. This highly unusual distribution of river watersheds reflects differences in the adaptation rhythms of river incision in Anatolia to the high speed of the recent rise of relief. The more recent is the uplift, and the more confusing is the organization of the river network. Whether tectonic movements produce faulting or uplift/subsidence, the timing, path and intensity of river incision also respond differently. Such examples of fault control are strikingly numerous along the NAFZ and, especially, along the EAFZ, as well as along faults limiting grabens collecting and directing watercourses in dismantled mountain regions (Şengör 2017). 3.3.2.3 Fault-Controlled River Paths Rectilinear courses of narrow–short and wide–long valleys meeting at right angles are common features on any map illustrating river paths in Turkey. This is especially true along the NAFZ and the EAFZ. When crossing sub-active or active faults with a high lateral component, river paths follow typical side-sliding courses parallel to that of strike-slip faulting. Such side-sliding displacements are currently observed and measured along the NAFZ (e.g. Gürbüz et al. 2015; Tarı and Tüysüz 2016; Şengör 2017). Along the EAFZ, angular zigzag paths are particularly spectacular in

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Fig. 3.24 River captures in the Upper Euphrates and Upper Tigris basins along the EAFZ: 1. Dam lakes; 2. Natural lakes; 3. Wetlands (flat closed depressions); 4. Rivers merging at right angle; 5. Areas treated by capture; 6. Tributary rivers; 7. Main rivers; 8. Rivers and

streams in the Gölbaşı closed depression; 9. Dams; 10. EAF–NAF meeting point at Karlıova. Drawn from reporting 10 m contours on 1:25,000-scaled topographic maps

the upper basins of (i) the Seyhan River when it gets close to the Euphrates basin upstream the Kahramanmaraş city area, (ii) the Euphrates and right bank tributaries upstream the Adıyaman Basin, (iii) the valleys of both upper members of the Euphrates when they cross the EAFZ (Murat River) and the NAFZ (Karasu River) and (iv) the Tigris River between Lake Hazar and Ergani city (Fig. 3.24). In karstic areas where processes develop a complex underground network, the effects of these processes combine with the surface linear displacement of valleys to produce specific spots where water divides are disputed by oppositely flowing systems (e.g. the Gölbaşı case, between Seyhan and Euphrates basins; Fig. 3.24).

Aegean region, for instance, is one of the seismically most active continental regions in the world. There have been no well-documented volcanic eruptions since 1443, but some of the large eastern Anatolian volcanoes such as Nemrut and Tendürek may erupt at any time and cause devastation around them. The seas around Turkey (Black Sea, Aegean Sea and Mediterranean Sea) and within it (Sea of Marmara) have undergone extremely complex histories tied to both waxing and waning continental glaciers in Eurasia, but also to fluctuating worldwide sea level. Both the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea have been closed seas during parts of their histories having truly dramatic episodes such as the Messinian Salinity Crisis that impacted not only the coastal regions of Turkey, but also the entire country, including the endorheic central regions via their climatic effects. Vast lakes once occupied areas that are now semi-deserts in these internal regions. Forward climate modelling studies show that the aridification trend continues (except along the northern geomorphic region) and once-fixed sand dunes in central Anatolia have in places resumed their movements. Aridification, combined with ill-informed water usage, has affected karstic regions and accelerated the formation of karst pits (“obruks”) in south-central Turkey. Geomorphological studies have

3.4

Conclusion

The neotectonic interval in Turkey, i.e. the last 11–13 Ma, has seen not only a great amount of activity, but also a tremendous variety of it. In this sense, too, Turkey is really a “Minor Asia” containing at least five tectonic provinces of contrasting structures and evolutionary histories. That activity is continuing as reflected by the active seismicity of the country. The

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entered a very exciting phase in Turkey, particularly since the introduction of refined surface-dating techniques, GPS and very high-resolution satellite imaging. We hope that the chapters in this book will prove springing boards for sophisticated future studies of this very interesting part of our planet.

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40 glaciation in the Mediterranean mountains. Geological Society of London Special Publication 433, pp 289–305. http://doi.org/10. 1144/SP433.4 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Zreda M (2015) Fairy chimney erosion rates on Cappadocia ignimbrites, Turkey; insights from cosmogenic nuclides. Geomorphol 234:182–191. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2014. 12.039 Sarp G, Gürboğa Ş, Toprak V, Düzgün Ş (2014) Tectonic history of Basins sited along the western section of the North Anatolian Fault System Turkey. J Afr Earth Sci 89:31–41 Schildgen TF, Cosentino D, Bookhagen B, Niedermann S, Yıldırım C, Echtler HP, Strecker MR (2012) Multi-phased uplift of the southern margin of the Central Anatolia plateau, Turkey: a record of tectonic and upper mantle processes. Earth Planet Sci Lett 317– 318:85–95 Schildgen TF, Yıldırım C, Cosentino D, Strecker MR (2014) Linking slab break-off, Hellenic trench retreat, and uplift of the Central and Eastern Anatolian plateaus. Earth Sci Rev 128:147–168 Selim HH (2013) Tectonics of the buried Kırklareli Fault, Thrace Region, NW Turkey. Quatern Int 312:120–131 Şen Ş, Seyitoğlu G (2009) Magnetostratigraphy of early-middle Miocene deposits from E-W trending Alaşehir and Büyük Menderes grabens in western Turkey, and its tectonic implications. In: van Hinsbergen DJJ, Edwards MA, Govers R (eds) Geodynamics of collision and collapse at the Africa-Arabia-Eurasia subduction zone. Geological Society Sp. Pub. 311, London, UK, pp 321–342 Şengör AMC (1975) Outlines of the Turkish Karst: Boğaziçi Univ. Speleol. Soc. Pub. No.1, İstanbul, 25 pp Şengör AMC (1980) Mesozoic-Cenozoic tectonic evolution of Anatolia and surrounding regions. Bull Bur Rech Geol Miniéres, France 115–137 Şengör AMC (1987) Cross-faults and differential stretching of hanging walls in regions of low-angle normal faulting: examples from western Turkey. Geol Soc London Spec Pub 28, pp 575–589 Şengör AMC (1991) Timing of orogenic events: a persistent geological controversy. In: Müller DW, McKenzie JA, Weissert H (eds) Controversies in modern Geology—evolution of geological theories in sedimentology, earth history and tectonics. Academic Press, London, pp 405–473 Şengör AMC (2011) İstanbul Boğazı niçin Boğaziçi’nde açılmıştır? [Why did the strait of İstanbul open in the Bosphorus?]. In Ekinci D (ed) Fiziki Coğrafya Araştırmaları, Sistematik ve Bölgesel (In Honour of Prof. Dr. Mehmet Yıldız Hoşgören). Pub. of the Turkish Association of Geography 6:57–102 Şengör AMC (2017) Diversion of river courses across major strike-slip faults and keirogens. In: Çemen İ, Yilmaz Y (eds) Active global seismology: neotectonics and earthquake potential of the Eastern Mediterranean region. Geophysical Monograph Series. American Geophysical Union, pp 93–101. https://doi.org/10.1002/ 9781118944998.ch3 Şengör AMC, Dyer J (1979) Neotectonic provinces of the Tethyan orogenic belt of the Eastern Mediterranean: variations in tectonic style and magmatism in a collision zone. EOS 60:390–417 Şengör AMC, Kidd WSF (1979) The post-collisional tectonics of the Turkish-Iranian plateau and a comparison with Tibet. Tectonophys 55:361–376 Şengör AMC, Özgül N (2010) İstanbul’un iklim ve jeolojisi [Geology and Climatology of İstanbul]: in İstanbul Ansiklopedisi. NTV Pub, İstanbul, pp 1–23 Şengör AMC, Yılmaz Y (1981) Tethyan evolution of Turkey: a plate tectonic approach. Tectonophys 75:181–241 Şengör AMC, Yılmaz Y, Ketin İ (1982) Remnants of a pre-late Jurassic Ocean in northern Turkey: fragments of Permo-Triassic Paleo-Tethys? Reply. Geol Soc America Bull 93:932–936

C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. Şengör AMC, Görür N, Şaroğlu F (1985) Strikeslip faulting and related Basin formation in zones of tectonic escape: Turkey as a case study. In: Biddle KT, Christie-Blick N (eds) Strike-slip deformation, Basin formation, and sedimentation. Soc. Econ. Paleontol. Miner. Spec. Publ. 37 (in honor of J.C. Crowell), pp 227–264 Şengör AMC, Tüysüz O, İmren C, Sakınç M, Eyidoğan H, Görür N, Le Pichon X, Rangin C (2005) The North Anatolian fault: a new look. Annu Rev Earth Planet Sci 33:37–112 Şengör AMC, Özeren MS, Keskin M, Sakınç M, Özbakır AD, Kayan İ (2008) Eastern Turkish high plateau as a small Turkic-type orogen: implications for post-collisional crust-forming processes in Turkic-type orogens. Earth Sci Rev 90:1–48 Seyitoğlu G, Scott BC, Rundle CC (1992) Timing of Cenozoic extensional tectonics in west Turkey. J Geol Soc (London) 149:533–538 Stein RS, Barka AA, Dieterich JH (1997) Progressive failure on the North Anatolian fault since 1939 by earthquake stress triggering. Geophys J Int 128:594–604 Tarı U, Tüysüz O (2016) The effects of the North Anatolian fault on the geomorphology in the Eastern Marmara region, northwestern Turkey. Geodinamica Acta 28(3):139–159 Türkecan A (2015) Türkiye Volkanitleri (The volcanics of Turkey), with 9 detailed maps of Turkish volcanic regions. MTA Pub, Ankara (in Turkish) Ülgen UB, Franz SO, Biltekin AD, Çağatay MN, Roeser PA, Doner L, Thein J (2012) Climatic and environmental evolution of Lake Iznik (NW Turkey) over the last 4700 years. Quatern Int 274:88–101 Vardar D, Öztürk K, Yaltırak C, Alpar B, Tur H (2014) Late Pleistocene-Holocene evolution of the southern Marmara shelf and sub-basins: middle strand of the North Anatolian fault, southern Marmara Sea. Turkey Mar Geophy Res 35(1):69–85 Viehberg FA, Ülgen UM, Damcı E, Franz SO, Akçer Ön S, Roeser PA, Çağatay MN, Litt T, Melles M (2012) Seasonal hydrochemical changes and spatial sedimentological variations in Lake İznik (NW Turkey). Quatern Int 274:102–111 Westaway R, Pringle M, Yurtmen S, Demir T, Bridgland D, Rowbotham G, Maddy D (2004) Pliocene and Quaternary regional uplift in western Turkey: the Gediz River terrace staircase and the volcanism at Kula. Tectonophys 391:121–169 Yaltırak C, Ülgen UB, Zabcı C, Franz SO, Akçer Ön S, Sakınç M, Cağatay MN, Alpar B, Öztürk K, Tunoğlu C, Ünlü S (2012) Discussion: a critique of Possible waterways between the Marmara Sea and the Black Sea in the Late Quaternary: evidence from ostracod and foraminifer assemblages in lakes İznik and Sapanca, Turkey. Geo-Mar Lett 32:267–274 Yılmaz Y (1990) Comparison of young volcanic associations of western and eastern Anatolia: review. J Volcanol Geotherm Res 44 (1):69–87 Yılmaz Y (2017) Morphotectonic development of Anatolia and its surrounding regions. In: Çemen İ, Yılmaz Y (eds) Active global seismology: neotectonics and earthquake potential of the eastern Mediterranean Region. Geophysical Monograph 225. American Geophysical Union, Wiley, pp 11–91 Yılmaz Y, Şaroğlu F, Güner Y (1987) Initiation of the neomagmatism in east Anatolia. Tectonophysics 134:177–199 Yılmaz Y, Genç, SC, Gürer O, Bozcu M, Yılmaz K, Karacık Z, Altunkaynak S, Elmas A (2000) When did the western Anatolian grabens begin to develop? In: Bozkurt E, Winchester B, Piper J (eds) Tectonics and magmatism in Turkey and the surrounding area. Geological Society Special Publication 173, London, pp 353–384 Zwittkovits F (1966) Klimabedingte Karstformen in den Alpen, den Dinariden und im Taurus: Mitteilugen der Österreichischen Geographischen Gesellschaft 108(1):72–97

4

The Geomorphological Regions of Turkey Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, Attila Çiner, and Nizamettin Kazancı

Abstract

The core of Turkey’s land is the Anatolian Peninsula, which is surrounded by several seas (Mediterranean, Aegean, Marmara and Black Sea). Offering a high variety of morphological landscapes, Anatolia is an orogenic plateau bordered to the north by one of the world’s most seismically active strike-slip faults, the North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ), to the south by the Cyprus and Hellenic subduction margins, to the west by the Aegean extensional zone, and to the east by the East Anatolia Fault Zone (EAFZ) and Bitlis– Zagros collision zone. In this context, first-order morphotectonic features are primary contributors to complex and unique landscapes both in and around the peninsula. This role appears first in the citadel-like relief of Anatolia, whose hill and mountain slopes steepen quickly from the coastal zones in direction of the plateau. From the west–eastward, the relief rises also steadily but less abruptly. Anatolian highlands thus form a barrier capturing the humidity generated by the seas. In return, its springs and rivers deliver abundant water to the lowlands around. Interacting with the relief organization, river paths and networks are thus impacted, not only by tectonic movements but also by several other geomorphological processes which are at work in shaping of the Anatolian landscapes. While relief generates hydrography and landscape contrasts, climate and lithology control hydrology and vegetation as well as weathering processes. In the meantime, volcanic activity and C. Kuzucuoğlu (&) Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, Meudon, France e-mail: [email protected] A. Çiner Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences, Istanbul Technical University, Maslak, 34469 Istanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] N. Kazancı Geological Engineering Department, Ankara University, 06830 Gölbaşı, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

karst development produce some of the most outstanding landscapes in the country. This chapter aims to present the richness of these landforms, as well as to explain how and when they were formed. To that end, six regions are identified, each of them corresponding to a specific mix of landscapes and land-forming factors. These six regions are: Northern Anatolia (Black Sea), Western Anatolia (Aegean), Mediterranean Anatolia, Central Anatolia, Eastern Anatolia and South-eastern Anatolia. We define each region on the basis of first, physiographic description (relief, climate, phytogeography, hydrography), allowing the identification of (i) subregions corresponding to a certain group of landforms and (ii) the spatial distribution of these landforms within the region. This first task is followed by the presentation of the structural background, insisting on tectonics and dominant lithologies as well as the stratigraphic data pointing to the differential erosional context inscribed in ancient morphologies. Based on this geologic information, the third part exposes landforms resulting from morphological processes acting through time. This task groups the regional landforms according to the main geomorphological agents and processes that produced them. It underlines the importance, in the formation of the present landscapes, of the interplay between different factors, whether tectonic or climatic, karstic or volcanic, hydrographic or hydrologic… and the importance of time in the preservation and transformation of landscapes. The human action is evoked when its influence has been important in today’s landscapes, either because of duration, or because of specific cultural or historic contribution. This evocation is especially critical for areas where human’s action has transformed landscapes throughout the Holocene period, or where it has been studied thoroughly. Keywords








Geomorphological regions Landforms Landscapes Anatolia Turkey

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_4


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4.1

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Introduction

Six geomorphological regions compose this chapter (Fig. 4.1). This number is different from the five structural provinces defined by Şengör et al. (1985) (Chap. 3). The difference is due to the fact that one tectonic province of Şengör et al. (1985) corresponds to two very different groups of landscapes: the Mediterranean Anatolian Region on the one hand and the Central Anatolian Region on the other hand. In Turkey, seven geographic regions have also been defined, with a noticeable contribution from physical geographers like S. Erinç (whose publications have been dedicated to education, research and management in the fields of climate, geomorphology and geography) and O. Erol (whose life was devoted to geomorphology on local and regional scales also throughout the country). As a result, seven geographic regions were defined in 1941 on the basis of geography, demography, economy and energy needs of the population (Louis 1941; Erinç and Tunçdilek 1952; Louis 1958; Erinç 1958; Tuncel 1960). The debate also considered with great care the arguments defining the physical borderlines between regions (Erinç 1971; Erol 1983; Darkot 1955; Atalay 1987). Interesting to note is that most of the corresponding physical regional limits match important water divides as well as contact zones between coherent geographic territories. Using water divides for defining territorial limits contrasts notably with the situation in other European countries where limits of administrative regions are heritages of history, a basis making sometimes more difficult the full efficiency of decisions concerning management of landscape and natural resources (e.g. risk prevention, protection of water, soil, vegetation resources).

This regional chapter is organized in six landscape regions presenting coherent landscapes and landforms within their limits. The absence of a seventh region is due to the parting of the Marmara geographic region in two: (1) its north and north-eastern parts are included in the Western Black Sea Region because of its structural, geomorphological and landscape continuity with the humid climate and densely forested mountains defining the Black Sea Region and (2) its western and southern parts are included in the northern Aegean Region, because their vegetation, climate, relief and geology (i.e. the landscapes) resemble those of Western Anatolia. A final remark concerns the Sivas area, which is an important transitional zone we include in Eastern Anatolian Region although this area presents dry landscapes similar to those in Central Anatolia but associated with wide outcrops of gypsum. The two reasons for choosing to include the Sivas area landscapes in Eastern Anatolian Region are: (1) its mid-altitude hills are an important part of the Anatolian Diagonal (presented in the Eastern Anatolian Region), and (2) its complicated hydrography and relief organization have caused this area to have been less occupied nor transformed by man than any other regions in Turkey. The presentation of landforms and landscapes in the six geomorphological regions that we define here (Northern Anatolia (Black Sea); Western Anatolia (Aegean); Mediterranean Anatolia; Central Anatolia; Eastern Anatolia; South-eastern Anatolia) is organized, for each region, on the basis of first its physical geographic context (relief, climate, phytogeography, hydrography), second its structural characteristics (geological evolution, tectonics, stratigraphy, lithology), and third its geomorphological landscapes.

Fig. 4.1 Limits of the geomorphological regions of Turkey defined in this book

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4.2

Northern Anatolia (Black Sea Region)

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4.2.1.1 Relief The North Anatolian Region extends over two continents (Fig. 4.2): west, it corresponds to the Istranca Massif south

of Bulgaria; and east, to the North Anatolian highlands joining the Lesser Caucasus in Georgia. These mountains are commonly called the Pontic Range. Their length is approximately 1000 km, with widths up to 130 km. The region includes (i) coastal areas, (ii) rolling hills and mountains and (iii) inland landscapes mixing plateau patches and undulating mountains stretching south as a transition zone with the Central Anatolia Region. From west to east, the Western Black Sea Region comprises the densely forested rolling slopes of the Istranca Massif (c. 400 m asl; above sea level), the Bosphorus Strait (31 km long; max. and min. depths 110 and 32 m, respectively; max. and min. widths 3420 and 700 m, respectively), and the eastern watershed of the Marmara Sea. Inland, the region comprises (i) the depression north of the Uludağ Massif near Bursa, partly occupied by the İznik Lake; (ii) the Kocaeli Peninsula which is the continuity of the Palaeozoic to Mesozoic Massif of Istanbul; (iii) the İzmit Gulf

Fig. 4.2 North Anatolia geomorphological region. Numbers relate to locations of: a specific sites presented by Chaps. 5 to 35 (chapter number positioned in purple circles or as areas squared by purple-lined rectangles);

b Photographs in this chapter (the corresponding figure number(s) is/are positioned in yellow squares), and large maps in this chapter (the corresponding figure number is positioned within red-lined rectangles)

4.2.1 Physical Geographic Context The physical geography of the North Anatolian landscapes is characterized by (i) a mountainous range forming a W–E barrier parallel with the Black Sea Coast, (ii) high humidity rainfall and hydrology (owing to the humid atmospheric circulation originating in the Black Sea), (iii) soil instability (bedrocks favouring landslides), and (iv) a structural context in which the North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ) skirting the southern limits of the region partly forces the river network to part between S–N orientated antecedent gorges and E–W striped, tectonic depressions.

Fig. 4.3 Mountain landscape in the Central Black Sea Region, south of Sinop. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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prolonged by the Sapanca Lake and Sakarya Valley where the city of Adapazarı is located. The Central Black Sea Region rises eastward from 300 m asl above the Adapazarı plain to ca. 2000 m above Sinop (Fig. 4.3) and Trabzon. Meanwhile, the mountainous landscapes widen, reaching 100–200 km width. They include the Akçakoca, Bolu, Küre, Köroğlu and Ilgaz mountains

(Fig. 4.4). On the coast, the width of the lowland decreases, from 30 km in the west to a very narrow land strip east from Zonguldak. From there, the coastline is formed of steep cliffs with a few promontories and interrupted by two large deltas (of the Kızılırmak and Yeşilırmak rivers). Each spot along the sea where cliff continuity is interrupted has hosted Antique to Byzantine and Ottoman harbours.

Fig. 4.4 Safranbolu town (Karabük) is famous for its very well preserved Ottoman houses, which still compose most of the town’s buildings. The town is built over a topography incising almosthorizontal middle Eocene limestone beds which are unconformably

covered by Eocene clastics. The snow-covered mountains in the background are the Ilgaz Mountains. Safranbolu town is included in the UNESCO List of World Heritage Sites since 1994. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 4.5 The highest summits of the Black Sea Mountains are found in NE Turkey in the Kaçkar Range (Şavşat valley in the Kaçkar Range, Artvin). Photograph by O. Kurdoğlu

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The Eastern Black Sea Region presents alpine landscapes with steep and densely forested slopes deeply incised by impressive gorges in which turbulent waters flow rapidly (e.g. the Çoruh Valley). Above 2500 m, the Kaçkar Massif

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is characterized by a high variety of glacial–periglacial landscapes and landforms near the summits (Fig. 4.5), including the remains of a glacier looking north towards the Black Sea (Erinç 1949, 1952; Çiner 2004). Parallel valleys

Fig. 4.6 Typical traditional farming objects and buildings in the Black Sea Region (Sinop). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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running north to the sea cut densely forested ridges. These valleys used to be isolated from one another until a few decades ago, because the ridges made transportation and exchanges very difficult. This context favoured the preservation of original and rich traditions shaping cultural landscapes up to the summits of the range. Traditional exploitation of the valleys was organized seasonally from the river mouth (fisheries and maritime transport activities) and the entrance of the valley (markets, wintering), in direction of the mid-valleys (where stables and food storage were available during autumn and winter; agriculture and forestry active during other seasons), heading to the highland pastures in the spring and summer (the “yaylas”, Turkish word for seasonal summer alpine land mainly devoted to animal husbandry: Doğu et al. 1993). Strong cultural identity linked to this specific geographic context includes the sharing of a language (the “Laz” language, belonging to the Kartvelian linguistic family), and vivid traditional and cultural practices and activities (e.g. music, dances, food, architecture, fishing/hunting, maize–hazelnut–tea agriculture and alpine transhumance of cattle) (Fig. 4.6).

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sea-facing slopes, favouring the development of dense forests. Steepness and high altitude of the coastal range cause such high annual rainfall (e.g. >2200 mm/year in Rize and Hopa) that trees grow everywhere up to the treeline (2200 m asl), no matter how steep the slope is. In the highest parts of the eastern range, this situation also leads to an extraordinary climatic phenomenon: the almost daily invasion of valleys by a “cloud tide” rising in the afternoon or evening up to the summits of the range (Fig. 4.7).

4.2.1.2 Climate On the regional scale, monthly mean temperatures are ca. 23 °C in summer and ca. 7 °C in winter, while annual mean precipitation varies from 580 mm/year in the west to 1300 mm/year in the east. Year-round high precipitations are due to temperature and humidity contrast between the air masses over the Black Sea, hitting the rising slopes of the mountains. This contrast causes high rainfall on the

4.2.1.3 Phytogeography The year-round high precipitations on the northern slopes of the Pontic Mountains generate dense forests, often luxurious, and getting denser eastwards. Seawards, broadleaved trees adapted to rainy and temperate climate are encountered on the lowest slopes, with Oak (Quercus), Beech family trees (Fagaceae), Hazel (Corylus avellana), Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus) and Sweet Chestnut (Castanea sativa) prevailing. Further upslope, conifers (with Nordmann Fir, and Oriental Spruce or Caucasian Spruce) are dominant, together with Oriental beech (Fagus orientalis) and common alder (Alnus glutinosa). Understory vegetation is composed of azalea and rhododendrons, also invading the Alpine meadows that replace the forests above 2200 m (Fig. 4.8). Azalea and rhododendrons also form carpets and bushes inside the forests, whatever the altitudes or tree compositions are. Today, Rhododendron ponticum ssp. Ponticum is a threatened species because of the recent increasing destruction of Pontic forests by bulldozers. With much contrast, the landscapes of the terrains south of the Black Sea water divide belong to the

Fig. 4.7 A “Cloud Flood” rises daily in the Black Sea-facing valleys of the Kaçkar Range (North-eastern Anatolia). This spectacular phenomenon is caused by the very high humidity pushed up by air masses moving from the Black Sea. The “cloud flood” does not

overpass the Black Sea Range (in the background). Fog and clouds accumulating against the highest summits, climate and vegetation both change abruptly over the Eastern Anatolian Plateau because of suddenly drier conditions. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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plateaus of Central and Eastern Anatolia, with mountain steppes and semi-desertic plants alternating with thorny shrubs and mixed forests. Black Sea forests and its alpine ecosystems host a high variety of endemic plant species (e.g. orchids) and primary forests (e.g. native Buxus forests). Since the Miocene and during the Quaternary, the eastern part of the range acted as

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a refuge for plant and insect species (Fig. 4.9). Here, short and steep valleys isolated from one another, together with the round-the-year humid climatic conditions, provided wide opportunities for endemic species to grow and for other species to be preserved by mild conditions persistent during the warm/cold periods of Pleistocene. Typical relic examples are the beech forests in the Istranca Massif, as well as

Fig. 4.8 Mountain, water, fog, dense forest and treeline in the Kaçkar Range. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 4.9 University students collecting insects in wetland and meadows on the upper slopes of the Kaçkar Mountains, during a TÜBİTAK (Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) training stage on environment. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 4.10 Cultivating tea in the steep slopes of the eastern Pontide highlands. Note the landslide in the foreground, that has recently moved parts of the tea field down the slope. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Quercus pontica L. (a relic from Miocene time) and Betula pendula L. (a relic from Late Glacial period) in the Black Sea Range. Several plants have been introduced by man such as olive tree groves in the Marmara and Thrace regions introduced during the Chalcolithic (e.g. the very famous Gemlik and Şile olive brands)/maize which has become a standard in Black Sea food is present since the end of the sixteenth century, while the famous black tea from the region is cultivated only since the 1940s (Fig. 4.10). The success of these last two species has been such that Turkish Black Sea people have long considered that maize and tea were native to the Black Sea Region as they both take a very heavy part in their present culinary culture, together with other but truly native species such as hazelnut (Turkish Northern Anatolia region is number one world hazelnut producer and exporter, covering approximately 70 and 82% of the world’s production and export, respectively).

4.2.1.4 Hydrography From west to east, the main rivers of the region are the Sakarya (ancient Sangarios, 824 km), the Kızılırmak (ancient Halys, 1355 km, the longest river of Turkey), the Yeşilırmak (ancient Iris, 418 km) and the Çoruh (ancient Acampsis, 376 km). Except for the Çoruh, the other three rivers do not spring in the region and flow most of their lengths in Central Anatolia. As the Black Sea Region corresponds mainly to an E–W elongated mountain barrier close to the sea, local rivers remain quite short, while their longitudinal profile is as steep as the rising slopes of the ranges they flow from. Areas drained by such steep,

deep and narrow streams are the Istranca Massif (eastern part of Thrace), the Küre Mountains (between Bartın and Sinop) and the Canik to Kaçkar mountains (between Samsun and Hopa) (Fig. 4.2). This scarcity of streams has given an important role to cities located at the river mouths, because these cities had access both to highland products by the valleys, and to coastal trade by boat. Such ports are (i) from west Karaburun, Şile, Ereğli, Zonguldak, Bartın and Cide, (ii) to east Sinop, Ordu, Giresun, Trabzon, Rize and Hopa. A few large rivers succeed however to overpass the highlands and reach the Anatolian Plateau. Some have crossed a range reaching more than 2000 m heights, such as the Kızılırmak River and its affluent the Gökırmak, which cross the Köroğlu and Ilgaz mountains (between Kastamonu and Tosya), and the Yeşilırmak River crossing the Akdağ and Karaömer mountains (south of Amasya). In the western part of the Black Sea Region, the Sakarya River is the only river to cross the Black Sea Range in a valley flowing from south northwards. While in the easternmost part of the region, the Çoruh Valley does not succeed, during more than 90% of its course, to cross the Giresun, Bayburt and Kaçkar ranges, entering the Artvin gorge only a few kilometres from the Georgian border after which it flows finally into the sea.

4.2.2 Geomorphological Landscapes Like in all other regions of Turkey, the tectonic structure provides a permanent forcing on the geomorphological landscapes. The Black Sea watershed in Turkey corresponds

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roughly to four structural units: the Istranca Massif (NE Thrace), the İstanbul Zone, the Sakarya Zone and the eastern Pontides. These four zones are collectively called “Pontides”. Because they were not intensely deformed and metamorphosed by the Alpide orogeny during the Tertiary, except in isolated massifs such as the Ilgaz and Ağvanis, evidence of older late Palaeozoic and Cimmeride orogenies is preserved in the structure (lithology, stratigraphy, tectonic features). By mid-Cretaceous time, the Pontic Zones except Sakarya were amalgamated into a single magmatic arc (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Yılmaz et al. 1997; Yılmaz 2017). Sakarya collided with the rest during the Eocene (Akbayram et al. 2016). Subsequently at the beginning of the late Miocene, the region experienced a slope reversal, which explains that the altitudes of Pontic highlands summits decrease westward. During the Quaternary, uplift forced rivers to incise Miocene and Pliocene denudational morphologies, generating deep epigenic valleys through parts of the hard basement rocks. Three further elements intervened in the shaping of the geomorphological landscapes of the region: (1) the formation of the NAFZ, which constrains river paths to zigzag patterns; (2) sea-level changes in the Black Sea and Marmara Sea, which forced river dynamics incising/terracing their valleys; (3) global climate changes

Fig. 4.11 Landscape contrasts between the forested/tree-free Eastern/Western Thrace (west of the Bosphorus) and the geomorphological continuum eastward in the Kocaeli Peninsula (east of the Bosphorus). The green caption stands for Black Sea forests and

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modifying humidity (rain/snow) and temperatures (mild/cold), but preserving mild climatic conditions during glacial periods in the low ranges. This permanency of mild conditions allowed the conservation of vegetation throughout glacial periods, although glaciers developed in the high ranges (Erinç 1952; Doğu et al. 1993; Çiner 2004; Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015). Climatic alternations during glacial/interglacial periods accentuated or restricted mass movements and flood activity at mid-altitudes, as well as chemical weathering.

4.2.2.1 The Western Black Sea Region The Istranca crystalline massif forms the backbone of the north-eastern Thrace. Extending northward towards the Edirne City, it separates the Ergene River Basin (southern Thrace) from the Bosphorus. The upper limit of the forests corresponds exactly to the water divide between the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea (Fig. 4.11). Climate of the area is predominantly humid continental in the mountains and humid subtropical at the Black Sea Coast, with dense broadleaved and pine forests covering the slopes facing the Black Sea. A majority of taxa belong to the Euro-Siberian assemblages (hazelnut, beech, oak, hornbeam) favoured by the humid and temperate (often warm) climate (Yarcı 1999).

watersheds in Thrace and Kocaeli peninsulas. The white lines stand for the edges of epigenic gorges of the Sakarya River through horsts partly responding to tectonic movements related to the NAFZ activity

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Istranca Massif culminates at 851 m asl, topped by the remains of a Mio-Pliocene surface preserved on both sides of the water divide (Turoğlu 1997). On the Black Sea-facing slopes, a lower (450–350 m asl) and wide Plio-Quaternary surface is gently sloping towards the sea. This surface is intensely eroded by parallel streams flowing SE–NW. This orientation of the stream network records the westward lateral movement of the Istranca fault, dated middle–late Quaternary. On the other side of the Bosphorus, the Kocaeli Peninsula is the eastern counterpart of northern Thrace. The Bosphorus is a continental system composed of two immerged opposite streams incising a Pliocene erosion surface (Cvijić 1908; Şengör 2011), which truncates Palaeozoic and Cretaceous rocks and is recognizable on both sides of the Strait (Elmas 2003; Yılmaz 2007; Gürbüz 2009). While the northern side of the Kocaeli Peninsula is bounded by thrusts, the southern border corresponds to a major fault zone, the NAFZ. The general tectonic history of the NAFZ shows how, in the area of the Sakarya-Pamukova basins (south of the Kocaeli Peninsula), some faults have been active since the Miocene and Pliocene, while others have been active since the mid- or late Pleistocene only (Şengör et al. 2005). South of the Kocaeli Peninsula, the İzmit Gulf (max. depth: 205 m) was already under the Marmara Sea waters when the Bosphorus sill (at −45 m) was flooded during the early Holocene. Eastward the İzmit Gulf is prolonged by the Sapanca Lake (max. depth: 55 m), which occupies the largest sag pond along the northern strand of the NAFZ. Today, a surface outflow stream connects Lake Sapanca to the River Sakarya (ancient Sangarios), which meanders in the Adapazarı plain. This river is a long drainage artery (824 km) collecting not only streams from North-western Anatolian mountains, but also from plateaus in the Inner Pontides. At its arrival in the tectonic basin occupied by Lake Sapanca, the Sakarya River flows over the Adapazarı floodplain floor at 30 m asl. Until it reaches the Black Sea, the Sakarya River course has still 63 km to flow. This lower Sakarya Valley (the Adapazarı–Karasu corridor) is partly controlled by a fault zone constraining the north-western part of the Adapazarı plain (Erinç 1970; Bilgin 1984; Yiğitbaş et al. 2004; Gürbüz and Gürer 2008). Compensating the energy needed to cross the metamorphic rocks of the Istanbul Zone (Ordovician rocks pertaining to Gondwanaland), the Sakarya River first forms famous free meanders over the Adapazarı marshy plain (Russell 1954) (Fig. 4.12).

C. Kuzucuoğlu et al.

4.2.2.2 The Central Black Sea Region East of the Adapazarı–Karasu Fault Zone, the “İstanbul Zone” continues, with remains of the Pan-African basement outcropping south of Zonguldak (Okay 2008). West, rocks are primarily composed of sandstones, limestones, andesites and metamorphic rocks. Karstic landscapes occur in the limestones, with a remarkable development of caves (Uzun et al. 2015) and coastal karstic cliff landscapes near Kefken. These limestones also delivered the first Pleistocene climatic record from speleothems in Turkey (Sofular Cave: Fleitmann et al. 2009). The dissection of the range started after the late Miocene. Tectonic movements caused the westward tipping to the region. This tipping deformed all the reliefs, erosion consequently incising pre-Late Miocene denudational surfaces. Later on, Pliocene uplift accentuated the incision of rivers all over the range, favouring the formation of antecedent gorges, deeply crosscut in Mio-Pliocene denudational surfaces and hard bedrock (Fig. 4.13). During the Plio-Pleistocene, these deep gorges in hard rocks imposed strong constraints to river paths, also when valleys were submitted to lateral displacements imposed by the activity of the NAFZ. These movements triggered direction changes in parts of river valleys, which fragmented gorges imposing straight fragments between laterally sliding courses. As a result, courses of the main rivers and of their tributaries often show straight-angled direction changes. These characteristic landscapes are some of the best expressions of the impacts of fault activity on river networks, with hydrographic connections responding to fault-related structural movements of lateral strike-slip closed basins (Şengör et al. 2005; Şengör 2017). For example, river paths in the Yeşilırmak Basin reflect geomorphological impacts of strike-slip deformations such as offsets (between 750 m and 19 km long), aligned drainages, and linear valleys (Gürbüz et al. 2015). Meantime, large-scaled drainage diversions in the Yeşilırmak Basin (Gürbüz et al. 2015) have been caused by folding contemporary with the NAFZ-related faulting activity (Şengör 2017). Some rivers however succeeded in crossing the central Black Sea Range (i.e. from the Inner Pontides to the Outer Pontides), extending headward into the edges of the Central Anatolian Plateau (Fig. 4.2). These are the largest rivers in the central Northern Anatolian Region: the Sakarya, Bartın, Kızılırmak and Yeşilırmak rivers. Large curves followed by their headwaters show that their drainage extended by successive captures. These were caused by tectonic impacts such as differential uplifts and strike-slip faulting. One of the

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Fig. 4.12 Several antecedence occurrences of the Sakarya River in western Northern Anatolia. In addition to antecedence, the river has slid westward under the lateral strike-slip movement of the NAFZ. Note that the westward slid of the river corresponds to the longitudinal length (20–25 km) of the Pamukova plain, a strike-slip tectonic basin. 1. Epigenic gorges of the Sakarya River through the various massifs composing the western Northern Anatolian Region; 2. The Sakarya

River; 3. The “Palaeo-Bosphorus” path hypothesized by several authors (see text); 4. The Bosphorus Strait; 5. Tectonic depressions in which the Sakarya River accommodates with tectonic deformations of its path and longitudinal profile; 6. Lateral displacement of the river triggered by the lateral displacement of the faulted Pamukova basin; 7. Fault; 8. Direction of displacement of the main faults of the NAFZ in the region. Map by C. Kuzucuoğlu

most striking examples of a Black Sea River penetrating the Central Anatolian Plateau is the Kızılırmak River whose remarkable curve in the hinterland is one of the best indications of captures of Central Anatolian streams at the benefit of the Black Sea (Fig. 4.2).

During Pleistocene, several high-amplitude sea-level changes also impacted the dynamics of the Black Sea rivers. Impacts are easily recognizable at the mouths of the rivers as well as in the mid-course upstream. The sea-level changes in the Black Sea Basin were caused by: the global

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Fig. 4.13 a Antecedent gorge of the Bartın River. Flowing towards the Black Sea, the Bartın River first incises an epigenic gorge through the Pontic range towards its mouth to the sea. b When outflowing from Bartın plain south of the coastal range, the gorge first incises Devonian

limestones. c When reaching the contact between these limestones and Cretaceous basalts, it flows along the contact line, turns west, and enters the sea within basalt outcrops. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

ocean level changes, high discharges of melt water from the glaciated Russian plains, Caspian transgressions within the Black Sea. The consecutive variations of base levels for the streams accentuated the vertical profiles, thus triggering headward erosion and capturing of neighbour streams.

4.2.2.3 The Eastern Black Sea Region The basement of the eastern Pontides is composed of Palaeozoic metamorphic massifs in which granitic intrusions are emplaced, especially in the Kaçkar Range. This basement is unconformably overlain by Liassic and Cretaceous limestones, today forming karstic landscapes (Fig. 4.14)

(Uzun et al. 2015). The overlying stratigraphy is made of continental sediments (Korkmaz et al. 1995). Steep slopes, a common morphological feature in this part of Northern Anatolia, occur both under the sea, and in the ranges fringing the sea. While the sea floor goes down to −2000 m along a line from Trabzon to the Georgian border, altitudes of the Eastern Black Sea Mountains rise eastward, reaching quickly >3000 m asl (Kaçkar Peak: 3971 m). These highlands form a spectacular barrier. High humidity brought by the northerly cold air masses hitting the range favours snowfall on the highest slopes because of convective instability. Near the summits, glacial geomorphological

Fig. 4.14 “Devil Canyon” (literal translation “Hell Canyon”) near Ardanuç (Artvin). The entrance to the canyon a is a fracture, which gives way to a back-head invisible canyon. The canyon b and its “end

of the world” c follow the entrance. These impressive geomorphological features are developed in upper Cretaceous limestones. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 4.15 A U-shaped glacial valley in the Kaçkar Mountains (Ovit Valley, Rize). Note the boulders of glacial moraines on the foreground. Photograph by A. Çiner

landscapes (U-shaped valleys, moraines, cirques, glacial lakes and cryoturbated slope debris) record several generations of glacial advances/retreats during the late Pleistocene (Erinç 1949; Birman 1968; Akçar et al. 2007, 2008; Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Reber et al. 2014; Dede et al. 2017; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015) (Fig. 4.15). Today, only a few glaciers still exist at high altitudes in the Kaçkar Range, while summer pastures extend upslope between peaks (Doğu et al. 1993). More strikingly than in the other parts of the Black Sea Region, almost no humidity from the Black Sea succeeds to overpass the range south into the Ardahan and Kars plateaus (Eastern Highlands) where extensive, flora-rich, grass landscapes contrast with the luxurious Pontic forests. The sudden disappearance of trees accentuates the visual effect of the southern limit of the North-eastern Anatolian Region. The water divide thus corresponds to a clear regional topographic and climatic border. Çoruh River (Acampsis, 431 km long: 410 km in Turkey and 21 km in Georgia) is the main river in this eastern part of the Black Sea Range. Known as one of the fastest rivers in the world, the Çoruh is well known for torrent water rafting. Flowing east inside the mountains, its path parallels the coastline until, after crossing the Georgian border, it flows into the Black Sea near Batum. The E–W rectilinear and deep gorges of the Çoruh form a divide within the North-eastern Anatolian highlands, which are consequently parted into two parallel and very high ridges.

This linear alpine relief indicates both that the Çoruh River is antecedent to the alpine formation phase of the range and that the uplift of the range up to >3000 m asl has been rapid. The absence of remains of any continental topography shows also that the Kaçkar Range uplift is younger than Miocene, and possibly younger than early Pliocene. During the last decade, the number of planned and realized constructions of dams across the Çoruh River and its tributaries has impressively increased. Among the six dams operating today, the Borçka and Deriner are the tallest arch dams in Turkey with a 249 m height, and the Muratlı dams are the largest ones. Three more dams are under construction, among which the Yusufeli arch dam will be the second largest dam on the Çoruh River.

4.3

Western Anatolia (Aegean Region)

4.3.1 Geographic Context 4.3.1.1 Relief The relief in the Western Anatolian Region is composed of low massifs, dissected by large and rectilinear river valleys running E–W (Fig. 4.16). Because of limited erosional dissection, some of the massifs are difficult to access. The coastline is tortuous, with alternations of steep areas bordered by marine cliffs and low bays fringed by

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sand beaches, lagoons and marshes. A similar sinuosity also characterizes the seaways between the cliffy peninsulas of the Turkish coast and of the numerous islands facing it. Upstream each main river mouth, voluminous alluvial deposition causes both the elevation of floodplains in the lower river reaches and the progression of large deltas prograding seawards. As a result, many archaeological and historical remains as well as former islands are

fossilized by alluvium or still emerge punctually above the flat surface of invasive floodplains (Schneider et al. 2015). Inland, mountains reach >1000 m asl. In the north, tectonically controlled morphogenesis is responsible for the deep valley landscape forming the Dardanelles Strait (100–110 m deep with a sill at −70 m, 80 km long and 4 km wide) (Darkot 1938; Pfannenstiel 1944; Erol 1985; Gökaşan et al. 2010).

Fig. 4.16 West Anatolia geomorphological region. Numbers relate to locations of: a specific sites presented by Chaps. 5 to 35 (chapter number positioned in purple circles or as areas squared by purple-lined rectangles); b photographs in this chapter (the corresponding figure

number(s) is/are positioned in yellow squares), and c large maps in this chapter (the corresponding figure number is positioned within red-lined rectangles)

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4.3.1.2 Climate Aegean coasts and Western Anatolian hinterland belong to the Mediterranean climate zone. Winters are cool and rainy; summers are hot and moderately dry. Average temperatures are ca. 9 °C in winter and ca. 29 °C in summer. On the north-western coasts (Sea of Marmara, Thrace), the climate is moderate, with mean temperatures of ca. 4 °C in winter (rarely dropping below zero), and ca. 27 °C in summer. Mediterranean cyclonic depressions brought by westerlies from the Atlantic dominate the atmospheric circulation during all seasons. Rain mainly occurs in late autumn and winter along thermic discontinuities generated by the rising land. 4.3.1.3 Phytogeography Vegetation in the Aegean Region of Anatolia is composed of typical Mediterranean formations, found both in the coastal areas and up to 2000 m altitudes. On the slopes rising inland, maquis plant associations are transitional to oak forests, with live oak replaced upslope by deciduous oak. In the mountains, black pine (Pinus nigra) dominates. Stone pine (Pinus pinea) gardened by local communities is exclusive in the forests covering the sandy centre of the granite forming the Kozak Massif between the Gediz and Edremit valleys in NW Anatolia. From the Sea of Marmara southwards olive trees are cultivated from the coastal areas up to ca. 900 m asl. Citrus fruits, figs, grapes, cotton, tobacco and early spring vegetables are also raised. Unfortunately, since the 1980s, greenhouses have invaded these areas. 4.3.1.4 Hydrography In the Turkish Thrace, the Meriç River (Evros: 480 km long, out of which 211 km is in Turkish territory) forms part of the frontier between Turkey and Bulgaria. Born in Bulgaria, the river flows near Edirne, the capital city of the Ottoman Empire before Istanbul was conquered in 1453. It flows to the sea in the Saros Gulf. This gulf formed by inundation of the lowest course of the river during the Holocene sea rise. South of the Dardanelles Strait, the major Aegean rivers follow E–W orientated, flat bottomed and large valleys (Kayan 1988, 1999). On large scale, the whole region is structured by these wide E–W orientated valleys, which correspond to grabens. From north to south, the main graben-conducted river valleys are: the Karamenderes (Scamander) whose downstream valley serves as the natural setting of the Troya ancient city; the Bakırçay which flows near the ancient Bergama City; the Gediz River (Hermus: 401 km long) which passes near ancient Sardis City, to Foça (Phocea), the ancient harbour where from ancient Greeks departed to found Marseille in

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southern France; the Büyük Menderes (Maiandros: 548 km); the Küçük Menderes (Kaistros). Near the sea, silt discharged by rivers during the last two millennia has progressively surrounded, isolated and fossilized ancient cities and harbours (e.g. the cities of Troia, Ephesos, Pirene), disconnecting them from any physical link with the Aegean Sea, and generating freshwater wetlands backstream the progressive delta (e.g. Bafa Lake). Important in antique geography and history, these Aegean rivers are also famous for the high amount of sites dated to Prehistoric, Bronze Age to Classical Ages (e.g. Kraft et al. 1980, 2003; Kayan 2001; Bryce 2011; Greaves 2011; Özdoğan et al. 2012a; Schneider et al. 2013, 2015). Among these sites, the Latmos Mountains are worth a specific citation because of the necessity for its reconnaissance and preservation. In these mountains, numerous rock paintings discovered in 1994 (Peschlow-Bindokat and Gerber 2012) date mostly from the late Neolithic to the Chalcolithic Ages (5th-5th mill. BC). The area is now acknowledged as the Beşparmak National Park.

4.3.2 Geomorphological Landscapes The tectonic movements affecting the Anatolian Plate since the late Miocene mainly control these outlines of landscapes in the Western Anatolia Region. Extensional faults control E–W orientated horsts and grabens themselves organizing the distribution of highlands between parallel valleys in a regional context of relief rising eastward towards Central Anatolia (Fig. 4.17). In addition, a rich lithological variety from the Palaeozoic until present produces a high variety of geomorphological landscapes (Phillipson 1920). For example, polyphased metamorphic rocks and granitoids outcrop belonging to the Palaeozoic Sakarya and Afyon belts outcrop in uplifted areas such as the Kazdağ, Kozak and Menderes massifs. Overlying the Palaeozoic basement, younger geologic series record (i) several marine episodes dated to Mesozoic and Cenozoic, (ii) two more metamorphism phases associated with granitic intrusions during Jurassic and Eocene orogenesis, (iii) magmatic activity producing volcanic and granitic intrusions during the Oligocene, and volcanic eruptions during the lower Miocene (Yılmaz 1990). Geomorphological studies on these formations evidence several construction/destruction cycles of mountain chains. On top of the dismantled old massifs, planar surfaces record planation periods separated by incision phases since the middle Miocene (Erol 1981). Continental and lacustrine sediments correlative to this erosion accumulated in the lowlands where they form the higher reliefs.

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Fig. 4.17 Simplified map of north-western Anatolia (after Papadopoulos et al. 2016, and modified from Yılmaz et al. 2000; Okay and Satır 2006; Altunkaynak et al. 2012). IAS: İzmir-Ankara-Erzincan Suture Zone. E1 to E7: Eocene granitoids (E1: Karabiga; E2: Kapıdağ; E3: Fıstıklı; E4: Orhaneli; E5: Topuk; E6: Göynükbelen; E7:

Gürgenyayla). 1 to 16: Oligo-Miocene granitoids (1. Kestanbol; 2. Evciler; 3. Hıdırlar-Katrandağ; 4. Eybek; 5. Yenice; 6. Danısmant; 7. Sarıoluk; 8. Kozak; 9. Uludağ; 10. Ilıca-Şamlı; 11. Davutlar; 12. Çataldağ; 13. Eğrigöz; 14. Koyunaoba; 15. Çamlık; 16. Turgutlu); 17. Salihli granitoids

In the Aegean Region, landscapes record three main phases in the geologic evolution of the relief:

during which Miocene sediments were eroded and deposited downslope as pebbles mixed with a red matrix. – During the Pleistocene, uplift accentuated while extensional faults generated the parallel grabens parting the region. Between horsts mostly composed of remains of Palaeozoic to Oligocene rock series, grabens concentrated important rivers. In these wide valleys, alluvium, slope debris, lake and marsh sediments acumulated through the Quaternary (Fig. 4.20). With time, backward erosion of the rivers, triggered by sea-level variations and differential uplift, captured closed depressions located close to the sea or east in direction of the Central Anatolia (e.g. Büyük Menderes: Gürbüz et al. 2012). During Pleistocene, volcanism occurred also in the Kula area (Gediz Valley).

– Landscapes in Palaeozoic to Jurassic polyphased metamorphic basements (granitoids, gneisses and marbles) associated with green stone belts (ophiolites) and blue schists into which later granites subsequently intruded during the Eocene and Oligocene, in association with volcanic activity (Figs. 4.18 and 4.19). – Landscapes corresponding to volcanic (including volcano-sedimentary deposits), marine and lake sediments, all dated early Miocene to Pliocene. These series rest over the metamorphic and granitic rocks. They record a hiatus usually dated to lower Pliocene, a period

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Fig. 4.18 General distribution of the metamorphic massifs on the tectonic map of Turkey (after Candan et al. 2016; modified from MTA’s tectonic map of Turkey 2002)

Fig. 4.19 Granitic alveole of the Kozak Massif (Bergama Province). The massif, 95% of which are cultivated for production of Pinus pinea, is located between the Edremit and Bakırçay grabens (north-western Anatolia). Landscapes picture differential erosion landforms affecting only granitoid outcrops. The photograph is taken from the highest peak in the Kozak massif (Maya Tepe: 1344 m). It overlooks a 700-m-high steep

scarp. At the foot of the scarp, the Kozak plain is an alveole covered with reworked granitic sand (foreground and middle of the photograph). The morphological contrasts in the batholith between the emptied alveole and the scarped edges respond to the differential weathering of crystals in the heart of the granodiorite, that occurred during the intrusion of the batholith (Kuzucuoğlu 1980, 1982). Photograph by I. Kayan

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Fig. 4.20 Karamenderes graben viewed from the slopes of the Troia archaeological mound (Hisarlık hill). Ruins of the Ancient Ionan City are pictured in the foreground. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu (with courtesy of M. Korfmann)

4.3.2.1 North of the Dardanelles The Western Thrace is limited to the east by its water divide with the Black Sea. South of this divide, landscape changes drastically, with treeless land in Western Thrace as opposed to the forested Eastern Thrace. In Western Thrace, today’s landscapes result from a combination of (i) a rather dry climate influenced by the Mediterranean (drier) and Balkan (colder) atmospheric circulations, (ii) loose and highly erodible Tertiary sediments (mainly formed by shallow marine shales), and (iii) the clearance of forests since the earliest Neolithic. The bedrock underlying the Thrace sedimentary cover is composed of Eocene-to-Oligocene limestones (Görür and Okay 1996). These are affected by karstic phenomena producing karstic surface (dolines) and underground features (shallow caves) in the areas where the limestones outcrop. Above this formation, upper Miocene–Pliocene shallow marine shales (the Ergene Formation) fill a basin collecting the present streams that flow from the slopes of the Istranca Massif, and from the uplifted hills aligned along the northern shores of the Sea of Marmara (Fig. 4.21). Strangely, the Ergene River does not flow south to the Sea of Marmara in spite of easy paths towards the sea through erosion corridors separating coastal mesas (Fig. 4.21). On the contrary, the Ergene River flows north in direction of the Meriç River (Maritsa, Evros), with which it meets near the

Uzunköprü village (Fig. 4.21). Okay and Okay (2002) demonstrated that this dissymmetry as well as the curved and elongated course of the Ergene River responds to (1) an uplift of the coastal area north of the Sea of Marmara that provoked (2) the probable capture of the Ergene River by a tributary of the Meriç and (3) a slope reversal of the Ergene course causing its disconnection from the Sea of Marmara drainage area (Figs. 4.16 and 4.21). Between the Saros Gulf and the Dardanelles (Çanakkale in Turkish), the Gelibolu (Galipoli) Peninsula is a graben deepening westward and limited by active faults (Tüysüz et al. 1998; Karabulut et al. 2006). The southern edge of this graben corresponds to the Ganos fault-line scarp, which forms also the northern shoreline of the NE–SW trending Galipoli Peninsula (Fig. 4.22). The Ganos Fault is an active segment of the NAFZ. Its activity is well expressed in the morphology of both (i) the cliffs forming the northern seashore of the peninsula where they reach 924 m asl, and (ii) the SW–NE scarp crossing the northern side of the Galipoli Isthmus in direction of the Marmara sea (Gökaşan et al. 2008). The Ganos Fault is a blind thrust affecting Miocene and older formations, truncated by an erosion surface. According to Sumengen et al. (1987), the Gelibolu Peninsula has been elevated at least 2000 m from the Pliocene onwards. South of the thrust, three terrace flat levels parallel the southern coast of the peninsula. They correspond

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Fig. 4.21 Geomorphological record of the Ergene River capture by the Maritza (Meriç) River in Turkish Thrace (modified from Okay and Okay 2002). 1. Upland >250 m (asl); 2. Mio-Pliocene sedimentary Basin in Thrace; 3. Pliocene Basalt (today forming mesas); 4. Ganos

Fault; 5. Maritsa (Meriç in Turkish); 6. Small and main tributaries; 7. Today’s thresholds, possibly ancient connections drained by a palaeo-Ergene; 8. Palaeodrainage direction; 9. Wetland in river valley floor; 10. Lake; 11. City

to uplifted blocks edged by fault-line scarps, which are an expression of shallow normal faults paralleling the Dardanelles (Tüysüz et al. 1998).

4.3.2.2 The Sea of Marmara and the Straits At various elevations up to +65 m along the coasts of the Dardanelles Strait and along the western Marmara Sea coasts, raised Quaternary beachrocks and terraces consist of marginal marine deposits containing abundant Ostrea edulis shells (Darkot 1938; Pfannenstiel 1944; Erol 1985; Sakınç

and Yaltırak 1997) (Fig. 4.23). U-Th ages obtained from these shells range from MIS 7 (c. 210 ka) to MIS 3 (c.53 ka), evidencing a series of transgressive and regressive events (Yaltırak et al. 2000, 2002; Çağatay et al. 2009). They allow the calculation of a post-depositional average rate of uplift in the Dardanelles/western Marmara Sea area of ca. 0.40 mm year−1 during the last ca. 225 ka (Çağatay et al. 2009). The primary cause of this uplift is the local compression associated with the activity of the western segment of the North Anatolian Fault.

Fig. 4.22 NE–SW orientated Ganos Fault stretches from the eastern end of the Gelibolu Peninsula along the Saros Gulf where it forms the northern shore of the Gelibolu Peninsula. a The Pliocene erosional

surface, deformed by the Ganos Fault. b The Ganos fault-line scarp at the NE end of the peninsula. c A close-up view on the fault-line scarp paralleled by secondary fault scarps. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 4.23 Uplifted coastal features in the Dardanelles Strait (Çanakkale Region). When the terrace shown in C was deposited, the sea level was similar to that of today. This 40 m difference in altitude expresses the magnitude of uplift since the last interglacial (MIS 5e). a European

coast of Gelibolu. b Shells in the uplifted marine terrace. c The MIS 5e terrace containing the shells photographed in (b). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Today, the water depths in the straits are ca. −32 m (Bosphorus) and −70 m (Dardanelles). After subtraction of the sediments deposited after inundation by the sea over the straits bottoms, the bedrock sill depths during the LGM were (i) 85 m below today’s sea level in the Dardanelles and 45 m below today’s sea level in the Bosphorus (Ergin et al. 1997; Eriş et al. 2007; Gökaşan et al. 2008; Çağatay et al. 2009; Lericolais et al. 2009). The overpassing of the Dardanelles sill ca. 16 ka ago by the global ocean converted the freshwater lake occupying the Sea of Marmara Basin into a marine environment with an euryhaline biofacies. Continuing rising, the sea waters reached the sill depth of the Bosphorus and penetrated into the Black Sea Basin either during the late Holocene and the early Holocene, or during the early Holocene only. Not only records of connection(s) through the Bosphorus at the onset of Holocene have been subject to many scenarios since the end of the 1990s, but water-mass exchanges during the glacial/interglacial periods between the Mediterranean and Black Seas have also been extensively studied. This interest is mainly sustained by the critical location of the Bosphorus (Gökaşan et al. 1997). While it is reasonable to assume that, for the duration of the high interglacial sea-level stands such as Marine isotope Stages (MIS) 1, 5 and 7 (Shackleton 1989; Bard et al. 1990), the level of the Sea of Marmara changed in tandem with the global sea level. Çağatay et al. (2009) documented that brackish to freshwater fauna associated with lacustrine conditions prevailed in the Sea of Marmara during MIS 3 and MIS 2. Consequently, it is now thought that, during some stages of glacial lowstands such as MIS 3 and MIS 6, the water level in the Marmara Basin was controlled by the sill depth of the Çanakkale Strait outlet (at −85 m below today’s sea level). This control would have been exerted by excess freshwater input compensating for the loss due to

evaporation, mainly with water delivered from the Black Sea, from precipitation and from input by coastal rivers. During MIS 2 (LGM) however, the global sea level dropped below the Çanakkale Strait bedrock sill (i.e. below −85 m), and the Sea of Marmara lost its Mediterranean input as evidenced by a Neoeuxine fauna in the Marmara Sea sediments indicating the establishment of fresh to slightly brackish conditions, i.e. the disconnection from the global sea (Çağatay et al. 2000; Kaminski et al. 2002; Mudie et al. 2002, 2004; McHugh et al. 2008). Since the Sea of Marmara has a relatively broad continental margin with a shelf break located between −90 and −100 m, the shelf area was then transformed into a terrestrial landscape with an outlet spillway to the sea in the Çanakkale Strait (Smith et al. 1995; Aksu et al. 1999, 2002; Çağatay et al. 2000, 2009, 2015; Eriş et al. 2007; McHugh et al. 2008). The presence of −85 m wave-cut terraces and palaeoshorelines along the northern shelf of the Sea of Marmara is now attributed to this sea-level stillstand corresponding to the level of a Çanakkale outlet during late Pleistocene glacial stages (Çağatay et al. 2003; Polonia et al. 2004; Eriş et al. 2007, 2008; McHugh et al. 2008) (Fig. 4.23). Gökaşan et al. (2010) however propose, on the basis of widespread seismic profiling across the Çanakkale Strait and its extensions onto the shelves of the Marmara and Aegean seas, that the Çanakkale Strait was formed mainly during the last transgression; Mediterranean waters from the Aegean Sea overflew into the Sea of Marmara. In the course of the post-glacial sea-level rise, Mediterranean waters eventually flooded the Sea of Marmara at the end of the Younger Dryas, and the sea continued to transgress the Marmara shelf in tandem with the global ocean (Çağatay et al. 2000, 2003; Hiscott et al. 2002; Sperling et al. 2003; Polonia et al. 2004; Eriş et al. 2007). Today, the timing of this inundation is a matter of debate, ranging from

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13.5 to 11 14C ka BP (Ryan et al. 1997, 2003; Görür et al. 2001; Aksu et al. 2002; Hiscott et al. 2002; Major et al. 2002, 2006; McHugh et al. 2008; Vidal et al. 2010). In 2015, Çağatay et al. proposed a timing of reconnection at 12.55 ± 0.35 cal ka BP on the basis of an AMS 14C date from a deep core in the Sea of Marmara. The Sea of Marmara connection with the Mediterranean led to the initial drowning of the outer shelf, the introduction of marine molluscs, foraminifera and dinoflagellates, and a shift of ∂18O to heavier values compared to the Neoeuxine measurements (Çağatay et al. 2000; Sperling et al. 2003). Sea surface salinities and temperatures in the Sea of Marmara increased until the beginning of the cool and dry climate of the Younger Dryas (Sperling et al. 2003). During the Younger Dryas, an outflow from the Black Sea penetrated the Marmara Sea (Aksu et al. 2002), sustained by an increase in the positive water balance in the Black Sea. This increase contributed both to a rise of the water level in the Marmara Sea Basin of ca. 20 m (Çağatay et al. 2003) and to the formation of levees now submerged by the Marmara Sea (Eriş et al. 2007, 2008, 2011). In addition, Çağatay et al. (2003) attributed also a terrace formed widely over the Sea of Marmara shelf at −65 m, to geomorphological impacts of the Younger Dryas. These data all suggest a slowdown in the global sea-level rise during the Younger Dryas. Regarding the timing and process of the connection between the Marmara Sea and the Black Sea during the Holocene is still vividly debated. According to Aksu et al. (1999, 2002), Hiscott et al. (2007) and Lericolais et al. (2009), a strong input of melt water from the Russian ice and snow triggered a rapid and high-magnitude increase in the Black Sea level, causing the Black Sea to outflow into the Marmara Sea from 10 to 8.4 ka cal BP. During this phase at ca. 9.3 ka, a decline in riverine inflow from northern European watersheds provoked a reversal of the flows in the strait, and a Mediterranean water pulse entered shortly the Black Sea (Hiscott et al. 2007), the Mediterranean waters reaching the Bosphorus sill ca. 7.5 cal BP and discharging into a high-levelled Black Sea. On the other hand, later studies by Gosian et al. (2009) and Yanchilina et al. (2017) date the breaching of the Strait of Istanbul sill by the Marmara Sea waters ca. 9.5 ka BP. These results partly confirm the 7.5 BP date exposed by Ryan et al. (2003), Major et al. (2006) and Hiscott et al. (2007), but disagree with the 8.4 ka BP date published by Eriş et al. (2011). Regarding the later evolution of the Bosphorus, Eriş et al. (2007) date 6.2 ka BP the establishment of the modern level of the Sea of Marmara, while Çağatay et al. (2000) and Eriş et al. (2011) propose that the present dual-flow regime of the Sea of Marmara was established between 5.0 and 4.5 ka BP.

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4.3.2.3 The Biga Peninsula Landforms and landscapes in the Biga Peninsula are mainly SW–NE orientated. North of the Edremit Gulf, the metamorphic and crystalline massifs of Kazdağ (1774 m asl) and Salihler (c. 300 m asl) prolonged by another massif in the NE form the backbone of regional relief (Okay and Satır 2000; Erdoğan et al. 2009; Papadopoulos et al. 2016). They possess remains of the Sakarya Continent, an old Alpine system that used to extend from the Biga Peninsula to the Uludağ Massif (south of the Sea of Marmara). This old basement is squeezed between the NAFZ to the north and the Aegean extensional province to the south. In the peninsula, it is overlain by Neogene formations composed at the base by Eocene volcanics disconformably overlain by younger basalts interfingered with Miocene marine and lacustrine sediments. When the late Miocene uplift started, this series was already truncated by a surface whose remnants are today currently seen at 1000–1100 m asl (Demoulin et al. 2013). Erosion triggered by a second phase of uplift during the Pliocene led to the deposition of reddish brown torrential-type flow sediments whose facies indicates a terrestrial semi-arid depositional environment. This sedimentary cover records drought (Messinian) and semi-arid climate during the Pliocene. The Pliocene uplift also caused superimposition of the Karamenderes River in the western part of the Salihler Plateau. Today, the Eocene-to-Miocene deposits form low plateau surfaces extending north of the Salihler metamorphic plateau, while the protection, by the Miocene basalts, of these soft sediments has generated a differential erosion landscape of mesas. According to Demoulin et al. (2013), the early Miocene uplift in the Kazdağ reached 400–500 m in height, while the uplift that started during the Pliocene increased during a third phase starting ca. 0.8 Myr ago to reach a height total of 500–700 m during the Plio-Quaternary (Fig. 4.24). These three uplift phases are all related to the extensional tectonics affecting the Aegean Region of Anatolia. In the Kazdağ too, Erol (1981, 1982) identifies two erosion surfaces between 700 and 500 m asl, which record changes in uplift rates during the Pliocene phase. While it is undeniable that the role of uplift in the making of landforms in the Aegean massifs has been primary, climate has also caused the formation of Quaternary fluvial landscapes in the valley bottoms where Efe et al. (2011) identified three climatic terraces in the Kazdağ valleys. As a result of this evolution, the old Kazdağ Massif is now highly asymmetric, with gentle slopes in the north roughly corresponding to tilted Neogene surfaces, while very steep slopes overlook the Gulf and Basin of Edremit to the south (Kayan 1999; Demoulin et al. 2013). This

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Fig. 4.24 Hydrographic network and tectonic outline in the Biga Peninsula, with focus on the Mount Kazdağ (after Demoulin et al. 2013). Focal mechanisms of post-1940 Mw  6.0 earthquakes are located at the respective earthquake epicentres. Barbed lines denote normal faults

asymmetry results from the back tilting of the Kazdağ horst, while the southern edges of the Kazdağ correspond to the border fault lines of the Edremit graben, one of the largest E–W trending grabens of Western Anatolia. At the foot of the range, the narrow coastal zone is occupied by alluvial fans. By contrast, the coastal plains on the western and especially northern sides of the peninsula are much wider (Çetiner et al. 2017). East of the Kazdağ Range, the summit surfaces of another—although lower—horst uplifted to 800– 900 m asl truncate Oligocene volcanic rocks. These highs are bordered towards SW by the sharply delimited Ezine horst (*500 m asl).

4.3.2.4 Peninsulas Along the Western Anatolia Apart from Biga Peninsula to the north, several smaller peninsulas are typical along the Western Anatolia. Among them, the Çeşme-Karaburun Peninsula is situated only 50 km to the west of İzmir, the third largest city of Turkey. In the so-called Karaburun palaeotectonic belt, a thick and continuous carbonate succession (Triassic to Albian) crops out. This belt forms the platform of the İzmir-Ankara Zone that moved first as blocks and later as a large nappe into the Bornova mélange during the late Cretaceous (Erdoğan et al. 1990). Overlying volcanic units were formed from early to late Miocene and covered especially the Karaburun part of the peninsula. The landscapes are dry here and vegetation is

scarce also due to strong winds that characterize this peninsula. Çeşme is a small but very popular touristic destination, especially among weekenders from İzmir. Beautiful fine-sand beaches are typical, and several of them host windsurf competitions of international level. Two peninsulas, Bodrum and Datça, characterize the south-western part of Western Anatolia. They are relatively close to the active volcanoes on the Aegean Sea (e.g. Santorini, Nisyros) and most of the geological formations are volcanic in origin although in Datça Peninsula ophiolitic rocks also crop out. Bodrum Peninsula is the absolute top-end vacation destination of Turkey. Countless small bays are now encircled by secondary houses and populations can reach millions during summer times. On the contrary, Datça Peninsula is relatively under less human threat probably because of more difficult access conditions. Breathtaking antic Greek town of Knidos is built on the south-westernmost part of the Anatolian Peninsula.

4.3.3 Granitic Landscapes South of the region, the Menderes Massif contains also many remains of the oldest metamorphic core complexes recording Palaeozoic orogenesis. Composed mainly of augen metagranites and orthogneiss with large quartz crystals, it is

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intruded by a few Tertiary granitic intrusions, which have suffered weathering and erosion (Bozkurt and Satır 2000). In the southernmost realm of the massif between Aydın and Muğla (Gökbel Mountains), famous augen gneiss outcrops. Here, Gül and Uslular (2016) describe smooth dome-shaped hills representing remains of old continental surfaces with scattered inselbergs. Erosion consecutive to the Miocene uplift produced typical in situ block accumulations widely visible over low-relief surfaces. At places, honeycomb features record impacts of wind erosion, which possibly occurred during dry periods of the Quaternary. On the slopes, the sandy envelope contains fainting polygonal cracks controlling the elongated and spheroidal exfoliations of the in situ boulders. Once unearthed, the blocks compose umbrella-shaped piles. Reworked by slope movements and run-off, the boulders also accumulate in stream banks and channels where pits and tafoni occur. This area has been proposed as a geopark (Gül and Uslular 2016). During the magmatic activity that followed the closure of the Neotethyan Ocean, two phases of granitic intrusions occurred in Western Anatolia (Papadopoulos et al. 2016): (1) During the Eocene, granitic plutons were emplaced within the İzmir-Ankara Suture Zone and the Sakarya Continent. Among these, Orhaneli, Topuk and Gürgenyayla plutons were intruded into the Cretaceous blueschist rocks, overlying ophiolitic units. They range in composition from quartz diorite and granodiorite to syenite. On the other hand, Fıstıklı (Armutlu), Karabiga and Kapıdağ plutons crop out within the crystalline basement along the southern margin of the Sea of Marmara. These are mainly composed of monzogranite, granodiorite and granite. (2) During the Oligocene to Miocene phase, granitic plutons were associated with volcanism and spread over the entire Western Anatolia (Yılmaz 1990; Akay 2009; Papadopoulos et al. 2016). The Çataldağ, Kozak, Ilıca, Evciler and Eybek granitoids intruded into the crystalline basement rocks of the Sakarya Continent, while the Koyunoba, Çamlık and Eğrigöz plutons intruded into the metamorphic basement rocks of the Anatolide– Tauride Platform. Most of the Oligo-Miocene granites are represented by caldera-type shallow-level intrusions presenting spatial and temporal relationships with their volcanic and subvolcanic counterparts (Yılmaz et al. 2001). Between the Edremit and Gediz grabens near Bergama, the Kozak Massif represents a typical example of the morphological expression of these caldera-type

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intrusions (Kuzucuoğlu 1982; Altunkaynak and Yılmaz 1999). For example, at the heart of the Kozak intrusion, a curved and 700-m-high granitic scarp overlooks a large hollow blanketed by quartz sand. The hollow and all landforms corresponding to this spectacular landscape are developed in the same granodioritic intrusion, and there is no trace of a faulting that would have generated the scarp. Kuzucuoğlu (1982) explains this differential morphology by a lithological contrast originated in the chemical weakness of the feldspar crystals in the batholith heart during emplacement.

4.3.4 Volcanic Landscapes In Western Anatolia, young magmatic rocks occupy wide areas in the northern sector and along the coastal zone. Starting in the late Oligocene–early Miocene, this volcanism presents two geochemically distinct phases of magmatic activities Yılmaz (1990): The first phase is calc-alkaline (andesites and granites) with no basalts. Involving extrusive (andesites, dacites) as well as intrusive (granitic stocks) rock types, its lava flows, necks, lahars, etc., occur extensively all over the north-western part of Turkey. Granitic batholiths yield ages ranging from 35 to 23 Myr (Zimmerman et al. 1989) and the whole series was active until the Pliocene (Yılmaz 1990). Basalts mainly represent the second and latest alkaline phase. Developing since the late Miocene and during the Quaternary, the alkaline associations closely followed the change in the tectonic regime from N–S compressional to N–S extensional (Yılmaz 1990). In the Kula area, an addition volcanic activity occurred during the Pleistocene, producing effusions in three phases dated early Pleistocene, late Pleistocene and Holocene (Ercan 1982; Dyer 1987; Heineke et al. 2016). These phases are recorded by basaltic lava flows emitted by 80 cinder cones in the Gediz Valley and its tributary valleys. Geomorphological impacts of this activity are very important in the landscapes, especially because of repeated damming of rivers. This interplay has concerned the whole river network upstream and downstream the volcanic area, with river profiles adjusting to the instability in local base levels, and with incision changes related to geomorphological effects produced by damming (lake fills in valley) and dam ruptures (faster incision downstream) (Heineke et al. 2016). Westaway et al. (2004) and Maddy et al. (2007) identified early Pleistocene dams and reconstructed the river diversions

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induced at the time. Using the fossilization of old denudational surfaces by the early Pleistocene Kula basaltic flows, they calculated the river incision magnitude and rhythm of the Gediz River and tributaries. This calculation demonstrated that tectonics is not the sole actor of fluvial morphogenesis in Western Anatolia. Maddy et al. (2007) highlighted the important role of volcanism in the area where “the sequencing of eruptions disrupted the timing of the incisional adjustment to the on-going regional uplift” (p. 288). They also evidenced and calculated the impacts of climate in the terrace successions within the valleys of the region. Similar geomorphological impacts have been evidenced also for the Holocene activity of the Kula volcanoes. This activity started with a group of eruptions between *13 and *11 ka ago, with human footprints fossilized in an ash deposit (Heineke et al. 2016). During the latest phase (3.0– 2.6 ka ago), the Gediz Valley was dammed at two different spots. Subsequent breaching of these dams created a gorge through the basaltic flows, followed by the lowering of the floodplain level downstream by ca. 15 m, and by landslide occurrences in the (van Gorp et al. 2013). This Iron Age event still impacts the geomorphological dynamics of the valley.

4.3.5 E–W Fragmentation of the Regional Landscapes by Grabens In Western Anatolia, the Miocene extensional tectonics caused the opening of E–W orientated grabens alternating with uplifted blocks (e.g. Yılmaz et al. 2000; Bozkurt 2001). Uplift phases during the Plio-Pleistocene forced both the river incision through the rising old substratum (Kayan 1999) and the backward erosion towards Central Anatolia, which, eventually, captured inland basins during the recent past (Kazancı et al. 2011; Gürbüz et al. 2012) (Fig. 4.25). As a result of this evolution, the relief in Western Anatolia is well contrasted between mid-altitude hills whose morphologies record pre-Miocene or Miocene landscapes, and large valleys bordered by E–W to NW–SE orientated fault-line scarps. These grabens are today partly filled by Quaternary alluvium or lake deposits. Because of the importance of incision due to uplift, the large Aegean valleys are often composed of alternating wide sections and gorges incised in hard substratum. This alternation is particularly

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striking upstream the mouths of all Aegean rivers flowing in the Anatolian grabens, with incision starting during the Pliocene as the gorges are cut into Miocene surfaces. The regularity of the geomorphological location of these gorges at similar distances between the coastal plains and inland wider plains shows that the sea-level changes have, together with regional uplift, contributed to the rapid deepening of the gorges as well as active backward erosion dynamics. Context and processes of head-back river incision are caused both by the Pleistocene sea-level and climate changes interacting with the Neogene structural instability generated by tectonic activity. Both groups of events caused switches between erosion/sedimentation phases, sediment load types, and steepening of river profiles. The accumulated impacts of these forcing factors on the relief explain the rapidity of head-back river incision which provoked captures of inland lake basins formed in the course of the late Miocene uplift around and in the uplifting core of the Anatolian Peninsula. For example, Kazancı et al. (2011) and Gürbüz et al. (2012) showed that, during the late Pleistocene, the Büyük Menderes River captured two closed depressions where the Sarayköy and Baklan lakes used to collect streams from distinct watersheds (Fig. 4.25). These successive captures allowed the Büyük Menderes to establish its present fluvial continuity. Besides, the captures are so recent that marshes (Sarayköy segment) and lakes (Işıklı Lake in Baklan segment) in the captured valley segments still testify to the vanishing endorheic conditions. This example confirms that the geomorphological dynamics of the Aegean landscapes and rivers may have accelerated since the mid- or late Pleistocene. Regarding these latter variations, all palaeogeographic studies in the downstream parts of Aegean valleys (e.g. Kayan 2001; Kraft et al. 2003; Brückner et al. 2005; Kayan and Vardar 2007; Seeliger et al. 2013; Schneider et al. 2015) note a remarkable difference between the ancient and modern landscapes on the scale of individual archaeological sites (Schneider et al. 2015), on the larger scale of deltas (Brückner et al. 2005; Kayan 2014), as well as—in some cases—on the entire drainage basin scale (Kazancı et al. 2011). Processes evoked for explaining the rapid changes evidenced in the geomorphological dynamics of these valleys are bank erosion, denudation and slope erosion on the one hand, and alluviation, colluviation and delta progradation on the other hand (Schneider et al. 2015).

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Fig. 4.25 Successive captures of two closed depressions during late Pleistocene by head-back erosion of the Büyük Menderes River (after Kazancı et al. 2011). The establishment of the continuum of the Büyük Menderes River headwaters occurred during the Pleistocene by head-back erosion through two epigenic gorges. Capture processes occurred by slope straightening caused both by uplift upstream (in the

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Anatolian Plateau), and base level changes downstream (at sea). These events broke the isolation of two endorheic drainage areas, which used to be part of the present Central Anatolian endorheic system (i.e. the “Lake Region”). According to Kazancı et al. (2011), the captures occurred during late Pleistocene

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4.4

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Mediterranean Anatolia

4.4.1 Geographic Context The landscapes in the Mediterranean Region of Turkey are characterized by high relief contrasts and the proximity of the sea (Fig. 4.26). Because of thick and widely outcropping carbonate series, the lithology interacts intimately with tectonics in the shaping of these landscapes. Both factors impact greatly the hydrography and vegetation, soil and erosion, on the surface as well as underground. A third actor controlling the landscapes is the climate. In this region, the Taurus Range forms a continuous barrier to air mass advection, especially from the end of autumn to spring. The humidity is at its highest rate in the mountains facing the tracks, such as in the Taşeli Massif (the antique Rough Cilicia) between Antalya and Mersin, or the Amanos at the eastern extremity of the Mediterranean Sea. During summer, when temperatures are the highest, air humidity in the lowlands facing the sea is very important.

4.4.1.1 Relief The Western and Central Taurus The Taurus Range, more than 1000 km long, forms the northern limits of the region. In the Mediterranean region, it is divided into two parts (Fig. 4.27). The western Taurus

Fig. 4.26 Mediterranean geomorphological region. Numbers relate to locations of: a specific sites presented by Chaps. 5 to 35 (chapter number positioned in purple circles or as areas squared by purple-lined rectangles); b Photographs in this chapter (the corresponding figure

corresponds to Teke Peninsula, which extends south of the Aegean hinterland. From Datça Peninsula to Antalya, Teke Peninsula comprises the Akdağlar Massif (Mount Uyluk: 3016 m asl) and the Beydağları Range (Mount Kızlarsivrisi 3086 m asl). Both massifs rise north in direction of the Lake District. East of the Antalya plain, a suite of mountainous massifs forms the central Taurus Range. From west to east, these are Geyikdağ, Bolkardağ and Aladağlar. At the apex of the eastern limit of the Mediterranean Sea, the Taurus turns north-eastwards (Fig. 4.27). Between Alanya (west) and Mersin (east) cliffs border the Taşeli Massif. Inland, the Mut Basin exposes a complex river network and spectacular landscapes. Eastward and north of the Adana plain, the altitudes of the Taurus reach 3550 m at Medetsiz Peak in the Mount Maden (eastern part of Bolkardağ), and 3754 m at Mount Demirkazık in the Aladağlar (Figs. 4.27 and 4.28). This impressive and almost uninterrupted barrier prevents easy access from the Mediterranean to the Central Anatolian Plateau. To the east, roads crossing the central Taurus use deep gorges such as the Cilician Gate (Gülek Boğazı in Turkish), a narrow and profound path followed by ancient armies and described by travellers since the Antiquity (Fig. 4.29). The Cilician Gate was partly destroyed in the 2000s during the construction of the Ankara–Tarsus motorway. There are however still many impressive passes in the central Taurus (e.g. in the Maden stream valley at the foot of Mount Medetsiz). In the Taurus highlands, elongated plains

number(s) is/are positioned in yellow squares), and large maps in this chapter (the corresponding figure number is positioned within red-lined rectangles)

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are some 1000–2000 m lower than the surrounding summits. Altitudes of the flat bottoms of these plains increase eastward from ca. 900 to 1250 m asl. Filled by sediments deposited by streams running from the highlands around, all of them are or have been partly covered by temporary to permanent lakes (Fig. 4.30). With the present development of irrigation for crop production, these plains are now either dry or occupied by wetlands, rarely containing lakes. South of the central Taurus and in the eastern part of the region, other highlands correspond to (i) the headwaters of the Seyhan River (ancient Saros: 560 km) in the central Taurus, (ii) the headwaters of the Ceyhan River (ancient Pyramus: 509 km) in the Eastern Anatolian highlands), and (iii) the Amanos Range which borders the Iskenderun Gulf (ancient Issus Gulf) on the eastern side of the Mediterranean

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Sea extremity. South, the Seyhan and Ceyhan rivers meet in the wide and fertile Çukurova plain (ancient Cilicia), while the Amanos Range in the Hatay region of Turkey falls steep into the coast of the Iskenderun Gulf. Because of high evaporation rates during most of the year and of the low turnover of marine water, the salinity of the sea is here the highest of the Mediterranean Sea (39‰). Coastal Plains Several coastal plains correspond to early Holocene marine bays, interrupted by rocky promontories. These plains are only a few km wide except: (1) the 50-km-wide Antalya plain or plateau (ancient Pamphyllia) which penetrates 25 km inland between the western and central Taurus ranges; (2) the 120 km wide and 100 km large plain of

Fig. 4.27 Organization of relief in the Mediterranean Region of Turkey. Map by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 4.28 Madendağları in the central Taurus (Mount Bolkar). Photograph by A. Çiner

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Fig. 4.29 Photograph taken in the Maden Stream valley in the Bolkardağ, pictures steep and high rock surfaces squeezing the stream flow into narrow and deep gorges. These mirroring planes resemble what the Cilician Gates (Gülek boğazı, in Turkish) looked like before the

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2010s. Narrower and more impressive, these Cilician Gates have been very famous since Antiquity, because much used by armies and described by travellers going in and out of Central Anatolia, and from-to Cilicia and the Mediterranean Sea. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 4.30 Gölhisar plain in the Teke Peninsula. Photograph by A. Çiner

Çukurova which extends between the Taşeli Massif and the Iskenderun Gulf, forming a worldwide-known magnificent delta (Çetinkaya 2004). Many of these coastal areas are nesting areas for the sea turtles such as Caretta caretta, while they are also habitats to endemic palm trees and a genuine species of small bananas much appreciated on the Turkish market. In 1958, de Planhol described in detail the life in the small and larger plains located along the Mediterranean coast, which borders the western and central Taurus. Villages and small towns used to live from traditional agriculture and maritime activities, protected from piracy and

invaders by citadels built on promontories at the entrance of the plains. After coastal wetlands where increasingly reclaimed for agriculture during the 1950–1980 decades, villages started to transform into intensive touristic centres from the 1990s on. Small place was left to ancient lifestyles, but technical progress allowed the almost complete eradication of malaria and an increasing income for populations choosing to settle in these plains. Through centuries, the Adana area and the Çukurova plain have been important sites for trade, military control and cultural exchanges between Anatolia on the one hand and the Eastern Mediterranean, the Levant and upper

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Mesopotamia on the other hand. Intensive agriculture is only limited by the sand dunes along the coast and by the mountain slopes inland. Today, the very fertile Çukurova plain corresponds to an intensely cultivated region and Adana has become the fourth populated city of Turkey. Landscapes here record the supremacy of industrial agriculture (e.g. cotton, tobacco, citrus, intensive vegetable cultivation), favoured by a subtropical climate and an average of 290 sunny days per year. Together with the impact of irrigation and channel networks on the water landscapes of the plain, greenhouses contribute to produce an industrial landscape characteristic of the area (e.g. Mersin has become the second greatest city of Turkey for greenhouse production). This expansion is favoured by the rapid growth of the industrial sector transforming the agricultural production, and by easy transportation means throughout the country.

4.4.1.2 Climate Climate in the Mediterranean Region of Turkey is mostly characterized both by dry and warm summers, and by high precipitation in autumn and winter. Precipitation increases from the coastal areas towards the higher parts of the mountains, where steep slopes facing south receive over 1000 mm of precipitation annually. Türkeş and Erlat (2003) have shown that the cold weather in winter is controlled by Atlantic air masses passing over Europe or the Mediterranean Sea. These humid air tracks collide with the relatively cold air leaving Turkey southwards and with the warmer Saharan air masses over Cyprus (Cullen et al. 2002). A front thus forms that conducts the Atlantic-sourced Mediterranean autumn depressions and winter storms onto the Taurus, triggering abundant rain and snowfall on the mountain slopes (LaFontaine and Bryson 1990). The precipitation increase occurs above 1000–1200 m altitude, causing the prevalence of a subhumid-to-humid Mediterranean mountain climate in the highlands (Atalay et al. 2014a), while hindering the rainfall fronts from entering Central Anatolia. As a result, a strong contrast exists between the well-wetted slopes looking south- and the drier north-facing slopes. Three climatic zones are distinguished in the Mediterranean mountains of Turkey (van Zeist et al. 1975; Fontaine et al. 2007; Kint et al. 2014). (1) The Mediterranean climatic zone is characterized by mild winter with mean values around 8–10 °C, a moderate rainy season from November to April, followed by warm and dry summers. Rising up to ca. 800–900 m asl, this zone continues as far as the Iskenderun Gulf and the Amanos Range in the easternmost part of the region. (2) The thermo-Mediterranean zone is characterized by mild winters with pronounced annual precipitation, a mean annual temperature ranging between 19° and 20°,

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and dry and hot summers with temperatures declining with altitude, from 30 to 25 °C (Delannoy and Maire 1983; Atalay et al. 2014a). Well developed between 900 and 1200 m asl on the south-facing slopes of the Taurus, this zone degrades upslope towards an Oro-Mediterranean climate, characterized by summer temperatures rising only to 20 °C and colder winters with temperatures commonly lower than the freezing point, and subject to heavy snowfall. (3) In the semi-continental climatic zone, summer temperatures increase inland towards the Central Anatolian Plateaus. In addition, the rough topography of the Taurus Mountains generates microclimates on the local scale, which are characterized by high variability of vegetation composition, especially in individual valleys. Specific physical characteristics of a given area may thus present humidity differences when compared to neighbouring areas (Bakker et al. 2013; Atalay et al. 2014b).

4.4.1.3 Phytogeography Climax forests of the Mediterranean highlands of Anatolia are formed by pine (Pinus brutia, associated with P. nigra in the west, Pinus sylvestris in the east), Cilician fir (Abies cilicia) and Lebanon cedar (Cedrus libani) (Fig. 4.31). Today, the forests in the Taurus Range are mainly composed of stands of kermes oak (Quercus coccifera L.) and Brutia pine (P. brutia) forming lower-lying pine forests (between 800 and 1200 m asl). Junipers (Juniperus excels, J. oxycedrus) and Black pine (Pinus nigrae) grow at higher altitudes. Junipers are especially present at the timberline (van Zeist et al. 1975; Fontaine et al. 2007). Relic stands of Lebanon cedar (C. libani), Turkish oak (Quercus cerris L.) and Taurus fir (Abies cilicica) forests occur at higher altitudes, between 2200 and 2400 m asl, but their importance seems to have decreased since their description by van Zeist et al. (1975). While heavy exploitation of Lebanon cedar (C. libani) stands has been ongoing since millennia, the millennia-long degradation of natural vegetation associations are related to the intensive overgrazing and forest utilization (Vanhaverbeke and Waelkens 2003; Vermoere et al. 2003; Bakker et al. 2013). During the nineteenth century, deforestation caused by extensive timber export developed in the port city of Antalya favoured the expansion of juniper woodlands in the Taurus (de Planhol 1958). Finally, the massive forest destruction caused the Mediterranean maquis to cover increasing surfaces, in turn now subject to fires too. Developing mainly between 800 and 1000 m asl, the maquis vegetation includes kermes oak, arbutus (A. andrachne and A. unedo), laurel (Laurusnobilis), wild pistachio (Pistacia terebinthus), myrtle (Myrtus communis), rockrose (Cistus),

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Fig. 4.31 Pine standing in Mount Geyikdağ in the central Taurus (North of Gündoğmuş). Photograph by A. Çiner

olive tree (Olea europea), Srax officinalis and Ceratonia siliqua (van Zeist and Bottema 1991; Atalay 1994). Finally, the relatively gentle northern slopes, which receive 300– 400 mm of precipitation annually, are the domains of steppe vegetation. On the mountain slopes, dark-coloured pine forests offer a striking opposition with the ploughed fields, pastured steppe and/or wetlands occupying the plains. Despite millennia of intensive human impact on the landscape, the diversity of arboreal and non-arboreal plant taxa in the Mediterranean mountains of Turkey has remained very important (Zohary 1973; Bottema and Woldring 1984). Many forest remains are now protected by law (Nature Reserve Areas) because of their high diversity of ecosystems, trees (i.e. cedars, larch, juniper), endemic plants and animals. Some of these forests are located in the Teke Peninsula (Çığlıkara near Elmalı; Alacadağ near Finike, Dibek near Kumluca), others in the Isparta Angle (Mount Gelincik on the western shore of Eğirdir Lake, the Kızıldağ north of Beyşehir Lake). Two other protected forests are remarkable: (i) the oak forests at Kaşnak between Eğirdir and Kovada lakes and (ii) a forest formation with sweet gum trees, which have been exploited since Antiquity for oil used in skin treatments and other therapies. Under the natural conditions, a thin soil cover exists under the forest canopy and maquis except on steep slopes (Atalay 1997). On bare limestones, red soil occupies fractures between thin and stony soil patches over bare rocks. This soil scarcity is often interpreted as resulting from erosion caused by anthropogenic activities (pasturing, cultivation, fuelwood collection) (Atalay 1997). In the Amanos Range, a high variety of flora associations, species, endemism, etc., characterizes forests and other

ecosystems, fauna and flora. The extraordinary concentration of endemic and relic species from past Pleistocene climates contributes to classify these mountains as a hot spot of biological diversity, which, besides, belong to the Anatolian Diagonal.

4.4.1.4 Hydrography In accordance with the W–E direction of the Taurus Range, most of the Mediterranean rivers of Turkey flow toward the south, except in the eastern part of the Iskenderun Gulf, where they follow a NE–SW direction (Fig. 4.27). In the western Taurus, rivers flowing to the sea are very short, the Eşen River (ancient Sibros or Xanthos) being the longest with only 90 km. Geomorphological researches in its valley record a succession of small basins separated by narrow gorges, the last of which opens south into an early Holocene marine bay now filled by river sediments (Öner 1999; Écochard et al. 2009) and edged seaward by dunes and sand beaches. At the northern limit of the plain, the Lycian capital Xanthos overlooks the gorge of the Eşen River entering the plain. At the foot of the city, sacred springs are celebrated by the Letoôn shrine. Closer to the sea, the ruins of the Lycian and Roman Patara harbour are located in a remote trough near the south-eastern corner of the plain, where it testifies to the long history of the plain, from the Lycia Kingdom until the Middle Ages. In the Antalya plain, the Düden River (ancient Katarrakte) springs from an underground network. From there, the river divides into several branches, cascading over cliffs that interrupt stepped flat surfaces forming a plateau. The Aksu River (ancient Kestros, ca. 85 km long) springs out of the Kovada plain which used to be connected on the surface by

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to the Eğirdir Lake. Once outflowing from the Taurus, the Aksu River flows in direction of Antalya between the Düden River to the west and the Köprüçay River to the east. The Köprüçay River (ancient Eurymedon, ca. 80 km long) enters the sea near the modern city of Belkıs (ancient Aspendos), where many ancient architectural remains are well preserved, such as Phrygian rock-cut tombs, a Greek basilica and agora, and a Roman theatre which is one of the finest in the world. At the north-eastern edge of the Antalya plain, the Manavgat River (ancient Melas: ca. 120 km long) outflows from the merging of small springs, the largest of which is called Dumanlı (Foggy in Turkish). To the east of the Antalya plain, in the direction of the Çukurova plain, the Taşeli Peninsula (Rough Cilicia, Cilicia Trachea) is a massive and cliffy land, which is almost undrained except by very short streams. North and east of this massif, the rivers are longer. Among them, the Göksu River (ancient Calycadnus) is, with a 260 km length, the longest river within the Taurus Range in the Mediterranean region. Draining the Mut region, it flows in a wide NW–SE oriented trough where the landscape is densely incised by its tributaries. Landforms and landscapes in this basin record the whole geomorphological evolution of this part of the central Taurus. More to the east, the Taurus feeds only small streams, the longest of which is the Tarsus River (ancient Cadnus, 55 km long). Above the Adana plain, the Seyhan River drains the water running from the slopes facing the SE, which form the limit with the Central Anatolian Region. Its headwaters are two rivers separated by the Tahtalı Mountains, which meet near the Gökçeköy village. In the northwest, the western branch originates from the Uzunyayla Plateau NE of Kayseri (at the eastern extremity of the Central Anatolian endorheic area). In the north-east, the other branch (Göksu River) originates from the Binboğa Mountains west of the Elbistan plain in the Eastern Anatolia region. At the foot of the highlands, Seyhan River flows into the old Roman city of Adana, which has become one of the most important cities of Turkey. Also flowing into the Çukurova plain, the Ceyhan River springs in the Elbistan plain, north of the Nurhak Mountains. Its eastern divide separates the Mediterranean basin from that of the Euphrates River. Strabo (xii. p. 536, in Karmer 1852) records that, before his time, the upstream part of the Ceyhan River used to flow underground and that it was navigable downstream the resurgence. Strabo also claims that, in some parts of the river course, the channel was so narrow that a dog or hare could leap across it. At present, these canyons are inundated by several dam lake reservoirs, with the exception of the Kısıklı Canyon south of the Menzelet Dam. East of the İskenderun Gulf in the direction of Syria, no Mediterranean river has succeeded in crossing the Amanos highlands, which border the Mediterranean Sea, except for

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one important exception. The Asi River (ancient Orontes: 450 km) crosses the southern part of the Amanos Range west from the town of Antakya (ancient Antioch). Flowing from northern Syria, the Asi River enters the Amik plain where the city of Antakya is located. This plain has been occupied by a famous lake, from the Bronze Ages to the 1970’s when it was drained for agricultural land reclamation. The lake used to receive water from two N–S flowing streams: the Karasu and the Afrin, both born in the Kartaldağ between Kahramanmaraş and Gaziantep. The lake had a small outlet flowing south into the Asi River. Downstream the Amik plain, the Asi River changes direction, flowing in the west direction. At Antakya, it turns again towards south into a 6–8 km-wide trough crossing the Amanos Range. This turn-back is much striking as the river has flown mostly S–N ever since its birth in Lebanon. Via the trough cutting the Amanos highlands, the river joins the Mediterranean Sea near the little port of Samandağ, only a few kilometres north of the Turkish–Syrian border. In this last part of its course, the Asi River profile falls 50 m in 15 km.

4.4.2 Geomorphological Landscapes in the Mediterranean Anatolian Region 4.4.2.1 Structural Context The Tauride Mountains form the northern backbone of the Mediterranean Region of Anatolia. They possess a Palaeozoic stratigraphy common with Central Anatolia, and similar to the central Arabian Platform. During the Mesozoic, large-scale carbonate platforms are formed here in the Neotethyan oceanic basin. During the mid-Cretaceous, these platforms were deformed and overlain by a very large body of ophiolite and underlying tectonic slices of ophiolitic mélange. Today, erosional remnants of this thrust sheet of ophiolite and ophiolitic mélange occur throughout the Taurides, although with lesser expansion than in Central Anatolia (Collins and Robertson 1997, 1998). During the late Cretaceous and Palaeocene, obduction, subduction and continental collision episodes related to the Alpide formation triggered regional metamorphism and strong deformation in the form of folds, thrusts, and thrusted piles forming large cover nappes (Okay and Özgül 1984) (Fig. 4.32). The highest of these nappes in the Taurus have their roots far north in the Pontide/Anatolide Suture Zone (Poisson 1977; Monod 1977; Gutnic et al. 1979), making the Anatolides a large tectonic window (Erol 1981, 1991a). The contraction lasted until the Eocene, provoking the closure of the Neotethys as well as folding and thrusting of the Tethysian carbonate platforms. In the western and central Taurus, this compressional Eocene event resulted in the uplift of extensive marine carbonates, which generated on the surface a proto-Taurus mountain chain (Monod et al. 2006; Çiner et al. 2008; Cosentino et al.

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Fig. 4.32 Structural map of Mediterranean Anatolia in the context of the eastern Mediterranean plate tectonics. 1. Strike-slip fault; 2. thrust fault; 3. limits of tectonic plates; 4. fault zones (different colours); 5.

coastline; 6. plate movement direction; 7. cities (big and small). Map by C. Kuzucuoğlu, after Aksu et al. (2014a, b), with additional data from Yönlü et al. (2017) and Tarı et al. (2014)

2012; Doğan et al. 2017). These events are responsible for today’s structural framework of the range. At places from the late Oligocene to mid-Miocene, compression continued and exhumation occurred progressively, without much surface uplift (Şengör and Kidd 1979; Jaffey and Robertson 2005). During the late Miocene and Pliocene, a second and different tectonic phase started (called neotectonism in Turkey; Şengör and Yilmaz 1981). It generated a high-magnitude uplift, which affected all Anatolia. This event was caused by collision between the African and Eurasian plates. The late Miocene uplift not only provoked the emersion of older marine and continental formations, but it forced the erosion of these formations as well as—after erosion of the ophiolite cover—the surface and underground karstification of the limestone platforms in which rivers inscribed deep canyons during the Pliocene and the Pleistocene (Bakalowicz 2015). During the Pleistocene, epeirogenic movements continued. However, in contrast with the compression movements that occurred during the late Miocene and Pliocene, Quaternary tectonic movements consisted of (i) block faulting in the western part of the range, (ii) normal and thrust faulting in the central Taurus east of the Antalya plain and (iii) strike-slip faulting north of the Adana plain (Fig. 4.32). This faulting activity generated several intramontane basins that opened from the Teke Peninsula eastward to the upper basin of the Seyhan River.

4.4.2.2 The Taurus Range Only two members of the Taurus Range are present in the Mediterranean Anatolian Region: the western and central Taurus (Figs. 4.27 and 4.32). North of Antalya, the meeting of these two ranges forms a mountainous arch called the “Isparta Angle”, inside which the Antalya plain occupies a pivotal position. All the landscapes in the highlands forming these three parts of the Taurus (the Teke Peninsula—western Taurus, the Isparta Angle and the central Taurus) record the consequences of the structural framework running west-east, formed of Alpide folds, normal faults, thrusts, uplifted/subsided blocks and intramontane basins. Western and central Taurus ranges had however different episodes of erosion and landscape formation. Together with lithological contrasts, these differences in chronology caused differences in the development of the river networks, as well in depth as in extension. To the west of the region, the massifs of the Teke Peninsula are home to only a few short rivers, that flow south through narrow gorges in direction of the Mediterranean sea to the south. East of the Isparta Angle, the NW– SE organized Göksu River drainage basin is occupied by the longest water drainage system incising the Taurus. In this basin, highly diverse lithology successions have caused the development of beautiful geomorphological landscapes carved by differential erosion. Finally, the easternmost part of the central Taurus range, the Aladağlar, feeds the most part of the Seyhan River flow.

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The Teke Peninsula and the Western Taurus The Teke Peninsula extends between the Aegean Sea in the west and the Aksu thrust in the east (Fig. 4.32). Its pre-Oligocene bedrock consists of (1) the metamorphic Menderes Massif, (2) the SW–NE Beydağları crustal block formed of thick Mesozoic platform carbonates, (3) the so-called Lycian Nappes composed mainly of Mesozoic cherty carbonates and late Mesozoic-Palaeogene ultramafic rocks and (4) the so-called Antalya Nappes dominated by ophiolites (Senel et al. 1981; Şenel 1997; Alçiçek and Jiménez-Moreno 2013). Superimposed over this Palaeozoic–Mesozoic bedrock, a complex mosaic of NW–SE, NE–SW and E–W trending basins has been formed by Neogene and Quaternary crustal extension (Okay 1989; Bozkurt 2003). Accordingly, the Cenozoic sediments filling these extensional intramontane basins record the onset and time-life of the neotectonic regime as well as regional climatic changes occurring during and after the change in tectonic regime (Nemec and Kazancı 1999; Koşun et al. 2009; Alçiçek 2010; Alçiçek et al. 2017). West of the Beydağları these Mio-Pliocene and Quaternary continental basins possess lake and alluvium sequences which, although limestone-rich, do not allow the formation of karstic aquifers (Bayari et al. 2011).

The late Miocene extensional tectonics recorded in the Teke Peninsula (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Alçiçek 2010) caused a relative subsidence which still has major geomorphological and hydrogeological consequences (Erol 1990). Not only did the subsidence induce sea-level fluctuations, but it also caused formerly well-developed karst landforms to be positioned today near or below today’s sea level (Bayari et al. 2011). Along the coasts, karstic landforms and features are depressions (poljes, uvalas, dolines), submarine springs, marine bays, brackish lagoons and coastal lakes (Elhatib and Günay 1998; Bayari et al. 2011). For example, at Gökova (SW of the Teke Peninsula) the rising sea during the early Holocene invaded a polje that is today a bay. Today, the karstic lagoon is filled with alluvium discharged by two small streams flowing to the sea through inlets crossing the outer sand barrier. Along the coastline of the western Taurus, the elevation inland increases abruptly from sea level to around 1000 m asl or more within only a few kilometres distance. For example Mount Akdağ rises above 3000 m asl only 30 km away from the coastline. Exceptions are the coastal plains formed in tectonic collapse zones, such as the Esençay and Finike-Kumluca plains.

Fig. 4.33 Saklıkent Canyon (Fethiye, Muğla). This famous deep and narrow canyon is drained by a resurgence collecting water from karstic networks around Mount Akdağ. Consequently, it contributes

significantly to the Eşen River spring discharge. a Canyon entrance; b base of the canyon. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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In between the mountainous areas and the coast, part of the karst groundwater feeds streams flowing through canyons, such as the famous, several hundreds of metres deep Saklıkent Canyon near Fethiye, which is drained by a stream springing out from a very narrow fracture in the carbonate substratum (Fig. 4.33). In the Beydağları, several such canyons are incised by rivers crossing folded structures at right angles. For example, east of the Antalya plain, an assemblage of several kilometres long canyons comprises the Güver Canyon (today a natural park which is a remarkable reserve for wildlife), which is a tributary of the Karaman River. South-west of Antalya, the Karabatak gorge collects water from several other karstic canyons, and outflows finally in the plain through the Döşemealtı travertine. Between Kemer and Kumluca (eastern side of the Beydağları), a site called Yanartaş (Flaming Stone) in Mount Chimaera shows seeping methane gas feeding endless dozens of half-metre-high flames coming out from a contact zone between carbonate and impermeable lithologies (Fig. 4.34). These flames believed to have inspired Homer’s fire-breathing Chimera in his Illiad are maintained alive by methane gas containing Rutherium, a rare metal that allows for the production of abiotic methane (i.e. in the absence of carbon: Etope and Schoell 2014) in certain circumstances

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(Etope and Ionescu 2015). In the Chimaera flames, the catalyst performance of the metal is made possible by the presence of modern-carbon-free fossil methane gas containing Ru. This methane is hosted by the serpentinized, chromite-rich, rocks forming the basement of the Chimaera (Etope and Ionescu 2015). The Isparta Angle The convergence of the SW–NE oriented Beydağları in western Taurus and the NW–SE orientated Dedegöl and Akseki highlands in central Taurus forms a mountainous arch called the “Isparta Angle” which surrounds the Antalya plain. The basement of these highlands consists of (1) Mesozoic autochthonous carbonate platforms overthrust by allochthonous units emplaced between the late Cretaceous and the Pliocene (the Lycian Nappes and the Antalya Nappes), and (2) the Alanya Massif Metamorphics (Monod 1977; Glover and Robertson 1998; Poisson et al. 2003; Flecker et al. 2005; Karabıyıkoğlu et al. 2000, 2005) (Fig. 4.32). The thick allochthonous and autochthonous limestones and dolomitic limestones form major aquifers, while, on the surface, the combination of climate, lithology and tectonics controls the shaping of landscapes (e.g. Öztürk et al. 2018a, b) and karstic features become dominant (Erol

Fig. 4.34 Yanartaş (flaming stone) near the ancient city of Olympos. Photograph by A. Çiner

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Fig. 4.35 Locations of poljes in the western Taurus and north of the Antalya plain. 1. Lake; 2. Wetland; 3. Polje floor; 4. Antalya travertine; 5. Pliocene conglomerates along Antalya travertine; 6. Plio- Quaternary Antalya plain fill; 7. Approximate northern limit of Isparta Angle; 8.

Karstic spring; 9. Swallow hole; 10. Estavelle; 11. Highest peaks in the western Taurus; 12. Gölcük volcano location. Only selected springs and swallow holes in poljes are shown. Background image: composition using GeoMapApp. Map by C. Kuzucuoğlu

1998, 2001; Ekmekçi 2003) (Figs. 4.35 and 4.36). On the surface, fossil Miocene landscapes have also been preserved from complete destruction by erosion, thanks to the rapidity of the Plio-Pleistocene uplift. Past connections between these landforms have however been segmented by rivers inherited from Mio-Pliocene which have cut deep antecedent canyons through the preceding landscapes (Monod et al. 2006). Among surface karstic features, the most striking are the numerous, laterally and vertically discontinuous, shallow and perched/hanging polje plains, which record independent, polyphased and polycyclic developments (de Planhol 1956, 1958; Nazik 1992; Doğan 2002, 2003; Ekmekçi 2003; Doğan et al. 2017) (Fig. 4.33). Distributed in the limestone highlands, these poljes result from the interplay of tectonics (subsidence), karstic processes (dissolution of limestones on the surface and underground) and climatic changes (lake-level changes, marshes and alluvial fan developments, desiccation) (Fig. 4.34). The W–E rise of the altitudes of these poljes, from ca. 800–900 m asl in the west (western Taurus) to ca. 1000–1100 m in asl the east (eastern member of the Isparta Angle), parallels the general W-S subsiding slope affecting the old topographies in the Teke Peninsula. Besides, whether in the western member of the Isparta Angle

(Kestel Lake, Bademağacı, Bucak, Cebis poljes) or in its eastern member (Adaköy, Pınarbaşı, Kembos and Eynif poljes), poljes are also positioned along lines joining the Mediterranean Sea and the Lake District plains (Figs. 4.35 and 4.36). This spatial arrangement shows the importance of the tectonic control on the formation and history of these high plains (Ekmekçi 2003; Günay et al. 2015). Poljes started to form in the present highlands during the Miocene, within grabens running parallel to the main structural lines. Examples of such long-time tectonic control are the Kembos and Eynif poljes which used to border the Miocene sea (Monod et al. 2006), later used to part of the catchment area of the Manavgat River (Doğan et al. 2017), and which are now completely surrounded by a mountainous landscape rising up to 2500–2900 m. To the north of the Isparta Angle highlands, several fluvio-karstic lake basins also developed in tectonic depressions, such as the Burdur plain, Isparta bend, Eğirdir Lake, Kovada graben, Beyşehir and Suğla plains (Şenel 1997). Interactions between tectonics and lithology in their formation are well evidenced. For example, on the fault scarp limiting the NNE flanks of the Dedegöl Mountain, the 4.5-km-long and 245-m-deep Pınargözü cave positioned at 1510 m asl connects with a very important underground

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Fig. 4.36 Photographs of poljes in the western Taurus. a Gölhisar Lake; b Kestel polje; c Elmalı polje; d outflow control gate of the Elmalı Lake; e Girdev polje; f Polje partly immerged by the sea

south-west from Antalya. Polje locations can be found on Fig. 4.33. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (a–e) and S. Karadoğan (f)

network (Delannoy and Maire 1983; Koçyiğit and Özacar 2003). Today, the karstic system connected to Beyşehir Lake contributes to the discharge of the Manavgat and Köprüçay rivers, which both flow into the Antalya plain (Ekmekçi 1993) (Fig. 4.37). Because of a time delay in the underground transfer of the winter–spring rainfall and snow, most input from the lake to the karstic system occurs during summer. Today, irrigation withdrawals have heavily reduced this underground discharge to and out of the lake. In the Beyşehir Lake basin, most water withdrawals are diverted to the Çumra area in the Konya plain. In the Suğla polje, the lake (cored during the 1970s: Bottema and Woldring 1984) disappeared in the 1980s. Also caused by these withdrawals, all swallow holes distributed east of the Beyşehir Lake and

in the Suğla plain have dried, and the Manavgat River has been deprived by 20% of its total discharge of karstic origin (Bakalowicz 1970). In addition to karstic landforms, glacial and periglacial geomorphological landscapes are developed above 2000 m of altitude (Birman 1968; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015; Oliva et al. 2018). When limestones crop out in these highlands, glacial features are amplified by the action of karstic weathering (Doğu et al. 1996; Bayrakdar 2012; Sarıkaya et al. 2014, 2017; Çiner et al. 2015a, b) (Fig. 4.36). In the Isparta Angle, as in the other parts of the Taurus, karstic processes and features show a morphoclimatic succession with altitude, producing high alpine karst in a glacial context above 2000–2200 m altitude, and snow-associated karst

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Fig. 4.37 Schematic section of karstic circulation corresponding to superficial and underground water drainage area of the Manavgat River

between 1700 and 2200 m (Zahno et al. 2009; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2017). Very different from the Alpine highlands of Western Europe, these landforms are closely associated with glacial and periglacial features such as relict glaciers, rock glaciers, moraines and interglacial climatic breccia (Delannoy and Maire 1983). In the 1970s, these karstic periglacial, glacial and nival landforms were partly active between 2500 and 2800 m altitudes, while others were already inactive between 2100 and 2500 m (Delannoy and Maire 1983). Moreover, in the Mount Akdağ, the extent and volume of post-glacial landslides have significantly impacted the slopes

and valleys below the timberline. For example, Görüm et al. (2017) mapped a landslide caused by the collapse of 5-km segment of Mount Akdağ that covered an area of 9.8 km2 (Fig. 4.38). Finally, north of the Isparta Angle, the Gölcük Volcano (west of Eğirdir Lake and south of the Burdur Lake: Fig. 4.39) offers a magnificent landscape. Roads from the tectono-karstic depressions of Eğirdir or Burdur lakes climb up through the thick pumice deposits, which have been emitted by the volcano. The centre of the volcanic edifice is composed of a wide crater partly filled by a lake (1382 m),

Fig. 4.38 Effect of glaciation on carbonate landscape in Mt Geyikdağ (North of Alanya). Hummocky moraines and a karstic depression filled by a lake. Photograph by A. Çiner

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Fig. 4.39 Caldera of the Gölcük Volcano (Isparta). The caldera collapsed into older bedrock, today overlain by thick tephra falls. The triangular summit in the left of the photograph is one of the several

domes that have grown inside the crater after the caldera collapse. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

which is today protected and devoted to leisure activities. This young, surprisingly solitary volcano in the Anatolian Peninsula west of the Konya plain was mainly explosive in character, with very few lava flows (Alıcı et al. 1998; Nemec et al. 1998; Platevoet et al. 2014; Guillou et al. 2017). It is activity started with pyroclastic flows emplaced within the Burdur Lake deposits. These flows are dated to the end of Pliocene (2180 ± 44 ka ago) and Pleistocene (440 ± 12 ka and 148 ± 21 ka ago (Mouillard 2011). A second cycle is formed by tephrophonolite flow-domes and dykes aged between 115 ± 3 ka and 62 ± 2 ka (Platevoet et al. 2008). A third cycle involved tuff-ring deposits and trachyte domes, which started to emplace from 72.7 ± 4.7 ka. Platevoet

et al. (2008) have dated the youngest dome pertaining to this cycle (i.e. the trachytic dome in the middle of the maar crater) to 24 ± 2 ka. The Antalya Plain The Antalya plain is composed of two main basins: (1) the Lycian Basin to the west of Antalya, which is linked to the eastward advance of the overlying Lycian Nappes (Brunn et al. 1971) and (2) the Antalya Basin to the east of Antalya, which consists of three N–S elongated tectonic sub-basins. From west to east, these three sub-basins are called Aksu, Köprüçay and Manavgat (Çiner et al. 2008). The faults controlling their evolution are, from west to east (1) the

Fig. 4.40 Miocene marine limestone conglomerates form a cliff dominating the Köprülü Canyon incised ca. 1000 m down into Cenozoic and Mesozoic formations. Photograph by A. Çiner

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westward-verging Aksu Thrust (separating the Aksu and Köprüçay basins) and (2) the N–S-trending Kırkkavak Fault (separating the Köprüçay and Manavgat basins) (Fig. 4.32). Each sub-basin is filled by thick non-marine-to-marine clastic deposits of Miocene age, locally containing coral reefs and reef shelf carbonates (Deynoux et al. 2005; Karabıyıkoğlu et al. 2005; Üner et al. 2018) (Fig. 4.40). Intense deformation of these sediments results from westward-directed compressional events that occurred from the late Miocene to early Pliocene. The Antalya plain is very famous also for its travertine plateau, which covers an area of 630 km2 in its western part (Glover and Robertson 2003; Koşun 2012). The plateau is best apprehended when driving south from the Burdur depression in Central Anatolia, down through the western Taurus, and crossing the Kestel-Bucak tectono-karstic polje at 800 m altitude (Figs. 4.33 and 4.34). Exiting the polje, the road steeply descends 500 m height in only 5 km in the direction of Antalya and arrives onto the plateau. On the plateau, the extreme dryness of the travertine surfaces contrasts highly with the forested surrounding landscapes. This contrast is accentuated by the occurrence of several abundant karstic springs at the Taurus foot (eg. Kırkgözler: Fig. 4.41) and within the tufas (eg. Varsak and Düden springs). The Antalya travertine is one of the largest freshwater karstic tufas in the world. Its karstic evolution and dynamics has been thoroughly studied since decades (de Planhol 1956, 1958; Burger 1990; Koşun et al. 2005; Efe et al. 2008; Özyurt 2008; Ekmekçi and Tezcan 2011; Koşun 2012;

Bayari et al. 2016). According to Ekmekçi (2005), karstification has been active since the Miocene, extending from surface levels down into the deeper parts of the carbonate units, and allowing the lateral recharge of the Antalya travertine aquifer. This aquifer is placed in the Mesozoic rocks of the Beydağları, where Tezcan (1993) estimates the reservoir to be 4300 km2 wide. This recharge area is fed by underground run-off from the poljes positioned at higher altitudes, which collect subsurface water through numerous and easily identified swallow holes (Fig. 4.33). NW of the Antalya plateau, the Kırkgöz karstic springs (Fig. 4.41) at the foot of the Isparta Angle external border are the source of water for all other springs on the Antalya travertine plateau. The water discharge from the Kırkgöz springs (10– 60 m3/s) is delivered by several outlets spotted along 1 km at the foot of the Beydağları limestone massif. Two main outflows (Kırkgözler and Pınarbaşı) forming lakes and marshes merge rapidly over the travertine before disappearing into the Bıyıklı sinkhole (Fig. 4.33). Beyond this system, the travertine hosts one of the largest submerged conduits systems in the world (ca. 478.000 m3: Özyurt 2008). In 1995, a team of American and Turkish cave divers explored the submerged part of the Kırkgöz and Düdenbaşı springs and found very large and deep dissolution cavities. In the Kırkgöz system, one among these cavities was named “Stadium” because of its dimensions (height >100 m; length, 60 m; width, 50 m), which rank this cavity as the largest submerged one in Asia (Kincaid 1999). The same team discovered that main submerged feeder cavity of the

Fig. 4.41 One of the numerous lakes and marshes forming the Kırkgöz site. The Turkish name can be translated as “Forty Springs” or as “Forty Caves”, both meanings corresponding to the landscape

around this “mother of springs” area that feeds the Antalya travertine and city. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 4.42 Along the Köprüçay River a Roman bridge over the Köprülü canyon. b Roman city Selge theatre. Photographs by A. Çiner

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Düdenbaşı spring is 400 m long and positioned at 65 m below the surface. According to Bayari et al. (2016), the association of large freshwater travertine deposits and submerged cavities/feeders associated with karstic springs points to hypogenic fluid migration through the large carbonate massif of the Taurus Mountains. In the eastern branch of the Isparta Angle and eastern part of the Antalya plain, Miocene calcareous (i.e. karstic and permeable) conglomerates filling tectonic sub-basins present contrasting structures, cut in places by N–S trenched canyons. The impermeable Beşkonak Formation overlies these conglomerates. Accordingly, along the contacts between the two formations, karstic springs are frequent, and feed surface rivers flowing in the bottom of deep and steep canyons directed towards the sea and/or the Antalya plain. Among these canyons, the Köprüçay and the Manavgat rivers offer majestic karstic canyon landscapes (Fig. 4.42). The Köprüçay River begins at Olukköprü springs (30 m3/s discharge), which is the outflow from a karstic reservoir feeding a large and continuous system of underground solution cavities, among which is the 530-m-long and 220-m-deep Kuruköprü Cave (Değirmenci 1993). The name of the spring comes from a Roman stone bridge built over the Köprülü River (Fig. 4.42a). 15 km north of this bridge, the ancient Pisidian city of Selge is located near today’s Altınkaya village (Fig. 4.42b). The intensive superficial karst is developed along vertical joint systems in the conglomerates, forming a landscape of fairy chimneys also known as stone forest. Because of these landscapes and antique remains within the canyon, and because of the endemism in the valley flora, a 14-km-long section of the river (i.e. the proper canyon between the villages of Bolasan and Beşkonak) is now a protected natural park favouring diverse touristic activities such as rafting, trekking and camping. The Manavgat River starts today on the southern slopes of the eastern branch of the Isparta Angle, at an elevation of 1350 m asl. It forms from the unification of several small springs. The largest of these springs is called Dumanlı (Foggy in Turkish) because of the dense mist that forms above it. From there, the river flows south over conglomerates for about 90 km, descending through a series of canyons. Like in the Köprüçay valley, the karstic landscapes are striking, with caves such as the famous Altınbeşik Cave, now a national park. In this cave, an underground course of the Manavgat River nourishes a lake also partly fed by the Kembos polje waters from the Akseki highlands (Doğan et al. 2017). The lake is so large that boat tours are organized to admire calcite formations as well as an underground natural bridge carved by the Manavgat River. When entering the eastern coastal area of the Antalya plain, the Manavgat River forms a famous waterfall over the third step of the Antalya travertines.

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The Central Taurus From west to east, the central Taurus is composed of (1) the Taşeli Peninsula (Rough Cilicia), bordered to the north by (2) the Göksu Basin; (3) eastward, the Taurus Range continues with the W–NE slightly arched suite of the Madendağ and Aladağlar highlands. To the east of Alanya, the “Rough Cilicia” massif is composed of folded hard crystalline and metamorphic rocks from which it takes its ancient name (Cilicia Trachea). Morphologically, it behaves as a moderately high (Çukurbelen Tepe: 1251 m) but extremely massive backbone, with no river crossing it. Along the Mediterranean Sea, the massif ends with high, very steep cliffs. Scarce marine indents are associated with small bays where wetlands, dunes and a few fluvial terraces form the environment of ruined ancient harbours, now transformed into busy touristic resorts. The scarcity of valleys penetrating the densely forested massif generates transportation difficulties and limits land exploitation. The difficulties in penetrating these almost deserted areas also contribute to the understanding of their Rough Cilicia name. Eastward, but still in the Rough Cilicia domain, the Palaeozoic substratum is overlain by limestones and schists dating back to the times of the Tethys Ocean. During the Alpine orogenesis, all these units have been folded and thrusted. North and east of the Rough Cilicia, the early Miocene (Burdigalian) sea penetrated deeply inland into what corresponds today the drainage area of the Göksu River and its tributaries (Şafak et al. 2005). The quite impressive thickness of these Tertiary marine deposits diminishes quickly southward in direction of the Taşeli Massif (Ardos 1969) (Fig. 4.43). During early Miocene, marls and carbonates were deposited in a marine environment unconformable over a regional palaeotopography truncating both the Palaeozoic and the pre-Alpine marine units. After emersion at the end of Miocene, the late Miocene multi-phased uplift (Schildgen et al. 2012) elevated all geological units up to their present altitudes (Cosentino et al. 2012; Schildgen et al. 2012). A recent study claims however that most of the ca. 2000-m-high present topography in the central Taurus region developed only since the early middle Pleistocene (Öğretmen et al. 2018). As a result of this evolution, today’s landscapes are not much contrasted in the Göksu Basin upstream of Mut because of relatively low tectonic deformations. Downstream from Mut however, the suite of slightly deformed Miocene marine sediments overlaying truncated folds deforming Palaeozoic units has generated impressive landforms born from deep, antecedent, fluvial incision into geological units presenting highly different resistance to erosion (Figs. 4.43 and 4.44). East of the Mut Basin, the Bolkardağ and Aladağlar highlands have the same tectonic history as the western

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Fig. 4.43 Miocene reef shallow marine limestones filling the Mut Basin, incised by today’s river network. Photograph by A. Çiner

Fig. 4.44 Superimposition of the Göksu River in the Mut area. The Miocene series (marine limestones overlying basal conglomerates) rests over a denudational surface truncating Palaeozoic formations. Because of post-Miocene uplift, the superimposed Göksu incision in the basement reached the substratum at places, generating a spectacular differential and reverse erosion landform in the valley bottom. Faithfully redrawn with slight modifications from Ardos (1969)

Taurus. This history starts during the late Eocene, with faulting and thrusting in three distinct tectonic basins, which are part of the upper Seyhan watershed: the Pozantı, Ecemiş and Karsantı basins. Depending on their geomorphological position at the time they attracted fluvial networks, the basins filled with fluvial conglomerates (Karsantı) or with lake carbonates (Ecemiş, Aktoprak) (Demirtaşlı et al. 1984; Tekeli et al. 1984; Yetiş 1984; Koçyiğit and Beyhan 1998; Jaffey and Robertson 2005). Meantime, the emergence and erosion of the ophiolitic rocks revealed the Mesozoic carbonate

platforms beneath. During the Oligocene and early Miocene, rivers continued draining the palaeo-Taurus Mountains which, increasingly eroded, correspond to today’s Mount Aladağlar. In the meantime and until the late Miocene, the sea remained present in the Adana Basin, which was then bordering the southern margin of the highlands (Yalçın and Görür 1984; Williams et al. 1993). During the late Miocene, the Niğde Metamorphic Massif rose out of the sea in the north of the region, exposing deeper levels of the pre-Tethysian metamorphic and, for the first time since the Palaeozoic, the plutonic basement of the range. At the end of the late Miocene and during the Pliocene, the neotectonic activity generated an extensional/transtensional faulting, causing the Ecemiş Fault Zone (EFZ) to develop as the dominant control of Oligo-Miocene sedimentation in the tectonic basins as well as of the present-day morphology (Karadenizli and Kazancı 1993). The EFZ generated (i) a 60 km left-lateral offset superimposed on the older regional morphotectonic evolution between Kayseri (north) and Gülek (south of Pozantı); (ii) fault scarps and fluvial offsets that still actively bound the strike-slip basins opened along the fault; and (iii) the elongated shape of these tectonic basins (Jaffey and Robertson 2001, 2005; Sarıkaya et al. 2015a; Yıldırım et al. 2016). Dating the alluvial fans bordering the main fault-line scarp of the EFZ on the western piedmont of the Aladağlar, Sarıkaya et al. (2015b) demonstrated that the fault has been active during the late Pleistocene with a 35 ± 3 m fault offset dated post 97.0 ± 13.8 ka. Both the Madendağları and Aladağlar highlands are entirely composed of carbonate platforms and nappes. Their majestic karstic landscapes present however a higher magnitude than in the western Taurus and the Isparta Angle because the post-Alpine uplift has been higher. For the same

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highlands today are one of the thickest karst aquifers of the world, producing remarkably abundant karstic springs and resurgences (Özyurt 2008; Bayari et al. 2016).

reason, there is almost no old landscape preserved (hanged dry valleys, large connected poljes, etc., observed in the Isparta Angle highlands). In addition, the combination of the post-Miocene uplift with the favourable tropical and subtropical humid climate of the time led to the development of deep subvertical karst systems (Törk 2008). The resulting karstic landscapes in both ranges are quite spectacular: waterfalls, resurgences, underground karstic networks, collapse caves and deep canyons. On the surface, karstic landforms also occur as karrens, dolines, swallow holes and cave entrances. During Quaternary glaciations, the range was subject to dramatic glacial erosion that completely removed the pre-existing epikarst zone (Zreda et al. 2011; Çiner and Sarıkaya 2017). Today, the glacially scoured upper plateaus of the Bolkardağ (Madendağları) and the Aladağlar abound with decapitated shafts (up to 1400 m deep) that are partly or wholly filled with glacial debris (Klimchouk et al. 2006; Bayari et al. 2016). In the highest parts of the range that often rise above 3000 m asl, several glacio-karstic landforms produced by limestone weathering in periglacial conditions can be observed (Birman 1968). On the surface as well as underground, karstic landforms and features allowed the formation of karstic circulation feeding springs at lower elevations (Bayari et al. 2016). As a result, the Aladağlar

4.4.2.3 Landscapes in the Areas Surrounding the Eastern End of the Mediterranean Sea Morphological landscapes between the central Taurus and the İskenderun Gulf area are controlled by three structural factors: lithology, uplift and the activity of three major fault zones: the Ecemiş, Kozan and Eastern Anatolian Fault Zones (EAFZ) containing tectonic basins filled by Plio-Pleistocene lacustrine and continental series (Yıldırım et al. 2016). The Kozan Fault Zone limits the drainage areas of the Seyhan and Ceyhan rivers. Both the Ecemiş and Kozan Fault Zones respond to the movement of the NAFZ within the Anatolian Plate (Fig. 4.45). Seaward, the external part of the Ecemiş and Kozan Fault Zones basin is occupied by an arched and elongated depocenter reaching seaward >1000 m depths in the Cilicia Basin and >1400 m in the Latakia Basin near Cyprus. Between the internal and outer parts of this structural system, the Seyhan River incises meanders superimposed into series of Mio-Pliocene limestones, Pliocene clastic deposits, and Pleistocene marine, travertine and continental series fringing the foot of the Taurus Range (Cosentino et al. 2012). At the foot of the Taurus highlands,

Fig. 4.45 Eastern extremity of the Mediterranean Sea in Turkey, from Silifke to Samandağ hydrography, relief and main tectonic lines. 1. Strike-slip fault; 2. Fault; 3. Thrust fault; 4. Turkey-Syria border; 5. Land below 100 m asl; 6. Land between 100 and 1000 m asl; 7.

Land >1000 m asl; 8. Large regional towns; 9. Smaller towns. Redrawn from Erol (2003 hypsometry, altitudes and hydrography), with additional tectonic data from Aksu et al. (2014b) and Yönlü et al. (2017)

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this Plio-Pleistocene sediment cover forms a quite visible succession of “glacis” slopes indurated by a Pleistocene travertine cover incised by the streams descending southward to the Çukurova plain. Similarly, near Yakapınar at the northern extremity of the Çukurova plain, calcrete hardpans record extremely dry episodes of the Pliocene (Kapur et al. 1990; Erol 1991b, 2003; Eren et al. 2008). These 0.5–2-m-thick hardpans cap ridges and small depressions eroded in the Messinian-Pliocene continental formation. Below, the fossil ground presents a fluvial terrace-like morphology, slightly inclined to the south and segmented by stream erosion. At places, the calcrete is truncated, and the unconformities covered by fluvial/colluvial deposits or archaeological horizons. In the lower sector of the western side of the Misis heights, the surface is also topped by travertine crusts, rich in vegetation remains. These crusts protect original fans and pediment surfaces from erosion. Below and embedded in these hardened formations, two distinct levels of fluvial terraces record Quaternary incision by the Ceyhan River. The Çukurova Plain and Delta The Çukurova plain corresponds to an elongated tectonic depression bordered by the central Taurus Range to the north and northwest, and by the Karataş–Misis–Yumurtalık lineament to the east, which extends to northern Cyprus in the south (Aksu et al. 2005, 2014a, b) (Fig. 4.45), while the İskenderun Basin lies east of the Karataş–Misis–Yumurtalık lineament (Robertson et al. 2004). Intense tectonic activity along the Misis lineament continuously provokes destructive earthquakes, such as the 1998 tremor, which caused fatalities and damage to buildings in Adana and in the surrounding regions (Över et al. 2004; Ulusay and Turgay 2004). In the Ceyhan Gorge NE of the Çukurova plain, Seyrek et al. (2008) have shown that the uplift of the upper Ceyhan highlands, which reach today ca. 2300 m asl, started during the middle Pliocene with a mean uplift rate of 0.25–0.4 mm a−1 (calculations based on age data from basalts). During the Pleistocene, the steep slopes and high humidity in the Seyhan and Ceyhan watersheds caused a very active fluvial, coastal and sediment dynamics which not only triggered the construction of the Çukurova plain but also the seaward transgression of a complex, large and mobile coastal delta. This delta is subject to rapid and frequent geomorphological changes (Fig. 4.46, 2018 map). Here, landscapes record multiple and large-scale changes in the position of channels, back-swamp and oxbow lakes, dune fields. Remote sensing analysis (Isola et al. 2017) outlines km-wide translations in the fluvial channel patterns,

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with landforms showing river avulsions with consequent palaeomeanders locally forming oxbow swamps/lakes, abandoned channels and suites of concentric features generated by a progressive lateral meander migration. In spite of this apparent mobility, the structural context strongly controls the fluvial dynamics in the plain. For example, downstream Adana the Seyhan River changes direction westwards, then paralleling the Kozan Fault Zone. Mirroring this westward displacement, the mouth of the Seyhan River has moved 16 km westward since the beginning of the twentieth century, from the eastern extremity of the Tuzla Lagoon to its present position (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1993). According to older maps however, the Seyhan River seems to balance between (i) getting close to the Tarsus stream mouth at the western end of the plain (e.g. during the first half of the nineteenth century), or (ii) closer to the mouth of the Ceyhan River when it succeeds to flow west of the Karataş promontory (Fig. 4.46). Other examples of fluvial mobility in the Çukurova plain concern mainly the Ceyhan River paths. When descending from the Eastern Taurus highlands, the Ceyhan River enters the Çukurova plain at its NE corner. From there on, spatial changes of its bed seem to have been recurrent both in the north of the system (in Fig. 4.46, compare the 1827 and 2018 courses of the river west of Osmaniye), and in the south of the plain where they seem to have occurred over a longer time than the Holocene. In the north of the system a few kilometres east of Ceyhan City, a dry antecedent karstic canyon incising the limestones of the Misis highs in direction of the northern shores of the Iskenderun Gulf has been suggested to have hosted a former path of the Ceyhan (Erol 2003). Called the Issos Gate (from the name place of a famous Alexander the Great’s battle north of the Iskenderun Gulf), this canyon outflows in the Issos undrained coastal plain. Its abandonment by the Ceyhan River may have occurred sometime during the late Pleistocene. Confirming the possibly of such a scenario, recent morphotectonic researches in the NE of the Çukurova plain by Yönlü et al. (2017) have evidenced changes in the Ceyhan paths in the area where the Misis-Karataş Fault Zone heads in the direction of the western extremity of the EAFZ. Here, Yönlü et al. (2017) suggest that the Yumurtalık and Toprakkale faults have been recently active south of Ceyhan City (i.e.). This result is based on evidences of offset drainages, lineaments, shutter ridges and fault planes in the Quaternary formations between the Mediterranean coast and the small town of Türkoğlu, a town positioned on the easternmost part of the EAFZ (Fig. 4.45). Concerning the Holocene, Gürbüz (1999) suggests that ca. 4000–3000 years ago, the Ceyhan River had already

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Fig. 4.46 Changes in the river courses building the Seyhan-Ceyhan delta in the last 200 years, with associated changes in lagoons and coastline. Inset maps are redrawn from Vandermaelen (1827); Spruner von Merz (1855), Grassl (1860) and Ozaner (2004); Erol (2003);

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Interpretation of NOAA 2018 Imagery available on Google 2018. Nineteenth-century maps have been consulted on https://www. davidrumsey.com. Figure by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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migrated eastward across the Miocene dorsal of Karataş, abandoning the Ayaş mouth in the Iskenderun Gulf in favour of another mouth positioned in the area of Karataş. During the first half of the nineteenth century, the Ceyhan paths in the Çukurova plain captured the Seyhan (or vice versa) west of the Misis highs (1827 and 1860 maps on Fig. 4.46). The Ceyhan abandoned its mouth near Yumurtalık (Ayaş) only in 1935 in favour of an outflow east of Karataş (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1993). The river had already partly flown west of the Karataş promontory in 1855–1860 (Fig. 4.46). This versatility of the Ceyhan River along the Misis highs responds most probably to the activity of the Misis lineament. But the processes in bed changing and sliding are strongly connected to how high can the river floods be in order to obtain changes in bed paths (Erol 2003; Ozaner 2004). Accordingly, this dynamics has changed since 1984 with the operation of dams over the Seyhan and Ceyhan Rivers.

Damming has caused both a dramatic decrease in the annual sediment load of the rivers and a sharp decrease in the flood waves arriving to the delta. The decrease in fluvial sediment input is also causing an increase in marine erosion of the sand beaches, dunes and lagoon protection (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1993; Çetin et al. 1999).

Fig. 4.47 Structural framework of the Amanos (Nurdağ) Range and the Amuk/Karasu tectonics at the African-Arabian-Anatolian plates meeting area, and of the volcanism associated with the local landscapes.

Modified from Rojay et al. (2001), with additional data from Karabacak and Altunel (2013), and interpretation of Landsat 2015 as available on Google Earth

The Hatay Region North of Syria, the Hatay region corresponds geographically to the eastern coasts of the Iskenderun Gulf, the Amanos highlands (Nurdağ, in Turkish) and four elongated and aligned depressions bordering and paralleling the eastern slopes of the Amanos Range (Fig. 4.47). In general tectonics such as rise and subsidence of blocks, fault scarps control the geometry and organization of the relief components, with the main rivers flowing into tectonic basins (e.g. the Karasu valley graben to the Amik Lake depressions and the Antakya

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graben) or troughs (e.g. the Asi River crossing the Amanos Range using the Antakya trough which leads to the Mediterranean sea: Bridgland et al. 2012). Streams are also adapted to the fault-line scarps descending towards the Iskenderun Gulf (western slopes of the Amanos) and the Karasu graben (eastern slopes of the Amanos). Lithologies also interfere strongly with tectonics in the shaping of the landscapes of the region. In the eastern depressions landscapes are shaped within clastic deposits, travertines and basaltic Strombolian volcanoes associated with abundant lava flows (Fig. 4.47). In the Amanos Range, thick outcrops of Cretaceous limestones (still partly covered by ophiolites) have generated beautiful karstic landscapes in proportions similar to those observed in the Taurus range (especially in the southern part of the Amanos Range). While deep canyons incise these Cretaceous limestones (especially in the southern part of the Amanos), the surface of the uplifted blocks still bears diverse karstic features, such as hanging valleys recording past fluvial connections between fault-bounded blocks. West, the Gulf of Iskenderun corresponds to a tectonic basin deepening seaward, which borders the uplifted and SSW–NNE oriented Amanos Range (>2000 asl) that forms the backbone of the region (Figs. 4.45 and 4.47). Along the Gulf coasts, steep cliffs plunging into the sea are scarcely interrupted by small sandy beaches, while uplifted marine and fluvial terraces together with wave-cut notches and beachrocks are often seen (Pirazzoli et al. 1991; Çiner et al. 2009; Desruelles et al. 2009). Uplift of the northernmost part of the Amanos Range brought up to the surface the basement composed of weakly metamorphosed rocks, while uplift of the southernmost part has brought up late Cretaceous limestone nappes. This uplift, accompanied by faulting movements, forced the development of the Antakya trough through the southern part of the Amanos Range. During late Miocene extension led to the deposition of marine sediments dated upper Miocene to lower Pliocene (Fig. 4.47), which fossilize the regional unconformity truncating the Mesozoic carbonate sequence (Yılmaz 2017). To the SW, the Samandağ Fault cut the entire width of the Amanos Mountains during early Quaternary. Later, it was itself cut and displaced by the ca. N–S striking Asi Fault in the Antakya graben (Erol 1963; Boulton et al. 2006; Boulton and Robertson 2008). The very distinct orientation and morphology of the Samandağ Fault suggest that it has been reactivated after the formation of the Asi graben (Tarı et al. 2014). Recent dates obtained in marine sediments forming terraces in the Samandağ area point to a very recent uplift of the eastern coast of the Iskenderun Gulf (Blackwell et al. 2011; Doğan et al. 2012). East, the flanks of the Amanos plunge down towards a suite of elongated depressions corresponding to

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fault-controlled basins (Figs. 4.45 and 4.47). The base of these young subsiding depressions is filled by lower Pliocene marine sediments that correspond to narrow and aligned Quaternary grabens which are, from north southward: (1) the Nurdağ depression; (2) the Karasu River valley; (3) the Amik plain where the Amik Lake used to receive the waters from the Karasu River and from the Asi River (Orontes); (4) the Ankaya graben; (5) the Aşık graben drained by the Asi River which flows southward from the Antakya City to the Samandağ coastal plain (Yılmaz 2017). North, the fault limiting the Amanos Mountains (from Düziçi to Nurdağ) joins at Nurdağ another fault bounding the grabens east of the Amanos. At Türkoğlu, 23 km NE of Nurdağ, the normal fault bounding the Karasu graben meets the EAFZ (Fig. 4.45). At this point, the EAFZ segments do not have any morphological expression as they are buried below the sediments filling the Kahramanmaraş Basin. However, west of Türkoğlu, two morphologically prominent fault-line scarps correspond to active faults pertaining to the EAFZ (the Deliçay and Türkoğlu-Haruniye faults). Striking obliquely, these fault zones cut the whole width of the Amanos Mountain Range. While Yılmaz (2017) consider these faults older than the N–S striking fault bounding the western edge of the Karasu graben, (Şaroğlu et al. (1992) and Emre et al. (2013) consider them active despite no historical record of activity. South from Türkoğlu near Nurdağ, the fault scarp of the left-lateral strike-slip fault bordering the Amanos meets the normal fault bounding the Karasu graben. This meeting has generated a 2000-m-high fault-line escarpment, crossed vertiginously by the Adana–Gaziantep highway (Fig. 4.48). This broadly N–S striking fault zone, which comprises a number of subparallel faults, forms the western limit of the Karasu half-graben to the north (Yılmaz 2017). The opening of the Karasu graben was caused by the westward movement of the İskenderun block, which started during the late Pliocene (Yürür and Chorowicz 1998; Karabacak and Altunel 2013; Mahmoud et al. 2013). From its source at 408 m asl, the Karasu River arrives at 106 km into the Amik plain at Güzelce. Within this distance, the landscapes in the valley are unforgettable: basaltic lava flows expand widely on the floor of the graben, emitted by a few Strombolian cones mostly set aside the graben. These basalts have delivered K-Ar ages spanning from 2 and 1 Myr (six dates), 1.0 to 0.5 Myr (seven dates), between 0.5 and 0.19 Myr (12 dates), and two dates ranging between 140 and 20 ka (Rojay et al. 2001; Yurtmen et al. 2002). Crossing the Karasu Fault at the foot of the Amanos fault-line scarp, basaltic lavas have been offset after their deposition. The Amik plain (called Amuq in archaeological literature) lies at 80–100 m altitude. It is a roughly round depression of

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Fig. 4.48 Faulted contact between Arabian Plate (lowland in the background) and Anatolian Plate (behind the photographer) near Nurdağ. The photography illustrates the impressively high magnitude

of the fault scarp interrupting the northern Amanos Range to the east. Photograph by S. Karadoğan

about 40-km-long diameter located in the northern termination of the Dead Sea Fault Zone (DSFZ) (Figs. 4.45 and 4.47). To the west it is bordered by the Amanos Mountains composed of igneous rocks in the south and sedimentary rocks in the north. To the north-east of the valley, outcrops of vesicular basalt are present. Pliocene marine sediments occupy the bottom of the basin (Friedman et al. 1999). They are overlain by Pleistocene alluvial and fluvial deposits brought by the Asi River from the south, the Karasu stream from the north, and the Nahr-el-Afrin stream from the east. In the city of Antakya (ancient Antioch) located NW of the Amik plain, the Asi River enters a narrow gorge in direction of the Antakya graben, before ending in the Mediterranean Sea at Samandağ (Fig. 4.47). Over the last 30 ka, several lakes and marshes have occupied the floor of the Amik plain at various times (Friedman et al. 1999). During the last 9000 years (Braidwood and Braidwood 1960), the plain was much populated, especially between 5000 and 3000 BC when large settlements were founded in the centre of the plain (from Chalcolithic to early Bronze Age). In a second phase during the Bronze Ages, the cities preferred locations along the southern edges of the plain (Wilkinson 1997). This distribution change was caused by the formation of a lake in the centre of the plain (Wilkinson 1997; Friedman et al. 1999). This lake had a surface of 300–350 km2, depending on the season. This dramatic increase in the lake surface and of the extensive marshland that grew around (Friedman et al. 1999) forced many settlements to change location. Meanwhile, the lake became an important source of fish and shellfish for the population. In the fourteeth century AD, the Arab geographer Abu al-Fida described a freshwater lake being 32 km

long and 11 km wide. In the eighteenth century, a traveller, R. Pococke, noted that it was locally called the White Lake because of its colour, most probably due to a high salt content (Pinkerton 1812: 545). Between the 1940s to the 1990s, the lake dried out completely because of artificial drainage for land reclamation, water withdrawal for irrigation and retaining of water behind several dams built across the Orontes in Syria (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1993). In this area too, historical earthquakes testify to the permanence of tectonic activity, which can be destructive, provoking considerable human loss (e.g. Altunel et al. 2009). According to Hubert-Ferrari et al. (2014), large historical earthquakes in the south of the Karasu valley were caused, in the Amik Basin, by the DSFZ. In the Antakya graben, geological and geomorphological data indicate that the Asi River path is controlled by the graben subsidence together with a south-eastward shift deforming the graben (Tarı et al. 2014). These tectonic movements explain that: (i) the central drainage slides eastwards; (ii) the slopes of the tributaries flowing to the graben are longer, more gentle and more gradual over the north-western flank than on the south-eastern ones, where tributaries are short, steep, and immature, and (3) fluvial terraces deposited on the north-western flank and along the central drain are thicker than on the eastern flank. Accordingly, these records point not only to the tilting of the NW flank of the southern Amanos Range, but also to rapid uplift of the Kızıldağ Mountain to the east of the graben. This latter uplift increases erosion, which provides coarse alluvial material to the tributaries that reach the Asi River. Where the Asi River joins at Samandağ the Mediterranean coast, it forms a small delta and feeds a long and wide

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Fig. 4.49 Landscapes of former Hellenistic and Roman harbours of Seleucia in Pieria. Because of increasing growth and trade activities of the city, the Roman Emperor Vespasian (followed by his son Titus) had a tunnel built in order to divert the course of the stream entering the lagoon where the harbour was located. The tunnel widens a karstic

fracture already cutting the Cretaceous limestones. The sand strand along the coast, fed by the Asi River, is being eroded by the sea since the 1950s, both because of sand retrievals for road and building constructions, and because of sediment load decrease caused by dams along the Asi River in Syria. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

sand beach partly fringed by coastal dunes. On this coast, the Roman harbour of Seleucia in Pieria occupies a former lagoon, which the Romans kept alive through the construction of a tunnel diverting the stream entering it (the so-called Titus tunnel) (Erol and Pirazzoli 1992). The Roman harbour, however, has now disappeared below marshy sediments (Fig. 4.49) and the strand is subject to active marine erosion because of sand retrieval from the river flow (dams), and from the beach and the dunes.

controlling the Karasu Basin calculated by Reilinger et al. (2006) and Mahmoud et al. (2013) is significantly slower than in the Dead Sea Basin proper, where it is 3– 10 mm/year. (3) Another interpretation proposes that the EAFZ extends southward along the Karasu valley until meeting the DSFZ in the Amik Basin (Över et al. 2004; Emre et al. 2013). (4) Finally, according to Karabacak and Altunel (2013) and Mahmoud et al. (2013), the slip on the DSFZ is transferred north to the EAFZ via the Karasu Fault Zone, and the EAFZ intersects with the DSFZ around Türkoğlu, just before the EAFZ crosses the Amanos Mountains and extends to the Cyprus Arc. This interpretation is sustained by the study by Yönlü et al. (2017) on the EAFZ segments in the Ceyhan floodplain.

The Meeting of the Dead Sea with the Eastern Anatolian Fault Zones The meeting point between the Dead Sea and the Eastern Anatolian fault zones is subject to a yet unsolved debate concerning the role of the Karasu Fault in accommodating the relative motion between the African and Arabian plates (i.e. prolongation of the DSFZ), or between the Anatolian and Arabian plates (i.e. prolongation of the EAFZ), or between the Anatolian and African plates (Seyrek et al. 2008) (Figs. 4.45 and 4.47). Debated hypotheses are the following:

4.5

The Central Anatolia

4.5.1 Geographic Context (1) Boulton and Robertson (2008) consider that the eastern boundary of the Amanos horst, although extending along the Dead Sea transform fault, may result from the set of normal faults elevating the Amanos Mountains above the Karasu graben. No strike-slip fault has yet been found that would sustain this hypothesis. (2) In opposition, Yılmaz (2017) interprets the morphological features in the western side of the Karasu graben (offset streams, linear ridges trending parallel to the Amanos Mountains) as caused by the activity of the DSFZ. Among other arguments is the fact that no visible fault line controls the eastern border of the depression, however deformed by several en échelon faults. Besides, the 1–2 mm/year slip rate of the fault

The Central Anatolian Plateaus are bound by the Pontide range to the north and the Tauride range to the south. Eastward, the regional slopes rise, merging with the eastern highland region east of Sivas and Kayseri (Fig. 4.50). Only a few rivers succeed in penetrating Central Anatolian high plateaus. The region thus stands as a massive, citadel-like relief, circled by high barriers keeping its surface waters (rivers, streams) from reaching the seas. The resulting organization of the landscape is characterized by (i) an endorheic core where rather flat landscapes are found (Fig. 4.51) and (ii) transitional zones in the direction of the surrounding highlands (Fig. 4.52). Ecologically, the eastern areas of the region meet the “Anatolian Diagonal” (which

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Fig. 4.50 Central Anatolia geomorphological region. Numbers relate to locations of: a Specific sites presented by Chaps. 5 to 35 (chapter number positioned in purple circles or as areas squared by purple-lined rectangles); b Photographs in this chapter (the corresponding figure

number(s) is/are positioned in yellow squares), and large maps in this chapter (the corresponding figure number is positioned within red-lined rectangles)

extends from the Bolkardağ in the Mediterranean region to the Kars area in the Eastern Anatolia). This diagonal, behaving as a genetic reservoir of plants and animals, stands as a kind of borderline between Anatolia and the Near Middle East (Gür 2016).

Cappadocian volcanic plateaus rise to 1500 m asl, while several complex volcanoes reach altitudes of 2500–3000 m (Melendiz Massif), 3250 m (Hasandağ stratovolcano near Aksaray) and >4000 m (Erciyes stratovolcano near Kayseri). The Central Anatolian Plateau is mainly occupied by joint closed depressions occupied by shallow lakes, marshes or flat dry rocky to dusty steppe areas. The salt concentration of their water body varies from fresh to highly saline (Fig. 4.53). The lowest of the closed depressions (900 m asl) is occupied by the second largest lake of Turkey, Tuz Gölü Lake, a shallow playa. South of the region, along the Taurus foothills, altitudes of the closed basin floors rise eastwards, from 850 m in the western part of the Lake District, to 1000 m in the Konya plain, and 1100 m in Sultansazlığı plain near Kayseri. West, some lakes are deep (e.g. Burdur Lake: max. depth 100 m; Salda Lake: 128 m), mainly because of tectonics.

4.5.1.1 Relief Between the Inner Pontides and the Taurus Range lies the heart of Anatolia, the Central Anatolian Plateaus. This region extends approximately between Eskişehir, Ankara, Kayseri, Niğde and Afyonkarahisar (Fig. 4.50). Around this core, transitional regions rise, forming complex patchwork patterns merging with the surrounding higher grounds. In the core, denuded plateaus and slightly undulating hilly relief characterize landscapes. While plateaus are the domains of steppe vegetation, bushes and forest patches extend over higher elevations. Eastward, the

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Fig. 4.51 Plateau landscapes in Central Anatolia. a The driest region of Turkey: the Karapınar-Karacadağ area (Konya). Foreground: the dried bottom of the late Pleistocene (LGM) Konya Palaeolake. Mid-ground: sand bars and erosion cliffs in Pliocene lacustrine sediments. Background: profile of the oldest Strombolian cone (Büyük Meke) of the Karapınar late Pleistocene volcanic field. b Structural

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surfaces of pyroclastic flows in Cappadocia (Aksaray). Squashes are cultivated on surfaces covered by pumice dust mixed with other wind-blown clastics. The resulting soil fixes humidity during the Central Anatolian fresh nights and dawns. c Eymir Lake near Ankara often freezes during winter times where temperatures can fall to −20 ° C. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (a, b) and A. Çiner (c)

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Fig. 4.52 Regions transitional from the core of Central Anatolia towards the surrounding highlands: a anticline in Miocene gypsum and red continental clastics of Çankırı Basin. b Contact between the Karaören closed depression (foreground) and the Şükranlı Cenozoic lake and volcanic deposits, looking north in the western part of Central Anatolia (Afyonkarahisar). c Contact between the southern plateaus and the

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Taurus Range above Ereğli (looking south, from the Karameddin threshold linking the Konya plain to the Ulukışla-Çiftehan River Basin in the Taurus) (Ereğli, Konya). This area is a Prehistoric and Antique pass between the Mediterranean region and Central Anatolia. At this location, ruins of a Seldjoukid “han” signals an important halt on the Silk Road. Photographs by A. Çiner (a) and C. Kuzucuoğlu (b, c)

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Fig. 4.53 Large plains occupied by diverse wetlands, from freshwater to salt pan (sebkha). a The Sultansazlığı freshwater marshes (fish- and bird-rich), also called the “Bird Paradise”. The ecosystem is fed by running waters from the Aladağlar karst and surrounding other mountains (between Yeşilhisar and Yahyalı, Kayseri). b The Akgöl

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Lake near Ereğli used to be until recently mainly fed by surface and underground water from the karstic Taurus limestones. It always dries now in summer. c Western part of the Akgöl Lake (Ereğli, Konya). This part of the wetland has become a sebkha in 1985. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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In the highlands surrounding the core region, deepening of the valleys occurs together as the altitude rises. Towards NE, plateaus are increasingly interrupted by isolated higher massifs announcing the Eastern Anatolian highlands. In these transitional zones, the combination of higher relief (incised massifs topped by extensive erosional surfaces) and contrasts in soils and rocks (carbonates/clastics/volcanics) as well as precipitation (dry/humid) produce a variety of geomorphological landscapes. Southward however, the contact between Central Anatolia landscapes and the Taurus Range is sharp,

with steep slopes quickly reaching more than 1000 m above the central plateaus.

Fig. 4.54 Yearly rainfall values and relief altitudes illustrating the dryness of Central Anatolia in its orographic context. a The three paths followed by the W–E relief altitudes and rainfall amounts profiles through

the peninsula in inset B. Each circle is a meteorological station operating since 1940 at least. b Altitudes (top curve) and rainfall (bottom curve) values along the three W–E paths. Modified from Kuzucuoğlu (2015)

4.5.1.2 Climate In the core plateaus (e.g. Konya and Tuz Gölü plains), mean annual precipitation values are close to semi-aridity (280– 320 mm/year) (Fig. 4.54). These values rise in the higher volcanic areas to the east (Cappadocia: ca. 400 m/year), to the west in the Beyşehir Lake basin (ca. 500 mm/year) and the Pisidian Lakes region (ca. 600 mm/year) and to the north

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in direction of the Pontides (ca. 400–600 mm/year). Dryness of the central parts of the region is mainly caused by orographic shadows of surrounding mountains. In the whole region, the humid season is spring. Winter snow stays long on the ground, and the day/night temperature contrast is high year-round. The orographic effect also triggers extremely cold winters in the core of the region and warm summers in the whole region. Average monthly temperature is 23 °C in summer and −2 °C in winter (down to −20 °C in some years).

4.5.1.3 Phytogeography Plateaus are the domain of the Artemisia steppe and a hot spot for biological diversity (both plants and animals) (Gür 2016). Sheep pasturing (and camel breeding until the 1950s) used to be the main activity in the steppe. However, overpasturing for decades has considerably reduced the species variety of the steppe associations. On slopes above 1500 m asl, both humidity increase and soil properties sustain the growth of residual forests (Fig. 4.55), although human pressures due to fuelwood harvesting and sheep and goat pasturing have considerably reduced the extension and preservation of these forests. These are now reduced to some areas in volcanic massifs. At the highest altitudes, dominant

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oak forests are relatively quickly replaced by junipers in the southern part of the region, and by pines in its northern part. In the wide plains of the core region, intensive use of irrigation since three decades encroaches increasingly the plateau surfaces. As a result, dry farming production of wheat and pulses has considerably diminished in favour of irrigated industrial production (maize, sugar beet, sunflower, potatoes, forage for increasing flocks of cows). These industrial agriculture practices have deeply modified the traditional landscapes in Central Anatolia, also in areas devoted to steppe or dry farming.

4.5.1.4 Hydrography Hydrography of Central Anatolia is organized parted between the north and the south of the core (Fig. 4.56). In the northern part, two important rivers flow in direction of the Black Sea: the Sakarya River in the west, and the Kızılırmak River in the east and north. Their paths with curves and confluences at 90° angles record a tectonic controlled head-back erosion progress inland by the Black Sea tributaries. This inland penetration is performed by capturing successive small tectonic basins, thus getting closer and closer to the endorheic part corresponding to the south of the region. In this endorheic part, streams feed

Fig. 4.55 Oak forests on the high slopes of the volcanic massifs in the Central Anatolian Volcanic Province of Cappadocia (CAVP). Northern side of the Hasandağ Volcano (Helvadere village, Aksaray). Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 4.56 Extension of the Central Anatolian endorheism

marshes and lakes nested in closed depressions. In the driest areas of the region, lake bodies are increasingly salty, especially when the surface drainage area of the basin is insufficient for keeping fresh the lake water in face of high evaporation rates (Fig. 4.53c). Since the last 40 years, Central Anatolian wetlands have reduced and dried to such a point that some have become yearlong playas (Fig. 4.53). Today, the lake salinity ranges from freshwater (e.g. Beyşehir and Eğirdir at the northern foot of the Isparta Angle) to highly saline (lakes named Acıgöl, i.e. Sour lake).

4.5.2 Geomorphological Landscapes Landforms and landscapes in Central Anatolia developed under several controls operating since the early late Miocene. The tectonic control is represented by late Miocene uplift and by a Plio-Pleistocene extensional fault regime (Şengör et al. 2008; Schildgen et al. 2012; Göğüş et al. 2017). The late Miocene uplift caused isolation of Central Anatolia from marine environments, an isolation still mainly effective today. Following the onset of the uplift, volcanic activity during Miocene and Pliocene produced thick ignimbrite flows that modified and deeply imprinted the landscapes in the western (Phrygian highlands) and eastern (Cappadocia) parts of the region. These are today deeply incised by rivers. The present organization of the landscapes started to be established during Pliocene and early Pleistocene, with shallow basins occupied by lakes of various depths, while volcanic activity slowed down with increasingly longer quiescence periods. As a result, continental

sediments (freshwater limestones, alluvial fans) extended widely over the plateaus, partly burying previous relief. During the mid- to late Pleistocene, extensional tectonics accentuated the isolation of large depressions, which still hollow the plateaus today, while headward river erosion started to capture the outermost depressions. In this general evolution frame, human activities since the last three to four decades have tremendously modified the dynamics of the landscapes, mainly by modifying the water management practices.

4.5.2.1 Plateau Uplift and Geological Evolution Together with north-western Iran and Trans Caucasus, Anatolia is the only orogenic plateau in the world that appears today to be in a nascent stage when compared with its much more extensive counterparts in the India–Eurasia collision zone, the non-collisional Andean Plateau or the Colorado Plateau (Çiner et al. 2013). Located between one of the world’s most seismically active strike-slip faults to the north (NAFZ) the Cyprus and Hellenic subduction margins to the south, the Aegean extensional zone to the west, and the Bitlis–Zagros collision zone to the east, the Central Anatolian Region constitutes a relatively small orogenic plateau, tectonically rather quiescent. Almost continuously surrounded by higher lands, it is characterized by both NE– SW shortening and NW–SE extension. Despite its modest average elevations in the central part (*1.0 km) that increase towards east (*2.0 km), and low overall exhumation, it is a first-order morphotectonic feature that has fundamentally impacted the geologic, geomorphic and climatic evolution of Turkey.

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Fig. 4.57 Phrygian landscapes in the Neogene highlands between Afyonkarahisar and Bayat towns: a differential erosion landscape in a tilted structure. The hard layer topping the highlands corresponds to Miocene lacustrine limestones overlaying softer Miocene pyroclastics. The whole set is tilted at places, the tilt slope pointing west. During the 1st mill. BC, the area has been the western part of the Iron Age

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Phrygian Kingdom (1200–500 BC), hosting the capital of King Midas (“Midas City”) (Gabriel 1952, 1965; Haspels 1971). After the Phrygian capital of Gordion (50 km west of Ankara) was destroyed in 675 BC, the Phrygian land around Afyonkarahisar was incorporated in the Lydian Kingdom (during the sixth century BC). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Between its northern and southern tectonic margins, the plateau interior comprises units assembled during Mesozoic to Tertiary orogenies (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Görür et al. 1984; Şengör et al. 2008). The corresponding rocks outcrop particularly in the Sakarya and Kızılırmak river basins where fluvial incision has deeply eroded them (Yıldırım et al. 2011, 2013; Demir et al. 2004a). The Mesozoic-to-Tertiary deformed series are unconformably covered by extensive, thick successions of Mioceneto-Quaternary fluvio-lacustrine sediments and pyroclastic deposits (Fig. 4.57), at present separated by basement highs. Cenozoic lacustrine sediments include a wide range of deposits such as coal seams and evaporites intercalated with fluvial and pyroclastic strata (Aydar et al. 2012; Lepetit et al. 2014). During the Pleistocene, the remaining lakes have continued to be impacted as much by climatic conditions as by tectono-karstic processes helped along by considerable uplift. This evolution has produced highly diverse weathering and depositional environments, which changed both through time and according to contrasted uplift contexts in different parts of the region. The present-day landscapes of Central Anatolia record this geologic history and changing structural, topographic and climatic conditions of the region during the Quaternary. From place to place, this record points to the still continuing impact of tectonics (Yıldırım

2014), climate change and human practice-triggered recent changes (e.g. Gramond 2002; Kuzucuoğlu and Gramond 2006), while contemporary shallow-to-deep lakes in the centre of the region can be considered as the vanishing remains of large Mio-Pliocene lakes.

Fig. 4.58 Red sediment cover of the Ekinik Massif (Aksaray). The red clastic layers are interstratified with gypsum layers. The clastics record the erosion of the Cretaceous Ekinik granite core (located east of the section in the horizon); the gypsum belongs to the same Oligo-Miocene lacustrine evaporitic period as in the Sivas region. Both sets of deposits

are deformed by the Aksaray fault forming the eastern border of the Tuz Gölü closed basin. The contact between the Tuz Gölü plain (foreground) and the uplifted Oligo-Miocene series (background) is a Quaternary fault scarp that is still active today. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

4.5.2.2 Summit Surfaces and Correlative Sediments in the Northern Part of Anatolia Record Several Erosion Phases The northern part of Central Anatolia is transitional to the Pontides through the Sakarya Continent Suture Zone. In this area, geomorphological contrasts have been generated by erosion destroying Palaeozoic and Mesozoic massifs. Today, these formations are deeply incised by the Kızılırmak and Sakarya rivers and their tributaries. This multi-phase erosion is recorded by the structural and erosional summit topographies fossilized and/or exhumed during or after the late Miocene uplift. In the northern part of the Central Anatolia, oldest denudational surfaces are still indeed stratigraphically (fossilization) and lithologically (superficial formations) connected to the remains of the two crystalline highlands forming the core of the area: (i) the Kırşehir Massif between Kırşehir, Yozgat and Sorgun and (ii) the Ekinik highlands uplifted along the Aksaray extensional fault (Fig. 4.58) (Erol 1969, 1979).

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Surfaces recording multiple erosion phases are of several types: – Residual denudational landforms truncating pre-Miocene formations. Plateaus and associated elevations correspond then to old erosional surfaces exhumed by erosion from beneath younger continental sediments and volcanic deposits. Such landforms are found in the Northern, Western and Eastern Highlands where they have been fragmented by uplift-triggered river incision (e.g. Erol 1979, 1983; Görür et al. 1995; Ocakoğlu and Açıkalın 2009; Kazancı et al. 2014). – Structural surfaces topping Miocene and Pliocene lacustrine, volcanic or alternations of lacustrinecontinental-volcanic deposits. Such surfaces occur in several parts of Central Anatolia in the Kızılırmak basin (Doğan and Özel 2011; Çiner et al. 2015a, b), the Ankara region (Erol 1969) and the endorheic part of Central Anatolia around the Konya plain (Roberts 1983). – Erosion surfaces truncating Miocene-to-Pliocene deposits, incised by Pleistocene rivers (Doğan 2011) or dismantled by faults often partly controlling karstic plains occupied by lakes (Erol 1978; Karabıyıkoğlu et al. 1999; Kuzucuoğlu 2002a; Günay 2006; Bayari et al. 2009; Günay et al. 2015). In the northern part of Anatolia, crystalline cores are covered by Mesozoic marine limestone formations, unconformably overlain by Cenozoic marine, lacustrine and volcanic deposits. According to Oligocene continental sediments (i.e. before the late Miocene uplift), intense erosion took away a vast quantity of crystalline, metamorphic, volcanic and sedimentary clastics that were produced by weathering during the Eocene and Oligocene. The red clay matrix of these deposits records deep weathering of the granites, granitoids and gneiss composing the crystalline Kırşehir Massif. This weathering and the onset of its erosion occurred during the Miocene but prior to the late Miocene uplift, as shown by the reddish sediments previous to and interstratified in sections cutting series of late Miocene-to-Pliocene ignimbrites outcropping in Cappadocia (Göz et al. 2014). In the Kızılırmak watershed, the past and present erosion of these has given to the present sediment load of the river its specific red colour that gives its name to the river (Red River) (Fig. 4.58). Towards the north of Central Anatolia, several remnants of erosional surfaces connecting the Central Anatolia to the west-central part of the Northern Anatolia regions are also older than the late Miocene uplift. According to Erol (1979, 1983), these surfaces have been exhumed by post-Miocene basin-wide erosion of Palaeozoic massifs dismantled during the Mesozoic and Tertiary orogenies. These denudational surfaces may be

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contemporaneous with the terminal depositional phase of Miocene red continental sediments. Starting during the late Miocene, the differential interplay between the tectonic plateau uplift and the surrounding higher ground reliefs on the one side and the associated fluvial incision backward in direction of central plateaus have generated deeply incised gorges as well as strath and fill terraces in the Kızılırmak drainage basin (Figs. 4.59 and 4.60). These terraces constitute valuable proxies for the recent uplift history of the interior plateau margins, as well as for the climatic evolution of the region (e.g. Ocakoğlu and Açıkalın 2009; Doğan 2011; Schildgen et al. 2012, 2014; Kuzucuoğlu 2013; Fernandez-Blanco et al. 2013; Özsayın et al. 2013; Kazancı et al. 2014; Çiner et al. 2015a, b). In agreement with a recent study by Çiner et al. (2015a, b) who shows that the central part of the Anatolian Plateau is uplifting relatively slowly (50 m/Myr) since Quaternary, Eocene and Pliocene lacustrine limestone series are still

Fig. 4.59 Karstic valley in the Cretaceous limestones (Çökerek Massif), between the Sorgun valley and the Boğazköy (Hattuşa) area (Yozgat)

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Fig. 4.60 Kızılırmak River and its fluvial terraces crossing Avanos village in Cappadocia. The heights of the terraces from the actual river bed are indicated. Photograph by U. Doğan

partly preserved from the subsequent river erosion in several areas of the region. In addition, hardly modified structural surfaces in the N and NE of the Kırşehir Massif and connected to the Pontides dominate today the lower plateau landscapes of Central Anatolia.

4.5.2.3 The Transition Plateaus in Direction of the Northern Aegean Region and the Lake District The north-western part of the Central Anatolian Region corresponds to the upper part of the Sakarya River Basin and to areas rising towards the Aegean water divide (Western Anatolia). Landscapes show often flat surfaces similar to those in the central plateaus, although well vegetated and more dissected by a denser valley network. For example, NE of the town of Afyonkarahisar in the Afyon Zone (in the tectonic Taurides zone), Mio-Pliocene continental deposits bury the base of a NW–SE elongated massif (Emirdağ: ca. 1665 m asl). Here, differential erosion in the horizontal Miocene lacustrine limestones overlying soft ignimbrites has produced landscapes where impressive sculpted and built remains of the Iron Age Phrygian State are concentrated (walls, stairs, cisterns, tombs, cultic representations, rock-wall writings, stone sculptures) (Fig. 4.57). Between Burdur, Denizli and Uşak, the western part of Central Anatolia is part of the endorheic Lake District that extends

into the western Taurus in the Mediterranean Region of Anatolia (Fig. 4.56). Here, common occurrences of Mesozoic and Cenozoic units can be found. In the Isparta region, the Eğirdir and Burdur lakes are dominated by highlands (Beydağları) formed by Triassic and Jurassic limestones pertaining to the northern end of the Isparta Angle (Poisson et al. 2003). Miocene lacustrine sediments overlie this basement in the northern and eastern edges of the massif, transforming mountainous landscapes into less contrasted plateau landforms connecting with the south-western part of the Central Anatolia Region.

4.5.2.4 The Central to Southern Parts: Plateaus Hollowed by Wide Closed Plains In the centre and south of Central Anatolia, extensive plateau landscapes correspond to Mio-Pliocene widespread lacustrine freshwater limestone formations. The evolution of these landscapes is under forcing of three different types of processes: (1) tectonics [e.g. Ecemiş Fault Zone (Altın-Bayer 2009; Sarıkaya et al. 2015a, b; Yıldırım et al. 2016), Aksaray Fault Zone (Yıldırım 2014), İnönü-Eskişehir Fault Zone (Özsayın and Dirik 2014)]; (2) underground karstic water circulation developed under the stimuli of connections with both an underground network deepening in the rising Taurus Range (Bayari et al. 2009) and the increasing vertical profiles of rivers eroding the northern part of the region

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(Sakarya, Kızılırmak) (Günay 2006; Doğan 2011); (3) climate change during the Pleistocene. This combination has generated large tectono-karstic plains, which are, mostly, semi-faulted polje basins (e.g. Konya plain, Tuz Gölü Lake plain, Beyşehir Lake plain). During the Quaternary, sediments continued to accumulate in these depressions (Kuzucuoğlu and Roberts 1997). Some of these fills are very thick (e.g. 400–600 m in the today dried Konya plain: de Meester 1970). During the middle and late Pleistocene, water resources of the region (surficial and underground) and the budget of the lakes in the plains responded to global climate changes. Diverse landforms in the plains record these responses, notably the lake-level-related coastal morphologies. These are coastal cliffs, lake terraces, coastal dunes, coastal bars, beaches, alluvial fans. Apart from these archives preserved along palaeoshores, lake fills have delivered complementary and less interrupted records (Karabıyıkoğlu et al. 1999; Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1999; Roberts et al. 1999; Melnick et al. 2017). In plains where the record of several past lake levels has been preserved in landforms, concentric systems (mainly terraces, beaches and coastal progressive/regressive fans) record the succession of distinct level stages. Erol (1997, 1999) interpreted such altitude decrease in lake landforms as the record of a continuous decrease in lake budget, from the early to late Pleistocene and the Holocene, with high lake levels during glaciations, his hypothesis being: the lower the palaeolake level, the younger the lake. This is true in case the driving factor of spatial concentration and decrease in lake level has been regular in speed and descending in trend. What if alternations of different directions (up/down) have occurred because of variations in water budget volumes? Such variations have been evidenced in the Konya plain by Karabıyıkoğlu et al. (1999) in high-resolution alluvial fan deposits recording the burial of initial transgressive series (transgression 1) by sediments pertaining to a younger transgression (transgression 2), with both transgressions separated by a regression phase. This succession concerns climatically triggered lake variations during the last glacial maximum (LGM; ca. 21 ka). As a whole, this LMG palaeolake is the only Pleistocene lake level, which has left landform records in the Konya plain. This LGM lake phase has been identified in all large lakes of Central Anatolia (Kuzucuoğlu and Roberts 1997). Difficulties in dating older shoreline deposits in the plains when lake landforms point to possibly distinct Quaternary phases (e.g. Sultansazlığı, Tuz

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Gölü, Burdur) have however kept researchers from confirming a continuous of descent of lake levels in the past. Besides, the concentric disposition of lake landforms can also be explained by a continuous adaptation to the dynamics of subsidence. The impact of climate on lake levels is however clearly acting today in the semi-arid Central Anatolian closed depressions. The large to small wetlands, which still occupy the closed plains, are considered to record the terminal phase of the Mio-Pliocene lacustrine environments. Accordingly, salt content of the lake waters increases, responding to one or several causes: (1) the presence of Cenozoic evaporites in the substratum (e.g. Tuz Gölü Lake); (2) high evaporation rates and low annual rainfall/evaporation ratio accentuated by infiltration of water into limestone basement. With the addition of water withdrawal for irrigation purposes, many of these lakes are now desiccated (e.g. Akgöl in the Konya plain, Sultansazlığı near Kayseri, Akşehir Lake in the Lake District).

4.5.2.5 Karstic Landforms and Landscapes Both deep and shallow karstic systems occur in Central Anatolia. In the transitional areas at the periphery of the region, late Miocene uplift generated the emersion of marine limestones, immediately followed by the development of karst systems. In the core plateaus, similar processes occurred later in the Mio-Pliocene lacustrine limestones after contraction of the Plio-Pleistocene lakes led to their emergence (Doğan and Özel 2005). During the same period, the association of extensional faulting with karstic processes generated tipped underground circulation in the Mesozoic limestones basement (Ekmekçi 1990; Bayari et al. 2009). These deep circulations have connections with cave systems well developed in the Taurus Range on both sides of the Isparta Angle (e.g. Ekmekçi 1990) (Fig. 4.61). In the core region, shallow karstic networks developed extensively in the limestones of various ages outcropping commonly in the region. This evolution favoured the development of wide poljes with sinkholes, as well as local landforms such as collapsed dolines, uvalas and karstic springs. In and around large polje plains of Central Anatolia, swallow holes are positioned along faults as well as, locally, in the middle of the plains. Some of these holes can operate both ways (estavelles), depending on seasons (Gürlevi spring on the eastern shores of Beyşehir Lake), or on whether successions of years are wet or dry (e.g. Akgöl ponor near Ereğli in the Konya plain) (Figs. 4.61 and 4.62).

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Fig. 4.61 Some spring and sinkhole locations in the SW part of the Beyşehir Lake (Beyşehir, Konya). Water leaking from the Beyşehir Lake bottom, flows towards the karst developed in the mountain range in direction of the W and SW (Dedegöl Mountains), and ultimately to the Mediterranean Sea through the Beşkonak and Manavgat rivers drainage network (Ekmekçi 1990). Green: Beyşehir town; Light grey: Villages; Blue line: Chanel discharging Beyşehir Lake water to the

Konya plain through the Suğla Lake polje; Blue star: Karstic springs feeding coastal marshes, associated with sinkholes positioned mainly below the lake level where leakages occur (the sinkholes behave as estavelles, as they discharge water when the lake level falls below 1223 m asl); Yellow star: Doline; Yellow square: Seldjuk Palace ruins. Map by C. Kuzucuoğlu, based on data from (Ekmekçi 1990) and personal field observation (background: Google Earth Imagery)

4.5.2.6 Volcanic Landforms and Landscapes In the western (Phrygian land) and eastern (Cappadocia) parts of Central Anatolia, ignimbrite flows are shaped by differential erosion generating mesas, cliffs, caves and badland landscapes favouring the development of fairy chimneys (Sarıkaya et al. 2015c) (Fig. 4.63). Most these landscapes developed within Miocene, Pliocene and to a lesser extent Pleistocene volcanic rocks. In Cappadocia, the magmatic activity started ca. 10 Myr ago, during the last

phase of the Neotethyan subduction in Anatolia (Lepetit et al. 2014). The resulting Central Anatolian Volcanic Province (CAVP) concentrates a high variety of volcanic systems, whose activity is mainly represented by a succession of ignimbrite flows (Aydar et al. 2012) spanning from the late Miocene to the Pleistocene (as with 1.5–0.4 Myr rhyolitic activity of the Göllüdağ complex). In addition, several long-lived Quaternary composite volcanoes also occur, as the Karadağ (2270 m), Keçiboyduran (2736 m), Hasandağ

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Fig. 4.62 Timras collapsed doline at the southern edge of the Konya plain (Çumra, Konya). The Timras collapsed doline is located very close to the mouth of the Çarşamba River when entering the Konya plain near Çumra. It is positioned at the foot of an intensely quarried Jurassic limestone ridge and at the outer edge of a dry karstic small

valley. Note the difference in water level between the two dates (2016 for the Google Earth image at the top; 2001 for the photograph at the bottom), which illustrates a level drop of >1 m/year. This drop is mainly due to irrigation water withdrawal. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

(3253 m), Erciyes (3917 m), Şahinkalesi (1995 m) and Melendiz (2951 m) (Türkecan 2015). The late Pleistocene Acıgöl caldera and domes (near Nevşehir) and the Karapınar basaltic field (Konya plain) are also part of the CAVP. Some of these are dormant, presenting some danger for the population around, such as the Acıgöl rhyolitic complex

(Mouralis et al. 2002), the Hasandağ (Aydar and Gourgaud 1998; Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1998; Schmitt et al. 2014; Diker et al. 2018) and the Erciyes Volcano (Şen et al. 2003). While the large silhouettes of Hasandağ and Erciyes composite volcanoes dominate the region, volcanic products and landforms present a wide range of types: ignimbrite,

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andesitic and basaltic lava flows, rhyolite domes with obsidian dykes, calderas, thick accumulations of pumice flows and falls, Strombolian scoriae cones, Peléan nuées ardentes, avalanches, lahars, maar crater rings and surges, etc. Among these, the most famous landscapes are the badland developed below ignimbritic plateaus between the Acıgöl caldera (Nevşehir) and the Erciyes Volcano (Kayseri) (Aydar et al. 2013).

4.5.2.7 The End of the Endorheism Around the peninsula, the regressive erosion by the rivers since the late Miocene has not yet reached the heart of the peninsula. However, on the geological scale, endorheism of this heart as well as the remaining old structural and erosional surfaces are contracting. This trend is visible in the organization of the river networks and in the headward erosion dynamics of exorheic rivers incising areas covered

Fig. 4.63 Differential erosion in volcanic landforms. a The inverse topographies generated by the successive Cappadocian ignimbrites of contrasted hardness (Melendiz River valley, Aksaray). Background: the Pleistocene Hasandağ Volcano. b Erosion of Cappadocia soft

ignimbrites gives rise to peculiar landforms. This UNESCO World Heritage site is the most visited part of Central Anatolia where hundreds of balloons can be seen early in the morning. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (a) and A. Çiner (b)

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Fig. 4.64 “End” of the Central Anatolia endorheism. Head-back erosion of the Kızılırmak tributaries encroaches the relief in direction of the hanging Tuz Gölü Lake plain (Aksaray). The south-east directed massif separating the Tuz Gölü plain (background) and the Kızılırmak River Basin (foreground) is formed of cretaceous granite. Rocks around the massif are mainly Pliocene continental sediments covering the cretaceous basement. Legend: Blue lines are streams (with direction of

flow); red line is the Aksaray (Tuz Gölü) active fault; dotted white line is the water divide between the Tuz Gölü Lake (north) and the Kızılırmak River drainage basin; yellow squares are summits along the divide; blue square is the location for a near-future surface stream capture of the Tuz Gölü Basin by the Kızılırmak River Basin. Scale cannot be shown because the picture, taken from a plane, is distorted. Date of photography: 2011. Interpretation and drawing: C. Kuzucuoğlu

by Mio-Pliocene limestones and clastics. Striking examples are visible in the divide of the Kızılırmak curve next to the Tuz Gölü plain (Fig. 4.64), in the Göksu headwater watershed (Mut plain) back-heading to the Suğla and Konya plains, in the late Pleistocene successive captures of the Sarayköyü and Baklan lakes basins by the Büyük Menderes River in the Aegean uplands (Kazancı et al. 2011), and unclear drainage occurrences in karstic areas south of the Lake District (Fig. 4.61). In these examples, the capturing seems to occur first through karstic underground connections in limestones and evaporites (Lake District, Mut Basin, Tuz Gölü). Karstic underground networks seem to act as major contributors to the regressive erosion around peripheral areas. The efficiency of the karstic circulations to trigger river back-heading incision has been higher in the south (e.g. southern Central Anatolian lake plains connected with the Taurus) than along the northern edges of the region near the Pontides. This contrast responds to differences in uplift rates in the Taurides

and the Pontides. On the surface, stream incision is also favoured by soft lithologies such as loose ignimbrites, lahars, coarse continental deposits (Fig. 4.63). In the upper Göksu basin, the Blue Project has activated, although in a reverse way, both underground and surface connections between the Mediterranean water divide on the one hand, and the Konya closed basin on the other hand. This project contradicts the geological trend by organizing the capture of the Mediterranean drainage area by Central Anatolia.

4.5.3 A Land Concentrating Exceptional Civilization Histories 4.5.3.1 The Cradle of Anatolian Neolithic In Central Anatolia, travellers have written for centuries about solitary mounds encountered during their trips through Anatolia. These mounds correspond to archaeological and historical sites, which have been occupied more or less continuously

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during various periods of time (Fig. 4.65). Remarkably, Central Anatolia has been one of the independent core areas for some of the earliest transitions from mobile hunter-gatherers to sedentary farmers in the world. The pre-Pottery Neolithic and Pottery Neolithic cultures that followed had very diffuse

connections with the other core areas located in the South-eastern Anatolia Region (i.e. the Fertile Crescent), although this latter cultural development started 1000 years before the genuine civilizations of Central Anatolia (Özdoğan et al. 2011a, b, 2012b). Central Anatolia was also one of the

Fig. 4.65 Höyüks (archaeological sites forming tells) in Central Anatolia. Höyüks, dating from neolithic to iron ages, roman and medieval periods, are most of the time located on the bottom of plains or valleys. a Çadır Höyük (chalcolithic to medieval occupation) in the Sorgun River Basin (Yozgat). b Aşıklı Höyük (pre-pottery neolithic

site) in the Melendiz River valley (Aksaray). c Kınık Höyük (chalcolithic to medieval occupation) in the Bor plain (Altunhisar, Niğde). d Bayat Höyük (bronze age occupation) on the Altunhisar River alluvial fan (Altunhisar, Niğde). e Çiler Höyük (bronze age to medieval occupation) on the Zanopa River alluvial fan (Ereğli, Konya)

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very places where domestication of plants and animals matured, where agro-pastoral practices developed (Füller et al. 2011; Özbaşaran 2011, 2012; Hodder 2013; Roberts 2014; Stiner et al. 2014; Willcox 2005, 2014), where architectural technics allowed population grouping, and from where new ways of life and food production were transferred (most probably by mobile groups) towards Western and North-western Anatolia, and ultimately towards Europe (Düring 2013; Hodder 2013; Kuzucuoğlu 2014). Early Neolithic of Turkey is subdivided in two main phases (Gérard and Thissen 2002; www.tayproject.org): (i) PPNA1 (early PPN: 10.2–8.5 ka BC), with permanent settlements of hunter-gatherers practicing pre-domestication techniques and activities; (ii) a PPNB (Mid-PPN: 8.5–7 ka BC), characterized by advanced practices and skills applied to plant and animal domestication, in association with new rituals and artistic productions, new techniques, new architectures and settlement organizations (see references in Düring 2011; Steadman and McMahon 2011; Özdoğan et al. 2012b). The oldest excavated PPN sites (early 9th millennium BC) are located in western Cappadocia (Aşıklı) and in the Konya plain (Boncuklu) (Özbaşaran 2011, 2012; Baird et al. 2012). Together with these sedentary large sites, mobile groups were also present. Obsidian outcrops were exploited, and the material produced (raw and/or pre-shaped) was dispersed towards territories south of the Taurus-Zagros Range (Cauvin and Chataigner 1998; Binder et al. 2011; Düring 2013). Local older traditions are identified in the Central Anatolian PPN Neolithic (Boncuklu and Aşıklı sites) and Pottery Neolithic (Çatalhöyük site) (Düring 2011). Similarities are striking between the architectural traditions of Cappadocia (Aşıklı PPN site) and Konya (Çatalhöyük PN site) (Hodder 2014), demonstrating exchange between Cappadocia and the Konya plain. In addition, excavations near Burdur Lake evidence early Neolithic phases combining both local genuine characteristics as well as connections with the Konya plain (Özdoğan 2011). These archaeological observations, as well as recent studies on material, mammals, plants and humans, show that the Central Anatolian Neolithic cultures contributed significantly to the propagation of domesticated agriculture after ca. 7000 BC westward towards Europe.

Cappadocia is more or less limited by the Pontides to the northwest, the Kızılırmak (Halys) River curve on the north, the Aegean highlands to the west, the Taurus Range on the south and the Eastern Anatolian highlands to the east. This land has been the heart of a Neolithic birth (Aşıklı Höyük, Boncuklu) who acted as an important source area for the westward expansion of Neolithic practices towards Europe, the place for the development of Assur’s trade colonies during the mid-Bronze Age (Kayseri), and an important part of the Hittite Empire during the middle and late Bronze Age (from the Kızılırmak basin to the Taurus). During the Iron Age, Neo-Hittite kingdoms continued in the south-eastern part of Central Anatolia, and the Phrygian kingdom developed in the western (Eskişehir) and northern (Ankara, Yozgat) areas. Later in the Iron Age, the Galatians penetrated in the north-western and northern parts (Ankara). Smaller than the historical Cappadocia, today’s Cappadocia is defined by its geological (volcanic) context, its famous geomorphological landscapes (badlands and mesas, composite volcanoes and fairy chimneys), as well as by a high concentration of Byzantine religious troglodytic remains between the towns of Göreme, Avanos and Ürgüp. Less worldwide-known, similar landscapes developed in some Miocene and Pliocene volcanic formations blanketing the Mesozoic basement in the western part of Central Anatolia. This region is the Phrygian/Hittite heartland. The Phrygian kingdom expanded during the first millennium BC from the Afyonkarahisar region (west of Central Anatolia) north-eastward to Kızılcahamam and Ankara and south-eastward to Beyşehir and Konya areas (Fig. 4.57). But it is in the Kütahya region (west of Afyon) that magnificent rugged and forested landscapes have hosted the urban, funeral and religious activities related to the Phrygian kingship (e.g. Midas City, with its rock-carved archaeological remains). These landscapes owe most of their charm to the ignimbrite flows of contrasting hardness but also to the relative remoteness of the area where stream erosion sculptures walled plateaus indented by caves and fairy chimneys, as well as remote valleys in soft ignimbrites are cultivated for fruit gardens (Fig. 4.57).

4.5.3.2 Anatolian Civilizations; Cappadocia, the Heart of Hittite and Phrygian States In historical texts, the name of Cappadocia applies to a territory much wider than considered by physical geographers. From the Iron Age to the Byzantine periods,

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PPN: Pre-Pottery Neolithic; EPPN: Early Pre-Pottery Neolithic; PN: Pottery Neolithic.

Eastern Anatolia

4.6.1 Geographic Context Eastern Anatolia topographies continue the Central Anatolian Plateau ones, rising eastwards without any mountain range standing for a separation. For this reason, the region is called sometimes the Anatolian High Plateaus (Fig. 4.66). However, mountain patches relatively quickly rise here and there above the plateaus, and the river network gets increasingly deep with an increasing number of small and

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Fig. 4.66 Eastern Anatolia geomorphological region: location of illustrations. Numbers relate to locations of: a specific sites presented by Chaps. 5 to 35 (chapter number positioned in purple circles or as areas squared by purple-lined rectangles); b photographs in this chapter

(the corresponding figure number(s) is/are positioned in yellow squares), and large maps in this chapter (the corresponding figure number is positioned within red-lined rectangles)

wild canyons. Eastwards again, highlands appear with peaks frequently blanketed with snow patches, dominating extensive and nearly flat, steppic, high plains (at altitudes of 1350 to 1800 m asl, depending on the location). In the NE, landscapes are high plateaus dominated by relatively smooth hills. Elsewhere, mountain altitudes rise above 3000 m asl (Fig. 4.67; Table 4.1), a trend giving to the region its name also stated by the historic and geographic literature: the Anatolian Highlands.

In the area of Kars and Ardahan (NE of the region), flat and dark-coloured high plateaus (Kars region, ca. 1800– 1950 m) expand in the direction of the Eastern Black Sea Range and the Caucasus (Ardahan 2150–2200 m). Towards west and south, forested massifs are found along valleys. However, around the core of the plateaus, fast-running rivers cut steep meandering canyons. East of Erzurum, high ranges are separated by alignments of elongated and flat-floored depressions (Fig. 4.69). Altitudes of both the summits in the ranges and of the high plains rise slowly eastwards. In the Erzurum region, the two neighbouring elongated depressions of Erzurum and Pasinler receive the newly born stream courses of two major rivers: the Karasu River (northern branch of the Euphrates River; Fırat in Turkish) which flows south-west, and the Aras River, born only a few kilometres east of Erzurum, which flows eastward in the Pasinler plain towards the Caspian Sea. Most of the Eastern Anatolian highlands belong to the drainage basins of the two upper branches of the Euphrates River, which meet at Keban (Fig. 4.67c). In these basins, as well as along the Euphrates, SE–NW and E–W orientated

4.6.1.1 Relief East of Sivas and Kayseri, the Anatolian Plateaus are transformed into flat plains rising to altitudes much higher than the Central Anatolian Plateaus, reaching 1800 m in the Erzurum basin and 1650 m in the Lake Van Basin. The plains are inset in mountain ranges and massifs usually reaching 2500 m asl, sometimes with peaks reaching >3500 m (Fig. 4.68). The highest ranges are the Cilo Mountains near Hakkari, the Bitlis Mountains (İhtiyar Şahap) near Van, the Munzur and Esence mountains around the plain of Erzincan, the Arasgüneyi Range south of the Aras valley (Fig. 4.67a).

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Fig. 4.67 Physical geography of Eastern Anatolia. a Name and location of main mountain ranges. b Eastern Anatolian contains many of the highest mountains of Turkey (e.g. the highest ten peaks of the country), and the density of other highest peaks is remarkable. c Eastern Anatolia is an outstanding water tower from which water spreads to two seas (the Caspian and Mediterranean seas; with a very small contribution to the

Black Sea), and one ocean (the Indian ocean). With the rainy and snowy watersheds of the Euphrates (and the Tigris which springs along the Lake Hazar and Lake Van drainage areas), the region has favoured the development of plant domestication in upper Mesopotamia (in Turkey) since the 12,000 years, and of irrigation in the lowlands (in Syria and Iraq) since 5500 years. Map by C. Kuzucuoğlu

mountains form obstacles to the rivers, which then flow into vertiginous gorges. Once the obstacle is over, valleys become parallel to the obstacle entering another, generally SW–NE elongated basin. This succession of diversely orientated paths forms a complex hydrographic system, from which Euphrates escapes through the Adıyaman plain when it enters the south-eastern region of Turkey. The ranges forming the barrier to this final escape (between Malatya and Kahraman Maraş) present a confusing organization.

humidity from marine air masses from the north (in the Kaçkar), from west and south (by the massifs composing the Anatolian Diagonal); (2) the dry south-eastern Asian climate when it invades the lands at the foot of the eastern Taurus (also called upper Mesopotamia; (3) the high number of closed plains in the rain shadow of the surrounding highlands. Combined with rising altitudes, climatic continentality causes long-lasting winters with temperature minima of −30 °C to −38 °C (Şensoy 2016). During winters, snowstorms may isolate villages. In the highlands, winter snow remains long on the ground (up to 4 months between November and end of April). Compared to the −13 °C average winter temperatures, summer temperatures are warm with an average value of 17 °C. Yearly precipitation amounts are usually low, decreasing in the high plains down to 300 mm/year at places (e.g. Iğdır).

4.6.1.2 Climate Eastward through the Anatolian Peninsula, the climate becomes increasingly continental, in direct relationship with the distance from the humidity-bearing marine air masses. A few factors explain the specific aspects of climate in the region: (1) the efficiency of the coastal ranges to collect

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Table 4.1 List of the highest peaks in Eastern Anatolia (positioned in Fig. 4.67b)

Height (m) 5042

Range / Volcano Ağrı

District, Town IĞDIR, Karakoyunlu

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Name of Mountain Büyük Ağrı (Greater Ararat) Süphan Dağ Küçük Ağrı (Little Ararat) Uludoruk Dağ Samdidağ Resko Dağ Gelyasin Dağ Mazanı Dağ Ihtiyar Şahap Tepe Tearzin Dağ, Gevaruk Dağ Şilan Mountains Tendürek Dağ Çadır Dağ Sarıçiçek Dağ Hasanbeşir Tepesi Esence Tepe Alüce Tepe Akbaba Dağ

4035 3883 3749 3727, 3661 3726, 3701 3692, 3563 3666 3614, 3132 3567, 3540 3551 3538 3537, 3518 3515, 3287 3503 3483, 3159 3479 3463

VAN, Adilcevaz IĞDIR, Aralık HAKKARİ, Yüksekova HAKKARİ, Şemdinli HAKKARİ, Yüksekova HAKKARİ, Yüksekova HAKKARİ, Yüksekova VAN, Çatak HAKKARİ, Yüksekova HAKKARİ, Şemdinli AĞRI, Doğubeyazit VAN, Gevaş VAN, Erciş/AĞRI, Diyadin BITLIS, Bahçesaray ERZINCAN, Erzincan BITLIS/ Bahçesaray ERZINCAN/TUNCELİ

19 20 21 22 23 24

Mikeleçasas Tepe Kartal Tepe Kaf Tepe Kandil Tepe Katır Tepe Aladağ

3414 3387 3305, 3270 3262 3262 3255

25 26

Zor Dağ Kukuzbabadağı

3225 3213, 3176

27 28 29 30 31 32

Boz Tepe Asağıdağ Varto Karakaya Tepe Buzgölü Tepe Killi Tepe

3176 3176 3171, 3108 3158 3141, 3097 3081

Süphan Agrıdağ Cilo Cilo Cilo Cilo Cilo İhtiyarşahap Cilo Cilo Volcano İhtiyarşahap Ala Dağları İhtiyarşahap Esence Dağları İhtiyarşahap Munzur (Mercan Dağları) İhtiyarşahap Sarıbulak Munzur Dağları Tendürek West Munzur Dağları Ala Dağları (N Meydan) Agrıdağ (W Ağrıdağ) Arasgüneyli (Perillidağı) Arasgüneyi Dağları Arasgüneyli Dağları Bingöl Dağ Palandöken Karakaya Dağları Nurhak Dağları

33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41

Besli Tepe Akdağ Nemrut Dağı Etrüsk Dağ Süphandağı Tepe Nd Kurtlu Tepe Akbaba Dağ Meydan Dağ

3059 3013 2935 2935 2909 2905 2832, 2784 2729 2692

İhtiyarşahap Esence Dağları Volcano Volcano Volcano (dome) Karakaya Dağları Otlukbelli Dağları Aktaş Dağ Meydan-Gürgürbaba

1

BITLIS, Bahçesaray VAN, Çatak East ERZİNCAN, Kemah AĞRI, Patnos TUNCELI, Pülümür VAN, Erciş IĞDIR, Karaçomak AĞRI, Tuzluca IĞDIR/KARS, Kağızman AĞRI, Kağızman MUŞ, Varto ERZURUM, Erzurum ERZİNCAN KAHRAMANMARAŞ, Elbistan VAN, Uzuntekne ERZINCAN, Erzincan VAN, Tatvan & Ahlat VAN, Erciş KARS, Sarıkamış ERZINCAN ERZİNCAN, Refahiye VAN, Özalp VAN, Erciş

Violet is for volcanoes and green is for ranges within the Anatolian Diagonal. The list results from a compilation of various sources including several Wikipedia sheets, Google Earth altitude data, some topographic maps of Turkey for precision, and other inventories available on the net. During the compilation, differences in altitudes for some peaks were noticed. We then selected an altitude by using crosschecking between sources. Consequently, variations between published altitudes and the ones in the table can reasonably be expected

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Fig. 4.68 Mountain range in the Eastern Anatolian Region: the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains (Bitlis Massif, south of Lake Van). In the deep and narrow valleys, alluvial material allows cultures of plants and trees. These areas look like oases in summer time. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Seasonal and spatial distribution patterns of precipitation and temperature vary because of the orographic barrier effects of some mountains. Such local mountain effects are evident even on the nation–scaled climatic map of Turkey with variations in dryness (increasing in closed lowlands) and temperatures (decreasing with altitudes). A striking example is, for example, the SW corner of the Van Basin where the Bitlis Range captures a high humidity (ca. 800 mm P/year), while the city of Van, 150 km to the east on the lakeshore, receives only half this amount. Similar contrasts between dryness in plains versus higher humidity occur often, such as between the dry Erzincan high plain compared to its surrounding highlands (Esence and Munzur ranges); between the Malatya-Elazığ plains on the one hand and the highlands incised south by the Euphrates canyons on the other hand; between the driest of all Anatolian plains at Iğdır, and the ranges paralleling the Aras valley, etc. In spite of these local specificities, Cullen and deMenocal (2000) have identified the influence of the NAO atmospheric system (i.e. the North Atlantic Oscillation, which generates the Atlantic mid-latitude storm tracks and precipitation) in the discharge data of the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers in Anatolia.

4.6.1.3 Phytogeography In the Eastern Anatolian highlands, the topography and its control on the humidity and temperature distributions constitute important limiting factors for the growth of forests. From 1200 m asl in the eastern part of Central Anatolia, the altitude allowing the growth of forests reaches 1600 m in the centre of Eastern Anatolia, 1850 m in the Lake Van mountains at Tatvan and 1900–2200 m near Sarıkamış and Kars at the Armenian border. South of Kars and east of Van, forests start to grow only around 2050 m (near Çaldıran at the foot of the Tendürek), and 2300 m between Iğdır and Doğubeyazıt (in the Ağrı Volcano vicinity). Upslope, temperature conjugates with humidity to define an upper treeline, which is also increasing eastwards. Located at ca. 2000 m asl in the central Taurus (Bolkardağları) as well as in the Munzur Range near Erzurum (2000–2200 m), the upper treeline increases steadily eastwards to reach 2450 m in the Bitlis Range south of Lake Van, 2650 m in the Cilo range (near Başkale) and 2800 m in the Mount Sat near Hakkari (Fig. 4.67; Table 4.1). Consequently, most forests in the Eastern Anatolian highlands grow between 1500 and 2400 m asl. Within these limits, the vegetation growth is favoured by high

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Fig. 4.69 Examples of flat depressions between mountain ranges in Eastern Anatolia. a The Palu plain, in the middle of the photography (Palu, Elazığ). Palu is located on the eastern branch of the Euphrates, the Murat River. The plain, occupied by open fields, is limited to the

south by the EAFZ. The photograph is taken from the medieval fortress of Palu on the right bank of the Euphrates. b The Molakasem plain, east of the Doğubeyazıt plain, opens in a volcanic environment (basalts) (Doğubeyazıt). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

precipitation on the upper slopes, snow and glacier spring melt, and higher temperatures during spring and summer. As a result, areas with suitable slope and soils are places with remarkable fruit production (walnut, mulberry, apple, pear, grape) and with a high variety of other plant and animal products (Fig. 4.70a). Noticeable in the mountain landscapes is the fact that in several areas in the Bitlis, Van, Ağrı, Doğubeyazıt regions, remains of abandoned terraces are visible even on slopes >2000 m asl, signalling intense cultivation of fruits (e.g. grapes) and other plants during the recent past (Fig. 4.70b). Out of the cultivated areas, endless grass and steppe areas with scattered maquis-type vegetation

feed sheep flocks (Fig. 4.71a). Some of these herds are local. But the abundance of herbs in the well-watered mountainous areas of the upper Euphrates and Tigris basins has attracted since millennia multiple seasonal long-track sheep transhumance movements from Syria, Iraq and Iran (Fig. 4.71b). As a result of this high variety and abundance of agricultural production, Eastern Anatolia has been a heart for the development of urban culture and busy cities since the Chalcolithic/Bronze Age (e.g. Kurban) and Iron Age (e.g. Urartu). Towns and populated areas are common at altitudes above 1500 m, and populated villages even occur at 1800– 2000 m asl. Higher altitudes used to allow short seasonal

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Fig. 4.70 Gardening and agricultural landscapes in the Eastern Anatolian highlands: a the Bahçesaray plain (“The Palace of Gardens”, in Turkish) overlooking slopes in the İhtiyar Sahap Mountains (Bitlis). The plain is located in a well-watered valley bottom at ca. 1630 m altitude. It is famous for its fruit gardens (nuts and other fruits) and

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honey (honeycombs to the left of the road). b Around the town and up to ca. 1730 m altitudes, terraces are still in use today. Such terraces are clearly recognizable up to very high slopes in most high Eastern Anatolian ranges in the upper Murat basin, from Bingöl to Iğdır and beyond in the Caucasus. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 4.71 Eastern Anatolian landscapes marked by pastoral practices. In the Eastern Anatolian highlands, long-distance pastoral population movements balance seasonally between the southern piedmont of the Eastern Anatolian highlands in upper Mesopotamia (very warm and dry in summer), and the green pastures at high altitudes in the eastern Taurus and in direction of the Zagros and Caucasus. Herds journeys start in early spring from the south of Turkey (e.g. Mardin, Siirt,

C. Kuzucuoğlu et al.

Batman), heading to the highlands as far as Erzincan and Kars, which are reached at the beginning of summer. a In the İhtiyar Sahap Mountains (Bahçesaray, Bitlis). b In the Bitlis Range south of Tatvan (Bitlis), the nomad shepherd families who live in the tents in summer times, are based at Siirt in South-eastern Anatolia during wintertime. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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fruit and cereal cultivation, but the combination of winter harshness and transportation difficulties has left the landscapes devoid of population other than pastoral nomads during summer time.

4.6.1.4 The Anatolian Diagonal The Anatolian Diagonal is a zone running without interruption across Turkey from the north-eastern corner of the Mediterranean Sea at Tarsus (more precisely, from the massif of the Bolkardağ above Tarsus, and from the Amanos Range above Antakya) to the eastern end of the northern Black Sea Range in Turkey in direction of the Caucasus (Avcı 1993) (Fig. 4.72). With regard to its spatial characteristics, the Anatolian Diagonal can be defined as a zone centred on a line first defined by Davis (1971), which acts both as a separating and meeting zone. When comparing the maps in Figs. 4.66 and 4.72, it is thus striking that the Anatolian Diagonal stands as a fundamental geographic factor or actor of the definition of the borders of three other regions of Turkey (Mediterranean, Central and NE Black Sea). In the south, the diagonal is composed of two mountainous branches enveloping the İskenderun Gulf: (1) to the west, from the Bolkardağ in the central Taurus in direction of the eastern slopes of the SW–NE orientated Aladağlar; (2) to the east, the S–N running Amanos Range which overlooks the Amik Lake plain where the Orontes River flows. Continuing north-eastward, the zone track corresponds roughly to the headwaters of the right bank tributaries of the Euphrates until it reaches the springs of the Murat River in Erzurum area (the northern member of the Euphrates). The northernmost Turkish part of the zone meets with the Kaçkar Mountains in the Black Sea highlands, joining the Caucasus through the high plateaus of Ardahan. The diagonal was first identified and sketched by the botanist P. Davis (1971) who demonstrated that many plant species existing west of the diagonal are not present to the east, while others found to the east are absent to the west, with also quite a number of other species being endemic to the diagonal. Out of 550 species analysed by Davis in 1971, 135 were eastern and 228 western. This means that the Anatolian Diagonal is a barrier parting different floral biodiversity (e.g. Atkinson et al. 2003; Uslu et al. 2011; Gür 2016). In 1989, Ekim and Güner showed precise figures with 33% plant species affected by the diagonal (12.5% for the eastern species; 20.5% for the western species). In addition to this border role, the diagonal is a refuge area and a hot spot of diversity with ca. 400 plant endemic species found nowhere else (Kurt et al. 2015). Recent researches show that the diagonal also exists for faunal populations (e.g. Ansell et al. 2011; Kara et al. 2011; Korkmaz et al. 2014; Pektaş et al. 2014). From these data, it is evident that the diagonal

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has a fundamental ecological dimension, in space as well as time (e.g. Ambarlı 2012; Gür 2013, 2016). How to explain the presence of such ecological exclusions and diversity? The disposition of highlands vs. hydrography (Fig. 4.67) together with the eastward increase in altitudes and the orographic climatic barrier formed by the ranges facing the precipitation tracks show that the diagonal corresponds to mountains which do not rise generally above 2500 m asl, which are rather compact and somewhat difficult to penetrate, and which receives more water that the areas to the west and east. Along the line, the climate is defined by both (a) eastward rising continentality and (b) precipitation values increasing upslope while temperatures remain low. Both conditions encourage survival and speciation. A third geographic factor seems to be fragmentation of the relief, which creates a high density of linear disruptions, generating apparent drainage confusions. This third factor may be the one that favoured most both the local endemism and the obstacles for dispersal. The scarcity, not to say the absence of sedentary human population (villages, towns) in the diagonal zone, may also have been a factor of the preservation of the role of the diagonal biological speciation, diversity, isolation and protection. According to an increasing number of authors, the refuge role of this biodiversity hot spot has been extremely important as a reservoir for the post-glacial expansion of plants westward towards Europe and eastward towards the Turco-Iranian floristic region (Atkinson et al. 2003; Veith et al. 2003; Gür 2013; Korkmaz et al. 2014). It is also possible that the diagonal may have played a role in the millennia-scaled delay in the tree growth trends from the west to the east of Anatolia after the onset of the Holocene, which has been evidenced by Bottema and Woldring (1984) and van Zeist and Bottema (1988, 1991), and illustrated in Kuzucuoğlu and Roberts (1997).

4.6.1.5 Hydrography Most the region belongs to the upper Euphrates drainage area (Figs. 4.66 and 4.67c). Exceptions are (i) the Aras flowing to the Caspian Sea (Fig. 4.67c), (ii) parts of two important rivers flowing to the Black Sea (Kızılırmak, Çoruh) and (iii) of two other ones flowing to the Eastern Mediterranean (Seyhan, Ceyhan) (Figs. 4.66 and 4.67c). This star-organized pattern of major rivers illustrates the important role of Eastern Anatolia as the “Water Tower” of the lands positioned around. High altitudinal areas (>1600 m asl) are always locally rich in water resources provided by springs or rivers. The hydrographic network is exceptionally dense with an often-complex organization, while low- and mid-altitude large plains and flat lands are numerous. Some of them are home to large lakes (e.g. Van, Balık, Çıldır, Erçek, Hazar), and spring- or river-fed marshes (Elbistan,

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Fig. 4.72 Anatolian Diagonal. Map by C. Kuzucuoğlu, synthetizing data from Davis (1971), Avcı (1993), Ansell et al. (2008), Uslu et al. (2012), Gür (2013, 2016), Kara et al. (2011) and Perktaş et al. (2014)

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The Euphrates River, the Largest River of the Eastern Anatolian Region The Euphrates River forms with the meeting of two head-branches in the north of the region: the Karasu River (northern branch, 450 km long) and the Murat River (southern branch, 650 km long) (Fig. 4.74a). The Karasu springs near Erzurum and flows NE–SW along a strip of connected basins. The Murat River springs a few kms west of the Iran border. It flows generally westward but follows a

grid pattern. These two branches meet 10 km upstream the town of Keban (west of Elazığ), where the first dam built on the Euphrates came to operation in 1977. Downstream Keban, the Euphrates forms large loops while crossing perpendicularly WSW–ENE elongated ranges. There, the Euphrates River receives several tributaries draining the eastern Taurus Range, and it exits the region by entering a WSW–ENE organized relief corresponding to the transition from the Anatolian Plate to the Arabian Plate to the south. From the source of the Murat River east of Ağrı and SW of Iğdır, to the Persian Gulf, the Euphrates River is 3000 km long. At the Turkish–Syrian border in Kargamış, it has flown 1463 km in Turkey.

Fig. 4.73 Lake landscapes in different morphological settings in Eastern Anatolia. a Zara Lake (1305 m) in the karstic area of Sivas Province. The hills in the background developed in the gypsum karst of the Kızılırmak upper basin. In the background: a höyük (tell) installed aside the lake. b Hazar Lake (1240 m) in Elazığ corresponds to a tectonic strike-slip fault basin positioned on the Sivrice segment of the EAFZ. c Caldera of Nemrut Lake (1647 m) near Tatvan (Bitlis). Background features the caldera wall to the NW. d Karagöl Lake (1245 m) (Pötürge District, Malatya). This small lake is slowly filled by vegetation. Fed by a

spring, it occupies the back depression of a landslide, which has been caused by a seism related to the EAFZ activity. e Kuyucuk Lake (1632 m) (Arpaçay District, Kars). The lake area is an internationally recognized Ramsar site. It lies on Pliocene continental sediments, and is surrounded by early Pliocene volcanic rocks. f Balık Lake (2255 m) (Doğubeyazıt, Ağrı). The lake is positioned in a pull-apart basin south of the Ararat basin. It is controlled by the right-lateral Balık Gölü fault, which affects Pleistocene basalt lavas. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (a, c, d, f), S. Karadoğan (b) and K. Erturaç (e)

Gölbaşı, Muş, Patnos, etc.) (Fig. 4.73). Among these lakes, the terminal Lake Van is the largest lake of Turkey (3755 km2).

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Fig. 4.74 Eastern Anatolian Highlands are source of rivers flowing towards four seas. a One of the two streams forming the uppermost reaches of the Murat River (southern branch of the Euphrates) photographed when crossing the Arasgüneyi Mountains in direction

of the Ağrı basin; b the confluence of the Aras River (flowing to the Caspian sea) with the Pasinler stream in the Pasinler tectonic basin. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

The Headwaters of the Aras River The source area of the Aras River (ancient Araxes: 1072 km long) is only a few tens km east of the source area of the northern branch of the upper Euphrates near Erzurum. While the Murat River flows south, the Aras River flows east (Fig. 4.74b). After collecting tributaries from the Demirdöven, Sarıkamış and Karahan massifs, the Aras connects with the Akhurian River, which forms the Turkish–Armenian border east of Kars. Downstream, it incises a canyon cut into colourful sediments north of Iğdır and the Ağrı region, continuing towards the Caspian Sea (Fig. 4.67c).

4.6.2 Geological Context

The Headwaters of the Seyhan and Ceyhan Rivers The south-eastern part of the region is the birthplace of two important rivers flowing to the Mediterranean Sea: the Seyhan and Ceyhan rivers. Like for the Euphrates, the headwaters of the Seyhan River are formed by twin rivers meeting at the town of Kozan: (1) the western branch is called the Zamantı River and drains the eastern slopes of the Aladağlar Range and (2) the eastern and shorter branch is called the Göksu River (Fig. 4.67c). Both Seyhan and Ceyhan rivers originate from mountainous areas, which are parts of the Anatolian Diagonal.

The high plateaus of Eastern Anatolia belong to the Alpine-Himalayan mountain belt (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Jackson 1992; Şengör et al. 2003). The regional basement corresponds to an accretionary wedge, which outcrops in the Bitlis Suture Zone (Fig. 4.75). The Suture Zone is largely composed of ophiolitic mélange and flysch brought up during the middle Miocene in response to the northward subduction and closure of the Neotethyan oceanic gateway that existed between the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Şengör et al. 1986; Yılmaz et al. 1987; Jolivet and Facenna 2000). Using apatite fission track method, Okay et al. (2010) dated the initiation of the exhumation of the Bitlis– Zagros thrust belt 18–13 Myr (Miocene). This result demonstrates that most of the region that was beneath the sea since late Eocene (*50 Myr) until Serravallian (*14 Myr) experienced uplift during the late Miocene. The rate of elevation of Eastern Anatolia being higher than that in Western Anatolia (Şengör et al. 1986), a reversal of the topography dip occurred, causing today’s increase in altitudes of Anatolia eastward in direction of Iran (Fig. 4.67a, b). This evolution has an important consequence for the geomorphological interpretation of landforms.

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Fig. 4.75 Landscapes developed within the Bitlis Suture Zone in the eastern Taurus (Kamandere Valley, Pötürge Massif, Malatya). Mainly made up of metamorphic rocks. The eastern Taurus-Zagros Range

separates the Eastern Anatolian high plains, depressions and highlands, from upper Mesopotamia. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

4.6.2.1 Geological Context Since the Late Miocene Uplift Around 13 Myr ago, the Arabian Plate entered into contact with the Eurasian Plate (Gelati 1975). The convergence produced a N–S compression that has several major geomorphological consequences since the late Miocene. First, the thrust of the Arabian Plate over the Anatolian Plate caused the Bitlis Suture Zone to develop and outcrop, forming the slightly arched mountainous band from the region of Kahraman Maraş (to the west) to that of Van (to the east) (Fig. 4.67a). The southern limit of this ca. 50– 80-km-wide band corresponds to the thrust line generated by the sliding contact between the Anatolian block and the rotating Arabian Plate. This limit also forms the southern borderline of the region (Fig. 4.66). Today, the N–S shortening caused by the collision continues at a rate of approximately 15 mm year−1 (Reilinger et al. 2006; Şengör et al. 2008). Inland, the northward compressional tectonics (rotating toward the NW) generated folds, faults, block uplifts and strike-sllip basins (Şengör and Kidd 1979). In the landscapes, the most striking features resulting from these movements are elongated and subparallel basins running W–E and SW–NE. These basins are bound by dextral strike-slip faults with reverse components and thrust faults (Jackson 1992). According to Yılmaz (2017), the majority of these continental basins are ramp basins. The Mio-Pliocene-to-Pleistocene basins are filled with fluvial conglomerates and sandstones, interfingered with lacustrine deposits (Şaroğlu 1985; Şaroğlu and Yılmaz 1987).

Since the Pliocene, the North Anatolian and East Anatolian Fault Zones (NAFZ and EAFZ) that meet at the Karlıova plain NE of Bingöl and west of Varto (Fig. 4.76) have also deformed the Eastern Anatolian Plateaus with strike-strip reverse faults. Tectonic activity of segments in the fault zones resulted in the formation of additional elongated basins (Şengör et al. 1985; Yılmaz et al. 1987; Şaroğlu et al. 1992; Koçyiğit et al. 2001). Today, both the NAFZ and EAFZ are moving westward (Özener et al. 2010; Koçyiğit and Canoğlu 2017). Taking into account the whole post-Miocene period, the westward movement of Anatolia has increased from 6.5 mm/year during the last 13 Myr to 18–25 mm/year measured today (Hubert-Ferrari et al. 2002; Müller and Aydin 2004). The movement speed varies however from east to west, with the NAFZ movement increasing from east (16.3 ± 2.3 mm/year) westward (24.0 ± 2.9 mm/year) (Tatar et al. 2012). The EAFZ movement reversely slows down towards the SW corner of the region (Bulut et al. 2012). According to Tatar et al. (2012), the Anatolian block is being pulled not only by the rotation of the Arabian Plate but also by the Hellenic Trench.

4.6.2.2 The Domal Structure Below the Eastern Anatolian Plateau Because of the collision, the region acquired gradually a domal shape, which is located between the Aras River in the north and the Bitlis-Pötürge Massif in the south (Şengör et al. 2003; Keskin 2005, 2008). It is characterized by a normal-thickness crust overlying a very thin or even absent mantle lithosphere (Barazangi et al. 2006; Maden et al.

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Fig. 4.76 High plain in the Karlıova basin at 1790 m altitude (Bingöl), is the meeting place of the Northern and Eastern Anatolian Faults (Tatar et al. 2012). Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

2015). The compressional regime generated by the collision caused later N–S shortening of this dome, which became asymmetrically deformed (Fig. 8 in Şengör et al. 2008). At present, it is difficult to recognize the dome on topographic maps since the topography of the region has been strongly modified by volcanoes and the development of river drainage systems.

4.6.2.3 Volcanism in Eastern Anatolia Since the Late Miocene The initiation of collision ca. 13 Myr was almost immediately followed by extensive magmatic activity and eruptions within both the Eurasian and Arabian plates (Pearce et al. 1990; Notsu et al. 1995; Keskin 2005). Presently, the Eastern Anatolian High Plateau topographically reaches ca. 2000 m of altitude and bears extensive volcanic cover, 1 km in thickness in places, and covering almost two-thirds of the region (Keskin et al. 1998; Yılmaz et al. 1998; Keskin 2003).

Yılmaz (1990) groups the products of the post-late Miocene volcanic activity in the region in three phases. The earliest products are alkaline and aged late Miocene to Pliocene. Sparsely developed, they occur today as isolated and sporadic outcrops in the south of the region. The second phase started during the late Miocene ca. 8 Myr, lasted during the Pliocene and waned during the Quaternary. During this phase, magmatic activity was intense, with extrusion of very abundant calc-alkaline products (widespread lavas alternating with pyroclastics) at the origin of well-developed series of domes and associated pyroclastics [e.g. near Bingöl: the Alatepe and Solhan massifs (Mouralis 2016)] (Fig. 4.77). This calc-alkaline suite produced also basaltic andesites and andesites mainly in the north (Kars-Erzurum), and andesites and dacites in the south (north of Lake Van). The third phase, alkaline basalts, trachytes and rhyolites, began during late Miocene–early Pliocene. Unlike the second phase, its volume and variety

Fig. 4.77 Pliocene domes in the Solhan Massif (Solhan, Bingöl). The Solhan domes and pyroclastics are set over a denudational surface truncating Miocene basalts interstratified with lacustrine deposits. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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increased through the Quaternary. In 2010, Lebedev et al. working N–NE of Lake Van clustered volcanic activities of their study area into four chronological intervals: middle Miocene (15–13.5 Myr), late Miocene (10–9 Myr), Pliocene (5.8–3.7 Myr) and Quaternary (1–0.4 Myr).

4.6.2.4 Obsidians in Eastern Anatolia: The Prehistoric Sites of Near Middle East The number of studies about the relationships between obsidian artefacts found in excavations in the Near East and source outcrops that provided the raw material is increasing since two decades. The methods usually applied for the identification of obsidian sources refer to archaeology, geology, geochemistry, geomorphology and geochronology (Cauvin et al. 1998). Several geological sources being located in Eastern Anatolia; such studies in the region started as early as the 1970s (e.g. Wright and Gordus 1969; Bigazzi et al. 1994; Carter et al. 2008, 2013; Mouralis 2016). The volcanoes concerned are of various ages and occur in different settings. These are mainly the Meydan (Marro and Özfırat

Fig. 4.78 a Obsidian outcrops and surface patches: a in the Meydan Volcano; b in the Süphan Volcano; c in the Nemrut Volcano; d in the Solhan Volcano. Obsidian from these domes and from other ones in the Bingöl (Alatepe), Erzurum, Pasinler, Sarıkamış and Kars areas, has been exploited and used during millennia by early-to-late Neolithic

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2004) (Fig. 4.78a), Nemrut (Frahm 2012; Chataigner 1994; Robin et al. 2016) (Fig. 4.78c) Alatepe and Solhan volcanoes (Chataigner 1994; Mouralis 2016) (Fig. 4.78d). Artefacts are found in and south of the Eastern Anatolian highlands, and westward as far as Malatya to the Aegean Region. Sources from the Erzurum alluvium (Brennan 2000), domes in the Palandöken Mountains (south of Erzurum), in the domes of Pasinler and Sarıkamış (Mouralis 2016) as well as from the Kars region are most often recognized at sites located in Eastern Anatolia and the Caucasus (Varoutsikos and Chataigner 2014). The preservation state of the volcanoes and associated obsidian outcrops decreases however with the age of the volcanoes, so that primary outcrops may not be easily visible in the oldest volcanoes (e.g. Erzurum, Alatepe, Solhan). As a result, approaches developed for the study of accessibility and quality of sources, as well as of the time and space dimensions of the social topics involved in the collection, displacement and uses of obsidian during prehistory have shown the primary role of geomorphological studies in the field (Mouralis 2016) (Fig. 4.78).

populations in the Near East, in a wide region from the Levant to south Mesopotamia (Mouralis 2016). Among the examples presented here, the obsidian lava flow in the Süphan Volcano does not seem to have ever been used

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4.6.3 Geomorphological Landscapes of the Eastern Anatolian Region In Eastern Anatolia, continuing uplift and compression since the late Miocene as well as activity of strike-slip faults since the Pliocene are important agents for the transformations of landscapes. These structural elements constrain also the activity of other geomorphological agents such as hydrographic ones. At places, the role of karstic processes has been as important as tectonics, amplifying and/or retarding the geomorphological action of rivers at the surface and in the underground. Volcanoes and volcanic products also contribute to the variety of landforms. Because in Eastern Anatolia tectonic, karstic and volcanic processes contribute together to the shaping of landscapes, it is often difficult to classify landforms on the basis of only one controlling factor. In addition, climatic changes during the Pleistocene have also impacted the Eastern Anatolian landscapes with regard to the nature and intensity of erosion and to the regional sensitivity to climate change, especially at high altitudes (periglacial and glacial conditions; variations in lake levels and vegetation cover). As a result, contemporary geomorphological landscapes of the region record mainly structural controls and the response of hydrographic networks to tectonics, magnified by karstic processes and volcanic activity. At high altitudes as well as in the floors of closed depressions and valley fills, climatic conditions during the Pleistocene have produced additional landscapes such as lakes and marshes.

4.6.3.1 Important Control of Recent Tectonics on the Organization of the Relief In Eastern Anatolia, a high number of closed basins result from the combination of rapid, recent and high-magnitude uplift associated with block faulting and strike-slip faulting in subsiding basins. Some of these basins are today drained by streams, sometimes flowing in and out the basin in opposite directions, generating a puzzling confusion for the landscape reader. Such opposite drainage separating the hydrography of flat plains occurred generally in relation to strike-slip movements or to block faulting. In addition, head-back erosion of rivers—caused by uplift in uplands— often led to captures of drainage areas of rivers and/or closed depressions. At places, the association between these factors (strike-slip basins, block faulting, uplift) has also occurred as an important factor organizing the river network. Tectonically Controlled Flat Plains Stretching in the Highlands Numerous sheared pull-part basins occur in Eastern Anatolia. Many of them accommodate the compression related to the late Miocene tectonics, while others belong to shearing

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zones opened along segments of the NAFZ and EAFZ during the Plio-Pleistocene. Both west and east of the “Triple Junction” where the NAFZ and EAFZ meet in Karlıova plain at 1825 m asl, each segment of the fault zones corresponds to one or more pull-apart basins. Along the NAFZ in Eastern Anatolia these basins are, from east to west: Karlıova, Suşehir, Gölova and Erzincan (Tatar et al. 2012). Along the EAFZ, segments command lateral strike-slip basins located, from Karlıova south-westward, in the Bingöl, Karakoçan, Kovancılar, Palu-Uluova, Hazar (Fig. 4.73b), Malatya and Gölbaşı areas (Yönlü et al. 2013; Scarp 2014). East of the NAFZ and EAFZ (i.e. outside the Anatolian Plate in Eastern Anatolia), several closed basins formed by lateral strike-slip faults accommodating the compression (Rust et al. 1999; Dhont and Chorowicz 2006) are distributed along relief alignments connecting plains. These basins are of two types: (1) Right-lateral strike-slip fault basins; WSW–ENE orientated, they form two alignments. The first one is composed of Erzincan, Erzurum, Narman, Oltu, Göle, Ardahan and Çıldır basins. Apart from the Mio-Pliocene Narman and Oltu basins, which have been uplifted and deeply eroded, the other basins are filled with Quaternary sediments forming very flat plains. The easternmost plains (Göle, Ardahan and Çıldır basins) are occupied by lakes (Fig. 4.73e). East of Erzurum, the second alignment groups the Horasan, Kağızman, Tuzluca and Ağrı basins. It is drained by the Aras River, which connects the basins through narrow gorges between basins. Between Kağızman and Tuzluca, the right side of the Aras valley is cut into pure salt deposits. (2) Left-lateral strike-slip fault basins; in the easternmost part of the region, these are: (i) the Doğubeyazıt-Çaldıran-Kağızman/Tuzluca fault system (the Balık Gölü Fault: Dhont and Chorowicz 2006; Sağlam-Selçuk et al. 2016) which separates the Ağrı Basin to the north from the Aras and Murat watersheds to the south; and (ii) the E–W orientated Ağrı Fault, which cuts the mountains south of Pasinler westward to Erzurum. In addition, two left-lateral strike-slip fault basins occur east of the Karlıova plain: the Varto and the Muş basins. At high altitudes, some of these depressions have been reached by head-back stream erosion (e.g. the Muş plain), while others have remained isolated from the main drainage systems positioned in lower tectonic troughs (e.g. Balık Lake in the mountains above the Tuzluca Basin: Fig. 4.73f). Very often, on the floors of these depressions, shallow lakes and/or marshes are residual remains of ancient larger lakes.

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Antecedence of the Main Rivers and the Record of an Old Fluvial Network Since the late Miocene, regional uplift profoundly influenced the evolution of the river network in Eastern Anatolia, with the formation of antecedent and superimposed gorges within folds, thrusted massifs and faulted blocks, often coupled with karstic processes producing vertiginous karstic canyons (e.g. Darkot 1943; Erinç 1953a; Atalay 1983; Erol 1983). This down-cutting has been continuing since late Miocene, causing the active dismantling of old Miocene and Pliocene denudational landscapes (Figs. 4.79 and 4.80). Meanwhile, a number of lacustrine environments are developed in fault-controlled depressions, some of them being later captured by members of the Euphrates River network, which connected them ultimately with exorheic drainage. Between the cities of Erzurum and Ağrı, in the Çakmaközü Basin, Demir et al. (2009) measured the incision rate of the Murat River using Ar–Ar dating of basalts covering a staircase of four river terraces. Evidencing a lacustrine basin fed by a palaeoriver Murat at the Pliocene– Pleistocene boundary the authors calculated that a 0.5 mm/year incision during uplift has occurred since 1.8 Myr. Based on this result and on today’s 500-m-deep entrenchment of the Murat valley into the Mio-Pliocene lake sediments, they estimate uplift of the region to have reached

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1100 m since the mid-Pliocene (the associated denudational surfaces being uplifted by 800 m). These dynamics illustrate how much these landscapes have been transformed by uplift since the Pliocene, and why many river valleys in Eastern Anatolia are deeply entrenched, eventually with incised meanders recording the antecedence of the river with regard to the uplift dynamics. Several landforms suggest that this palaeoriver Euphrates was older or contemporaneous with the Miocene uplift. For example, downstream the Karasu-Murat confluence near Keban, three large meanders of the Euphrates cross the WSW–ENE orientated geological structures of the eastern Taurus. The deep incision of these zigzags shows that the meandering pattern is either older or contemporaneous with the uplift of the eastern Taurus. Another example occurs north, in the Munzur Range south of Erzincan, where compression has forced extraordinary features and landscapes known as the Kemaliye Canyon. This canyon is incised by the Karasu River (northern branch of the Euphrates). The canyon is 13.5 km long and 1000 m deep and carved into the upper Triassic pelagic limestones (Fig. 4.81). The meanders drawn by the canyon also cut the late Miocene volcanoclastics covering a Miocene denudational surface truncating all previous units. During the late Miocene uplift, E–W orientated folds deformed the

Fig. 4.79 Antecedence of the river network near Sarıkamış (Kars). A Miocene denudational surface is preserved under Pliocene volcanic domes and basalt flows. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 4.80 Superimposition of the Murat River in the basalt pile between Bingöl and Muş. Photograph by A. F. Doğu

substratum as well as its cover (Atalay and Karadoğan 2016). These observations show that the 1000-m-deep meanders of the river are superimposed into the Triassic limestones, also widely weathered by karstic processes. Grid Patterns of the Hydrographic Network on the Local and Regional Scales At first glance on Figs. 4.66 and 4.67, rectilinear valleys associated with 90° angles in stream paths, angular and sometimes three-parted confluences, organized towards opposite directions drainages over the same basin floor suggest that faults play a major and still active role in determining the extraordinary linearity of some of the lines organizing the geomorphological landscapes in Eastern Anatolia. These paths are also interrupted by a bayonet grid pattern. Two types of tectonic movements, eventually acting together, explain this type of river network: (1) faulted troughs or lineaments controlling the disposition and arrangement of relief; (2) captures caused by head-back erosion, possibly accentuated by uplift impacting the longitudinal profiles of rivers upslope. During the Pliocene and the Pleistocene, these processes have been both breaking the isolation and redistributing connections of basins in Eastern Anatolia. They also have led to disconnections of river paths, as shown by the two examples below.

Springing 25 km north of Erzurum at Mount Dumulu (2773 m asl), the Karasu River (northern branch of the Euphrates) flows along the western, N–S orientated, fault-line scarp of a 13-km-wide tectonic block (summit at 2367 m asl). On the other (eastern) side of this block, the Aras River springs at 2900 m asl in the mountains forming the southern border of the W–E orientated Pasinler tectonic basin. Entering the Pasinler Basin at 1900 m, the Aras River starts flowing east in direction of Pasinler. Doing so, the tectonic block separating the Erzurum and Pasinler basins becomes a hydrographic “triple point” separating three major exorheic drainages: the Karasu River flowing towards the Persian Gulf, the Aras River flowing towards the Caspian Sea and tributaries of the Çoruh River flowing north towards the Black Sea (Fig. 4.67c). The contrast in altitudes between the Erzurum and Pasinler basins on both sides of the 13-km-wide relief separating the Karasu and Aras headwaters records not only the uplift of the area separating both basins, but also the effect of subsidence in the Erzurum and Pasinler basins (Collins et al. 2005). Twenty-two km downstream its entrance in the Pasinler Basin at 1900 m asl (Fig. 4.74b), the River Aras flows in a valley floor which has already reached a 10–14 km width and an altitude of 1682 m asl (i.e. a 10 m/km decrease in the slope profile). Today’s topography of the Aras valley floor corresponds to the top of

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Fig. 4.81 Kemaliye Canyon, incised by the Karasu River (northern branch of the Euphrates) in the Munzur Range: an example of epigeny by superimposition in Cretaceous carbonates forming wide outcrops in

the eastern Taurus. Photographs by S. Karadoğan. Map from Atalay and Karadoğan (2016)

a continental sediment fill controlled by such a subsiding context that it still impacts the alluvial fans edging the northern side of this wide Aras valley (Collins et al. 2005). The second example concerns the formation of Erçek Lake (1806 m asl) in the eastern surroundings of Lake Van (Fig. 4.82). Today, the drainage area of Erçek Lake is

surrounded by that of Lake Van. The main tributary to Erçek Lake is a ca. 55 km long, E–W flowing stream occupying the bottom of a straight tectonic trough limited by Plio-Pleistocene E–W lateral strike-slip faults shearing the accretionary complex of Eastern Anatolia (Aksoy and Tatar 1990; Şengör et al. 2008). West and facing exactly the point

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Fig. 4.82 Hanging dry valley that used to drain the Erçek River Basin into the Lake Van basin. The Erçek Lake basin has been isolated by the uplifting of fault-controlled block possibly associated with a subsidence at the foot of the fault. The fault line forms the eastern shores of today’s

where the stream enters the lake, an abandoned, dry valley opens perpendicularly to the N–S faulted shores of the lake (Ketin 1977; Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Numan and Çiçek 2012) (Fig. 4.82). The bottom of this dry valley is hanged 22–25 m above today’s level of the lake. Ca. 1.5 km west from the entrance into the dry valley, a west-flowing short streamlet heads to the floodplain of a tributary to Lake Van, the Karasu stream, at 1755 m asl. This geomorphological landscape records the former connection of the Erçek Lake drainage area to that of Lake Van, at an uncertain date during the Quaternary. The disconnection between the downstream (abandoned) and upstream (discharging into Erçek Lake) reaches of the Erçek stream has responded to a vertical movement of a SW–NE orientated fault scarp forming a cliff over Erçek Lake. Duman and Çiçek (2011) suggest that this movement was triggered, within the Erçek stream tectonic basin, by subsidence at the location of today’s lake. Frequent Occurrence of Captures of Rivers and Closed Basins In Eastern Anatolia, many river captures were made possible by the accentuation of longitudinal stream profile slopes due to uplift in head basins. One of the most important of capture in the region has been that of the Muş closed plain (east of Lake Van) by today’s Murat River (today’s southern branch of the Euphrates) (Fig. 4.83).

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Erçek Lake. The E–W fault-controlled downstream part of the Erçek River is now completely dry (see maps in Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; and in Numan and Çicek 2012). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

At the beginning of the story, there was: – A palaeoriver Murat, which was a short tributary of the Karasu River (today’s northern branch of the Euphrates), and was springing in a Miocene basaltic plateau today limiting the SW part of the Muş plain (Fig. 4.80) – Another river, which was entering, from the north, the tectonic Muş Basin, then a closed basin in which Oligo-Miocene-to-Pliocene lake and alluvial sediments were depositing (Fig. 4.83a). At the end of the story, today – The northern and southern limits of the Muş plain are underlined by Quaternary E–W orientated strike-slip faults deforming both the Oligo-Miocene clastics and limestones (now covered by Mio-Pliocene volcanics in the north, and the foot of resistant metamorphic highlands to the south (i.e. the Bitlis Suture Zone), also partly covered by the Neogene volcanics (Fig. 4.80). – The Murat River that springs in the region of Ağrı (Fig. 4.74a) entering the Muş plain at its NW corner (Fig. 4.83a), after hundreds of kms, crosses the westernmost part of the plain and leaves it in its SW corner through a narrow gorge meandering into the Miocene basaltic plateau described above (Fig. 4.80). Doing so, there is no other

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Fig. 4.83 Capture of the Plio-Pleistocene Muş palaeolake isolated from Lake Van basin by the Nemrut Volcano during mid- or early Pleistocene. During Pliocene and/or early Pleistocene, the Muş Basin was endorheic and occupied by a lake. The basin and its lake were captured and dried by headward erosion of the Murat River, triggered by a rapid Pleistocene uplift of the mountains around. The capture allowed the Euphrates drainage basin to extend 270–300 km north-eastwards. 1. Undifferentiated Miocene sediments; 2. Miocene volcanics; 3. Pliocene volcanics; 4. Pliocene sediments; 5. Youngest volcanics; 6. Pleistocene volcanics; 7. Undifferentiated quaternary sediments; 8. Terraces of the palaeoriver Murat; 9. Pleistocene sediment fill of basins; 10. Shallow freshwater lake; 11. Soda water Lake Van; 12. Freshwater lakes and back swamps; 13. Metamorphics (Bitlis Suture Zone); 14. EAFZ; 15.

Hypothetic fault; 16. Major thrust fault. Key for circles on the map: White double circle = Nemrut Volcano caldera; Greyish blue circle = Location of the capture of the Muş palaeolake by the back-heading palaeoriver Murat. A terrace of the palaeoriver Murat (lake and river sediment accumulation) near Mercimekkale village where the Murat River enters the Muş plain; B Hasköy wetland, a remain from the palaeolake Muş; C The Muş plain photographed from the eastern flank of the Nemrut Volcano (Foreground: a pyroclastic flow covers an ancient topography in direction of the plain; Left: a fault-line scarp limiting the north-eastern edge of the plain; Background (misty): the plain, east from Hasköy). Map by C. Kuzucuoğlu (using Erzurum and Van 1:500.000 sheets from MTA (Geological map of Turkey 2002). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

drainage left in the remaining part of the still flat Muş plain in the SE corner of which swamps and marshes are concentrated (Fig. 4.83b). Remarkably, the spot where the Murat River enters the Muş plain and the spot where it exists from the plain are in line, suggesting that, before the subsidence of the Muş tectonic basin, there was already one sole drainage channel, that was flowing from the NE in direction of the SW.

overlooks the westernmost end of the plain since ca. 5.0–4.0 Myr (Bigazzi et al. 1994; Mouralis 2016) (Fig. 4.77), the plain ends east with mid-to-late Pleistocene lavas and ignimbrite flows emitted by the Nemrut Volcano (Çubukçu et al. 2012) (Fig. 4.83c). At the time of their initial emissions, these volcanic products separated a palaeolake Van into two basins: the Muş and the Van Lake basins (Atalay 1983; Yılmaz et al. 1993; Mouralis et al. 2010) (Fig. 4.83c). The western lake in the Muş plain was still receiving water from its northern tributary, but was captured after mid-Pleistocene by the headwaters of the Murat River. This capture concerned not only the lake but also the whole

The geological context of the capture of the Muş plain and its tributary by the River Murat is the following. While the Solhan volcanic massif (obsidian domes) dated Pliocene

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drainage basin of its major northern tributary inflow, which was springing eastward beyond the Tendürek Volcano (Fig. 4.67c). It occurred by headward erosion of the palaeoriver Murat, after uplift in the upstreammost area west and below of the—then closed—Muş plain, and forced an increase in the slope gradient of the Murat river profile. The capture resulted, in turn, in increasing the Murat drainage area in the NE direction, up to the region of Ağrı near the border of Turkey with Armenia and Nakhchivan. The end result of the story was then to have formed the most important river drainage of Turkey and the Middle East, that of the River Euphrates.

4.6.3.2 Geomorphological Landscapes Associated with Volcanism Since 8 Myr ago, volcanic activity in the region has produced an abundant volume and variety of magmatic rocks, which form today magnificent landscapes (eg. Innocenti et al. 1976, 1980; Lebedev et al. 2010). Fissure eruptions constructed wide plateaus (e.g. south of Sarıkamış and Kars region, west of the Mut plain in direction of Bingöl). In the Kars-Ardahan region, thick basaltic lava flows form a fairly flat morphology of wide plateaus offering spectacular landscapes during spring. Near Pasinler and Sarıkamış, Pliocene rhyolitic domes top the plateaus. Similar domes are clearly visible on top of older surfaces truncating Mio-Pliocene massifs in the Palandöken range near Erzurum, as well as north (Alatepe) and east (Solhan) of Bingöl (Fig. 4.78d). Some of the old fissural volcanic plateaus have been however deformed by tectonics (uplift, faults) and consequently dissected by erosion (e.g. Malatya-Pötürge, Narman and Mut-Bingöl areas) (Fig. 4.80). Over 20 additional volcanic centres, corresponding basically to central eruption sites, formed significant peaks varying in size, often rising above 3000 m asl (Table 4.1; Fig. 4.67b) and dispatched over irregular structural or denudational topographies (Keskin 2003). Volcanoes on the North and East of Lake Van Between Tatvan (Nemrut Volcano at the western end of Lake Van) and Doğubeyazıt (Ağrı Volcano which overlooks the faulted valley trough drained by the Aras River), a series of volcanoes are aligned from the SW to the NE (Fig. 4.67b). The most famous one is the Mount Ağrı (Ararat: 5037 m), well known for being a legendary candidate for the spot where Noah’s Ark wrecked after 40 rainy days and nights. It is also well known for the beautiful landscape with its still extensive capped summit and its two peaks (Sarıkaya 2012; Azzoni et al. 2017; Baldasso et al. 2018) dominating Eastern Anatolian wide pastured plains (Fig. 4.84a, b). Besides, near the borders with Armenia, Nakhchivan (Azerbaijan) and Iran, the >4000 m altitude difference between the ice-capped

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volcano summit of Ağrı and the Aras River plain at its foot is one of the most photographed natural landscapes of Turkey. At the westernmost extremity of Lake Van, the magnificent summit caldera of Mount Nemrut (2935 m) and its crescent-shaped lake is also a much well known landscape (Fig. 4.73c). The volcano is composed of basaltic to trachytic–rhyolitic lavas and pyroclastics (Çubukçu et al. 2012; Ulusoy et al. 2008, 2012). Remarkably, the magma character of Mount Nemrut, with comenditic and pantelleritic lavas, is very similar to the East African Rift. According to Yılmaz et al. (1998), its formation started ca. 2.5 Myr. Çubukçu et al. (2012) however argue for a younger age, with the activity starting ca. 1.01 Myr. Immediately east of Nemrut Volcano, the Süphan Volcano (4058 m asl) is the second highest peak of Eastern Anatolia (Fig. 4.85). Its products are dominantly mildly alkaline– calc-alkaline. The summit, occupied by a lava dome dated to 0.064 ± 0.014 Myr (Özdemir and Güleç 2014), used to host a glacier until the 2010s. This dome extruded within an avalanche caldera that occurred by flank instability (Özdemir et al. 2016). The debris avalanche deposits with their hummocky surfaces outcrop at the northern foot of the volcano, as well as over the Patnos plain at the eastern side of the volcano where the avalanche debris covers lake sediments (with Dreissena shells) testifying for a lake occurrence in the Patnos plain during the late Pleistocene. East of the Süphan Volcano in direction of the Mount Ağrı, Mount Tendürek (3584 m) is a shield volcano presenting a mainly alkaline magma suite developed over the thickened crust related to continental collision between Eurasia and Arabia plates. In spite of the alkalinity of this magma, the volcano was built up with mostly effusive, rarely explosive volcanic activities producing dominantly basaltic to trachytic lava flows and associated pyroclastics ashes and cinders (Fig. 4.84c). Other noticeable volcanoes in the Lake Van area are the Meydan (3290 m: Fig. 4.78a) and Etrüsk (3100 m) volcanoes, both located NE of Erciş and possessing a caldera (Yılmaz et al. 1998; Oyan et al. 2016) with similar geomorphological records in both cases. Although less known, other composite volcanoes are scattered in the eastern part of the region (Fig. 4.67b): the Varto Volcano (also called the Bingöl Mountains; located immediately east of the Karlıova high plain), the Aladağ (3255 m; north of the Meydan Volcano), the Mount Zor (west of the Ağrı Volcano) and Mount Sarıçiçek in the Aladağlar east of Tendürek Volcano (Table 4.1). During the period of activity of a volcano, volcanic products (mainly lava flows) might have generated dams in valleys, forcing a lake to form and/or one or several rivers to change course. In Eastern Anatolia, there are relatively few examples of Quaternary lakes formed behind a volcanic dam. Lake Van

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Fig. 4.84 Landscapes in the Ağrı and Tendürek volcanoes. a The Ağrı (Ararat) Volcano is the largest volcanic edifice in the region (Doğubeyazıt). View towards north. It is a polygenetic, compound volcano consisting mainly of basaltic, andesitic, and dacitic lavas, and of minor dacitic and rhyolitic pyroclastic debris. b It presents two major volcanic cones: the Greater Ararat (Büyük Ağrı), the highest peak in Turkey (5137 m asl), and the Little Ararat (Küçük Ağrı: 3896 m asl).

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View towards south. Basalt lavas over the slopes of the volcano reach the tectonic depression of Doğubeyazıt (mid-ground). The Küçük Ağrı Volcano is in the background. Basaltic boulders seen in the foreground are remains of Urartu (9–7 Centuries BC) walls. c Fresh-looking basaltic lava flows over the southern slopes of the Tendürek shield volcano near the Turkish–Iran border. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 4.85 Süphan Volcano on the northern edge of Lake Van. a The Süphan Volcano, looking from the lakeshore at Ayanis archaeological site (second half of the seventh century BC). b A hieroglyphic text on the basalt stonewalls of Tuşpa temple at Ayanis (Tuşpa was the name of the Urartu Kingdom’s capital city, of its main God, and the Urartian name of

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the Süphan Volcano). Urartian conquests can be measured indirectly from such inscriptions, widespread from the lower Murat River Basin (Elazığ) in the west to the Aras River valley (from Erzurum to Mount Ararat) in the north, and to the south shore of Lake Urmia in Iran. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (Fig. 4.85b is with courtesy of Prof. A. Çilingiroğlu)

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is however one of the most famous examples of such a tight connection between volcanic flows (lavas and pyroclastics from Nemrut Volcano) and the formation/evolution of a lake (Yılmaz et al. 1998; Mouralis et al. 2010; Akköprü 2011; Schmincke et al. 2014) (Fig. 4.83). Eastern Anatolian Volcanism Today Several volcanoes in Eastern Anatolia are considered dormant. Judging from very recent or historical volcanic bursts, collapses or other signs of activity, at least four of the Eastern Anatolian volcanoes deserve monitoring for hazard prevention: According to publications based on fieldwork in the Tatvan and Van areas (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Mouralis et al. 2010; Sumita and Schmincke 2013; Schmincke and Sumita 2014) as well as on coring in Lake Van (Schmincke et al. 2014), the Nemrut Volcano erupted several times from the LGM to the late Holocene. The last date known for an eruption is ca. 1450 AD (Karakhanian et al. 2002). Still today, fumaroles occur near the caldera. Because Mount Nemrut represents an important volcanic hazard risk, it is seismologically surveyed by the volcanology team of Hacettepe University in Ankara (Aydar et al. 2003). Mount Süphan, active since 2 Myr (Yılmaz et al. 1998), has erupted 30 ka ago (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Mouralis et al. 2010). The pyroclastics emitted during this eruption covered most the slopes looking to Lake Van, including those above today’s Van City (Christol et al. 2010; Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). Mount Ağrı’s activity is documented for the late Pleistocene (Notsu et al. 1995; Yılmaz et al. 1998) and the 5th millennium BP (Simkin and Siebert 1994; Karakhanian et al. 2002), while its basaltic lavas look surprisingly fresh in the Doğubeyazıt plain and wetlands. In 1840 AD, a phreatic explosion occurred in Mount Ağrı, associated with the possible generation of a pyroclastic flow, in a possible association with an earthquake that caused severe damage and numerous casualties (Karakhanian et al. 2002, 2006). At the top of Mount Tendürek, the present formation of a caldera may end becoming the most important volcanological risk in Turkey (Lebedev et al. 2016).

4.6.3.3 Karstic Landscapes Karstification of several kinds of carbonates followed immediately their emergence from the sea during the late Miocene. Accordingly, the karstification concerns mostly the metamorphic rocks of the Bitlis Zone, Mesozoic limestone platforms and marine Oligo-Miocene lacustrine limestones (and gypsum). Karst landscapes occur thus both along the Eastern Taurus (Bitlis Suture Zone), in the uplifted and folded Cretaceous marine limestones, and in Mio-Pliocene lacustrine limestones in the basins dispatched in highlands.

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In the western (e.g. Oligocene evaporites) and northern (e.g. folded and uplifted Cretaceous limestones) limits of the region, the karstic landscapes are part of the Anatolian Diagonal that extends from the Bolkar Mountains (north of Tarsus and Adana) to the Elbistan highlands and to the Munzur Mountains (south of Erzincan pull-apart basin), finally joining the water divide parting the Black Sea and upper Aras River drainage areas. The Gypsum Karst Landscapes in Sivas Region In the region of Sivas, east of the Inner Pontides and of the Kırşehir Massif, Oligocene and Miocene evaporitic series overlay a metamorphic basement (Çiner et al. 2002; Doğan and Özel 2005; Kavak et al. 2016; Poisson et al. 2016). While the surface of these series is truncated by a denudational surface fossilized by detrital Pliocene deposits, linear depressions controlled by NE–SW orientated faults are occupied today by the floodplains of the Kızılırmak River valley and of its tributaries (Kaçaroğlu et al. 1997). Developing since Pliocene, intense karstification shaped beautiful karstic landscapes in these evaporites, producing dolines, ponors, poljes and caves (Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004; Doğan and Özel 2005). At places, the gypsum karst has given birth to doline-type depressions occupied by salt lakes (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2011) (Fig. 4.73a). Abundant karstic springs are also located on the fault lines (e.g. the Göydün and Seyfe springs) where they give birth to travertines and wetlands. With more than 50% of the catchment area of the Kızılırmak River corresponding to gypsum, the regional underground water aquifer exhibits such a high salt concentration that its domestic and agricultural usages are limited (Kaçaroğlu et al. 1997). Karstic Landscapes in the Highlands and Closed Basins In the folded and uplifted Jurassic and Cretaceous limestones, karstic landscapes are also very frequent (Darkot 1943; Erinç 1953a; Atalay 1983; Erol 1983) below summits where relict Miocene topography is preserved. Most karstic features developed ever since the uplift, such as the Kemaliye example exposed above (Atalay and Karadoğan 2016). These landscapes deepened from the surface generating stepped underground caves and flow networks, also creating hanging dry valleys, deep and narrow meandering canyons and abandoned cave entrances positioned in the upper parts of cliffs. In the Permian limestones forming the Bitlis Range south of Lake Van, well-developed karst features occur in mountains, lowlands and river valleys distributed between the Zagros and eastern Taurus ranges, as well as in the limestone outcrops around Lake Van. Some examples in lowlands are the Göllü polje on the southern shore (Akköprü 2011) and dolines near Erçek Lake (Fig. 4.82), as well as caves looking at Lake Van in the vicinity of Adilcevaz and Van (Ayanis)

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cities. In the highlands, the Uzuntekne polje at 2300 m altitude is remarkable and is the polje occupied by Lake Turna in the Mount Ardos south of Van and which was dammed by Urartu engineers several millennia ago. In valleys, karstic springs occur, such as the Küçüksu/Güzeldere spring south of Tatvan (Akköprü 2011), the very abundant Gürpınar spring in the Engil valley south of Van (Christol et al. 2010) and also spring outflowing in the lake itself. Finally, hanging dry valleys such as those hanging above Lake Van or positioned along the Lake Van watershed add to the remarkable landscapes of this area (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). Other karstic landscapes have developed in marine (early Miocene) and lacustrine (from late Miocene to Pleistocene) limestones deposited in closed basins in relation to the compression that started during the late Miocene (Fig. 4.73 e). These deposits are often associated with volcanics of similar or younger ages. (For example, at the southern foot of Ağrı Volcano, the misleadingly so-called Meteorite Hole (Meteor Çukuru in Turkish) is a caprock doline collapsed in Miocene limestones covered by the alluvium of the Doğubeyazıt closed depression. NE of Lake Van at the western foot of the Süphan Volcano, Batmış Lake occupies the floor of a polje surrounded by volcanics. North of Van near the archaeological site of Ayanis, numerous caves occur in limestone cliffs. These features are developed in Miocene limestones outcropping from below Pliocene (Ayanis) and Pleistocene (Nemrut, Süphan) volcanics. Near Adilcevaz and Ayanis, karstic caves host obsidian artefacts dated to Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010).

4.6.3.4 Glacial Landscapes at High Altitudes In several mountainous areas >4000 m asl in Eastern Anatolia, many landforms result from overlapping glacial, periglacial and slope processes resulting presently still occurring glaciers, ice tongues, debris-covered glaciers, rock glaciers and glacial lakes (Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015; Oliva et al. 2018). These landforms suggest that climatic variations during the Quaternary contributed heavily in the shaping of the landscapes in these mountains. For example, significant glacial processes are recorded in valley glaciers and small ice fields developing from the coalescence of cirque glaciers between summits >3000 m asl (Erinç 1952, 1925a, 1953b). Occasionally, these glacial zones covered vast areas, like in the Munzur Range where Bilgin (1972) and Çılgın (2013) evidence glacier tongue depressions and moraines recording a descent of glaciers down to 1600 m. In the same range, Bayrakdar et al. (2015) draw a maximum extension of glaciers down to 1400 m in the Ovacık plain. In addition, glacio-karstic processes have much contributed to the acceleration of local periglacial–glacial processes, transforming for

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example deep dolines into steep-walled cirques (Bilgin 1972; Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Yeşilyurt et al. 2016). Information on the ice caps and reconstruction of recent to past glacial evolution of the Ağrı Volcano can be found in several publications (Çiner 2004; Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Sarıkaya 2012; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015; Yavaşlı et al. 2015). Azzoni et al. (2017) and Baldasso et al. (2018) have recently presented information related to the geomorphological mapping and glacial development of the volcano. Glaciers are also known to have existed until very recently on the Süphan Volcano (Kesici 2005) and in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains. Available literature (Erinç1953b; İzbırak 1951; Kesici 2005) and satellite imagery show fascinating glaciers and glacial landscapes in the Cilo Mountains (Hakkari region). In the meantime, lacustrine sediments also contain very valuable records of Pleistocene climates, cyclicity and changes. The most studied ones are sediments from Lake Van (since Degens and Kurtmann 1978), where climate changes and lake-level variations have been studied in cores (Landmann et al. 1996; Lemcke and Sturm 1997; Wick et al. 2003; Litt and the PaleoVan team 2012; Litt et al. 2014; Çağatay et al. 2014; Kwiecien et al. 2014; Stockhecke et al. 2014; Randlett et al. 2017; Pickarski et al. 2015; Pickarski and Litt 2017) and in sections preserved in series of lake terraces (Christol et al. 2010, 2013; Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Akköprü 2011; Christol 2011). While pollen spectra show cycles responding to global climate changes, the lake levels respond to the timing and intensity of climatic changes affecting precipitations (snow, ice, rainfall) and temperatures (controlling the persistence of snow and ice vs. the discharge of melt water). The lake-level history reconstructed from the chronostratigraphic study of Lake Van terraces (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Christol et al. 2013) shows strong similarities with lake-level curves of Lake Urmia in Iran and the Caspian Sea in Azerbaijan.

4.7

South-eastern Anatolia

4.7.1 Geographic Context Landscapes in the South-eastern Anatolia Region present a well-balanced composition with three main domains (Figs. 4.86 and 4.87): (1) arched highlands in the north, (2) plateaus in the south, forming a wide hemispheric area opening southward in the direction of the Syrian Plateaus and the hilly areas of northern Iraq and (3) the Karacadağ volcanic massif separating, at the centre of the region, the plateaus as well as the drainage areas of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers.

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Fig. 4.86 South-eastern Anatolia geomorphological region. Numbers relate to locations of: a specific sites presented by Chaps. 5 to 35 (chapter number positioned in purple circles or as areas squared by purple-lined rectangles); b photographs in this chapter (the

corresponding figure number(s) is/are positioned in yellow squares), and large maps in this chapter (the corresponding figure number is positioned within red-lined rectangles)

4.7.1.1 Relief Arched highlands to the north form an orographic and climatic barrier, rising up to 3749 m in the Hakkari region (Turkey–Iraq–Iran border zone) (Fig. 4.87a). In these highlands, streams have very steep slopes and flow through narrow gorges (Fig. 4.88a). Along the highland piedmonts, plateaus present surfaces topping at 400–600 m asl in the west and ca. 1000 m asl in the east (Fig. 4.88c). They are incised by the middle courses of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and by the valleys of their tributaries. Southward, the valleys are increasingly associated with gravelly terraces. In the west, the plateaus are separated from the Mediterranean Region by the Amanos highlands and the elongated depressions drained by the Asi (Orontes) River in Turkey. Passes through these highlands are famous, such as the Amanian Gates that join Gaziantep near the Euphrates to the NE of Cilicia in the Mediterranean region. In the centre of the region, the plateaus are interrupted by an almond-shaped, massif ca. 1755 m high: the Karacadağ (Black Mountain, in Turkish) (Fig. 4.88b). In the south, the plateaus encounter a discontinuous scarp with buttes dominating the lower plateaus of northern Syria (Figs. 4.88c and 4.89). Several historical important towns are located at the foot or on the top of this alignment. From west–eastward, these old cities are: Gaziantep, Şanlıurfa, Mardin, Midyat, Şırnak, Nusaybin and Cizre (Fig. 4.87b).

winter, mild spring and autumn, but very hot and dry summer. The region records the highest temperatures in Turkey (mean temperatures >30 °C from May to October). The precipitation regime is typical continental Mediterranean (Geiger 1961; Peel et al. 2007) with very limited rainfall during summer months and high precipitation during winter months. The drastic difference with typical Mediterranean climate is during summer months, with a complete absence of rain combined with temperatures rising above 40° and causing a very high evaporation rate. As a result, most of water supply during the summer months comes from lake reservoirs and groundwater. The region is also prone to frequent extreme climatic phenomena such as unexpected winter droughts, heavy rainfalls during early autumn or early spring. During spring and autumn, sudden hot and cold spells can occur, as well as sandstorms coming from the south and devastating rains coming from the west. Such a climatic year-to-year instability generates a high level of sensitivity of the region with regard to its water resources, vegetation, environmental systems, agriculture, etc. Relief also generates precipitation contrasts, with humidity rising with altitudes northward (where highlands currently receive ca. 600 mm/year) and eastward (where the Zagros Mountains flanks currently receive >1000 mm/year). In the highest mountains, heavy winter snow occurs, often isolating villages during several months. Southwards, precipitation decreases to ca. 250–200 mm/year near the Syrian border. In this part of the region, the yearly and interannual distribution of rainfall becomes unstable, with the steppe becoming the prominent vegetation in the landscapes.

4.7.1.2 Climate Climate in the South-eastern Anatolia Region is dominated by Mediterranean influences, with relatively cool or mild

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Fig. 4.87 Distribution of relief entities, towns and main rivers in Eastern Anatolia: a geomorphological landscapes entities of the region; b towns and villages cited in text; c rivers, drainage basins and dams

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Fig. 4.88 Major landscape types in South-eastern Anatolia: highlands, plateaus and valleys: a highlands near Sason (Batman); b the basaltic plateau forming the base of the Karacadağ Volcano (Diyarbakır); c the butte dominating the old city of Mardin ends the Mardin-Midyat

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plateau in the south of the central part of the region. The 500-m-high slope of the butte overlooks the Syrian northern piedmont. Photographs by S. Karadoğan (a) and C. Kuzucuoğlu, (b, c)

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Fig. 4.89 Southern “end” of the central plateaus in the region, corresponds to a rectilinear scarp some 500 m high overlooking the flat northern Syria low lands. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

4.7.1.3 Phytogeography In the northern highlands, the typical vegetation resembles the one described in the eastern Taurus Mountains (C. libani, A. Cilicia and P. nigra). Eastwards, forest clusters mixing P. brutia and Quercus sp. become frequent under continental climate influences (Boydak et al. 2006) (Fig. 4.90a). In the northern parts of the region, xeric woodlands composed of oaks, pistachio trees and Rosaceae (rose/plum family shrubs and trees) are characteristic. Southwards, the increasing aridity modifies the vegetation cover over the plateaus where herb-rich steppes expand (Fig. 4.90b), while the foothills skirting the higher reliefs in the eastern part of the region correspond to open steppe vegetation, associated with scattered oaks and wild fruit trees. All these areas are famous for having provided the wild variants of many cereals, including wheat, oat and rye (Moore et al. 2000), which favoured the very early initiation of Neolithic practices in the upper Euphrates (e.g. Nevali Çori, Cafer) and upper Tigris basins (e.g. Halan Çemi, Çayönü) (Willcox 2005). Later, agriculture and pasturing activities rapidly spread over the region, especially through the corridors drained by the Euphrates and Tigris rivers. Where soil and humidity conditions are suitable (e.g. in the undulating plateaus of the Euphrates Basin between Gaziantep and Urfa, and in the Tigris Basin in Siirt), pistachio tree cultivation produces remarkable high incomes. In the valley bottoms, riverine forests group Oriental plane, Euphrates poplar, ash, as well as various wetland

plants. These green areas have attracted gardening agriculture and tree cultivation (pistachio, fig, grenades, citrus and olive), sustained through history by irrigation networks installed on late Pleistocene and Holocene terraces (Fig. 4.91).

4.7.1.4 Hydrography When arriving in the Adıyaman depression, the Euphrates River has already crossed and drained a wide area corresponding to most of the Eastern Anatolia (Fig. 4.92a). Smaller in length and in catchment size (Fig. 4.92b), the drainage collected by the Tigris River in Turkey fits totally in the eastern part of the south-eastern region (Fig. 4.87c). The pluvial–nival regime of these rivers is controlled by the Mediterranean cyclonic circulation (Cullen and deMenocal 2000). This is especially true during the cold season when abundant water provided by Mediterranean rains and snowmelt is discharged to the rivers draining the eastern Taurus and the Zagros mountains. As a result, discharges of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers present three characteristics; (1) A seasonal distribution of discharges characterized by high irregularity, with more than half of the annual discharge flowing in March, April and May, and very low discharges occurring at the end of summer. In

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Fig. 4.90 Forested highlands of the region. Humidity-bearing clouds reach the highlands in the north and east of the region. It allows expansion of forests, while vegetation in the plateaus and plains in the south is reversely adapted to an increasingly dry climate, accentuated

when karstic processes affect limestone outcrop surfaces. a Oak forests in the Zap River Basin (Hakkari). b Scarce oak trees in the dry steppe landscape of the Mardin-Midyat Plateau, near the Zerzevan Roman

addition, the duration of the highs and lows in seasonal discharges varies from year to year. (2) An amount of annual modules varying from 1 to 4 from one year to another. For example, before the Keban Dam came into operation in 1974, the annual discharge of the Euphrates at the Syrian border was 28 and 31 km3 during the 1958/1962 and 1970/75 (respectively) very heavy dry episodes. These values

represented 49 and 62% of the mean annual value. On the contrary, during the humid year 1969, the annual discharge reached 58 km3 (Mutin 2003). (3) Rivers are subject to high-magnitude and violent floods (Vaumas 1958). In the Tigris River especially, floods can be very violent because the river receives successive contributions of impetuous left bank tributaries nourished by the Eastern Anatolian highlands. These

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Fig. 4.91 Gardens and traditional land use in the south-eastern Turkey. a Typical traditional mulberry tree cultivation associated with cereal fields and pastures over the southlooking slopes of the Taurus (Baki village, Siverek). Familial tradition of pomegranate, mulberry and grapes is frequent in villages in the upper Euphrates River together with cereal fields. Such a tradition produced landscapes similar to those in Umbria (Italy) or in western and Central Anatolia during the BOP (Beyşehir Occupation Phase, that lasted from the mid-second mill. BC to the mid-first mill. AD). In the picture, the gardens overlook the valley of a tributary of the Euphrates River, inundated by the Atatürk

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Dam. b The Hevsel gardens at Diyarbakır were evoked for the first time in ninth-century BC-old Aramean chronicles (upper Mesopotamia) (Glassner 1993, 2004; Assénat and Pérez 2013). The gardens are watered by numerous springs outflowing from the base of a basalt lava over which the Diyarbakır City is built. The gardens grow over five terrace levels descending to the Tigris River floodplain in the east, included in UNESCO’s List of Cultural World Heritage (together with the citadel walls: Soyukaya 2015). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (a) and N. Soyukaya (b)

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Fig. 4.92 a The Euphrates River downstream the Karakaya Dam site (location: Fig. 4.87c). The depth of the canyon before the dam building was 1100 m, with the highest point at 3 km east of the dam, and 570 m

when calculating a 1 km bird-eye distance. b The Tigris River flowing east of Batman between the Raman and Gercüş anticlines. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

tributaries are also very efficient erosive, especially at times of snowmelt. In addition, floods occur often several times during one year, as the slope gradient favours immediate reactions to precipitations and snowmelt.

and with the implementation of the South-eastern Anatolia Project (Güneydoğu Anadolu Projesi, or GAP), Turkey launched an ambitious plan to harness the waters of the Tigris and the Euphrates for irrigation and hydroelectricity production, and for providing an economic stimulus to the region (Jongerden 2010). With its 22 dams and 19 power plants, the GAP Project aims at providing irrigation water to 1,700,000 ha of agricultural land (i.e. 20% of the irrigable land in Turkey), affecting a total area of 75,000 km2 and >8 million people (i.e. 10% of Turkey’s total surface area and population) (Jongerden 2010). The largest dam on the Euphrates is the Atatürk Dam, built south of the Adıyaman depression, at ca. 55 km NW of Şanlıurfa, and completed in

Throughout the history, the Euphrates and Tigris rivers have been and still are of vital importance to those living along their courses and in the valleys of their tributaries (Algaze et al. 1991; Tuna and Velibeyoğlu 1999, 2001, 2002; Kuzucuoğlu 2002b, 2007; Kozbe et al. 2017; Karadoğan 2018). Since the construction of the first Turkish dam on the Euphrates at Keban (a few kms downstream of the confluence of the Karasu and Murat rivers in Eastern Anatolia),

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1992. But the Karakaya Dam (second in size after the Atatürk Dam), which is built across a very narrow and deep gorge in the eastern Taurus, is the highest in electricity production with 30% of the hydroelectric power of the country (Fig. 4.87c). With the construction of such large hydropower stations, irrigation schemes and pipelines capable of transporting water over large distances, the changes in lifestyles, in distribution of population and in environment and ecosystems habitats have been tremendous. The magnitude of these changes is increasing, also with the completion of the last dams of the GAP Project, among which the very important and contested Ilısu Dam that will soon be in operation (Fig. 4.87c).

4.7.2 Geomorphological Landscapes South-eastern Anatolia corresponds to the northern margin of the Arabian Plate that is colliding with the Anatolian Plate since late Miocene (Fig. 4.93). Together with the uplift of Eastern Anatolia and the formation of the Eastern Taurus, the collision has affected a continuous sedimentary succession from Precambrian to Recent. Within this structural framework, the regional organization of the geological structure presents (1) an Alpine range to the north, which is affected by tectonics since middle Miocene, and (2) a foreland system developed to the south over the Arabian Plate, but increasingly deformed towards north and east in direction of the

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eastern Taurus-Zagros Alpine ranges (Fig. 4.93). Since 16 Myr, intraplate magmatism also emitted basalts at several points over the Arabian Plate (Fig. 4.94), while tectonic depressions opened along the arched northern and southern limits of the contact between the Alpine range and the Arabian Plate (Fig. 4.93). During the late Miocene–early Pliocene, emersion from the sea gave birth to wide limestone plateaus extending from the Hatay tectonic system in the west to the eastern limits of the Tigris Basin in direction of Hakkari (Fig. 4.87a). In the geographic centre of these plateaus, an almond-shaped basaltic system, the Karacadağ Volcano is the largest volcano of Turkey. Starting during late Miocene, its emissions have constructed the water divide between the basins of the Euphrates (to the west) and Tigris (to the east) rivers. Since late Miocene too, the deformation, emersion and incision of folds in the northern part of the region have generated the development of Jura-type landscapes, which are unique in Turkey. During the Plio-Pleistocene, valleys, terraces and floodplains developed under combined tectonic, lithologic and climatic controls (e.g. Demir et al. 2004a, b; Doğan 2005a, b; Kuzucuoğlu and Karadoğan 2015). As a result, the regional landscapes record this interplay of structural deformations (both vertical and horizontal), lithology (differences in sensitivity to weathering and incision) and surface processes. In addition, since the Late Glacial, diverse Prehistoric cultures (Taşkıran 2018), as well as Neolithic, Antique and Medieval civilizations have left many imprints on the upper Mesopotamian landscapes.

Fig. 4.93 Geological map of south-east Anatolia. Modified from Okay (2008)

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Fig. 4.94 Volcanic outcrops in south-east Anatolia. Modified from Adıyaman and Chorowicz (2002)

4.7.2.1 Landscapes in the Plateaus Landscapes in the South-eastern Anatolian Plateaus develop mainly over outcrops of early Eocene-to-early Miocene marine limestones (Fig. 4.95). To the north and east, these outcrops are limited by faults and thrusts deforming Mesozoic to Cenozoic units. To the south, these plateaus correspond to a piedmont subject to wide-angled tectonic deformations (Nicoll 2009) (Fig. 4.93). Locally, basaltic mesas overlay the surface of the limestone plateaus. In the north, the large continental Adıyaman and Diyarbakır detritic basins opened as a consequence of shearing generated by the formation and activity of the East Anatolian Fault Zone, in the context of intense folding along the thrust line (Robertson et al. 2016) (Figs. 4.87a and 4.93). These basins are filled with late Miocene and Pliocene lacustrine and alluvial deposits, which have also been folded (Koç Taşgın et al. 2011). Deepening with time and with distance from the surrounding highlands, they have been filled by hundreds of metres of Plio-Pleistocene clastic formations (Fig. 4.87a). South of the region, small plains interrupt the plateaus dominating the Syrian lowlands (Figs. 4.87a and 4.93). In the middle of the region, the huge Karacadağ Volcano splits these plateaus into two parts. Within this general frame, ages and forms of the landscapes get younger from the west (Kilis, Gaziantep, Nizip), to the centre (Birecik, Şanlıurfa) and the east (Mardin, Diyarbakır, Şırnak, Hakkari) of the region, mainly because of regional Plio-Pleistocene tectonic

deformations (e.g. uplift in the northern and eastern parts of the region). In parallel, the plateau surfaces in the western part are at ca. 700–650 m asl (Gaziantep, Birecik, Şanlıurfa), while they reach ca. 950–1050 m asl in the eastern part (Mardin, Midyat, Batman). This contrast is accentuated by the ages of the limestone formations constructing the plateaus, which are older in the eastern part (where they are also more intensely deformed) and increasingly younger in the western part. However, the differences in the landscapes west and east of the Karacadağ do not result so much from differences of ages and altitudes of the limestone plateaus in both parts, but from the differences between (i) the intensity of tectonic deformations, especially in folded areas, (ii) the thickness of the limestone formations, (iii) the exposure time and (iv) the resistance to erosion (incision) and sensitivity to weathering (karstic) processes. Stratigraphy From the oldest to the youngest, the Cenozoic limestone series forming the plateaus are (Fig. 4.95): (1) Basal Palaeocene deep marine limestones, cropping out exceptionally in the eastern part of the region, where they are tectonically deformed (e.g. near Gercüş). (2) From the middle Eocene to the late Oligocene, neritic limestones were laid down. They crop out everywhere, with some depositional time differences between the

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Fig. 4.95 Lithostratigraphic units of south-east Anatolia. Modified from Gaziulusoy (2008)

eastern and western parts of the region. In the west, this unit is called Gaziantep Formation (west of the Euphrates) and Şanlıurfa Formation (east of the Euphrates) (Fig. 4.95). It has been quarried since the earliest Neolithic at Göbekli Tepe near Şanlıurfa, and also in the Bazda underground quarry, which contributed to the construction of the Harran Castle during the Iron Age. In the east, this unit is a yellowish dolomitic limestone deposited between the early Eocene and middle Oligocene, called Hoya Formation or Midyat Limestones (Figs. 4.95 and 4.96). These limestones are overlain by late Oligocene evaporites. (3) The following Fırat Formation was deposited over a shallow platform during early Miocene. Whether in the west or east of the region, these reef algal limestones are very resistant (Fig. 4.97). Since middle Miocene, multi-phased truncations have ben fossilized by basalts in the western (between Kilis-Gaziantep and Şanlıurfa) and central (Karacadağ products) parts of the region. (4) From the late Miocene onwards, remains of erosion surfaces have been also widely blanketed by a thick terra rossa preserved by patches in the western part. During the Mio-Pliocene, lacustrine to alluvial deposits (Şelmo Formation) were deposited in two tectonic basins at the foot of the northern highlands (i.e. the Adıyaman and Diyarbakır basins) (Fig. 4.98). During the Plio-Pleistocene, linear troughs related to the formation of the Euphrates and Tigris river systems

were filled by coarse deposits transiting from the rising highlands to the north over the Arabian Plate to the south.

Landscape Evolution in the Plateaus There are two types of plateau surfaces in the region: surfaces parallel to the layering of sedimentary rocks (structural surfaces) and those resulting from erosional processes truncating dipping layers (in homocline and folded structures). Surfaces corresponding to flat lying structures occur over limestones in the southern part of the plateaus and over non-deformed detritic layers filling tectonic depressions located to the south of the south-eastern Taurus Range (Fig. 4.99). Structural plateau surfaces occur over the Gaziantep and Fırat formations west and east of the Euphrates between Nizip and Urfa, and over the Hoya and Fırat formations in the eastern plateaus (Figs. 4.96 and 4.97). In both cases, however, incision and karstic weathering actively reduced the extent of these surfaces. In the centre of the Adıyaman and Diyarbakır tectonic depressions, the initial horizontal disposition of sediments composed of floodplain muds and alluvial coarse clastics were not affected by later movements. Depending on cohesion and thickness differences of the sediments layers, they form today horizontal flat landscapes in which differential erosion of small streams produces terrace-like landscapes topping badlands or vertical cliffs.

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Fig. 4.96 Hoya formation is made up of Eocene-to-Oligocene marine limestones and outcrops mostly in the Tigris Basin where it forms, for example, the wide Midyat plateau east of Mardin. a Outcrops near Hoya village in the Euphrates valley inundated by the Atatürk Lake

Dam in the background (Çüngüş District, Diyarbakır). b Hoya formation quarried by Romans at Dara (Mardin). Photographs by S. Karadoğan (a) and C. Kuzucuoğlu (b)

On the other hand, denudational surfaces truncate the Eocene-to-Miocene limestones in most parts of the region, which can be dated from (i) the Oligocene–Miocene transition, (ii) the middle Miocene, and (iii) the late Miocene. Since late Miocene, deep incision of the river network has destroyed many parts of them.

In the Euphrates Basin, the first phase of erosion is recorded by a truncation of slightly tilted Eocene-to-Oligocene Gaziantep limestones fossilized by the lower Miocene Fırat Formation. Parts of this surface are used to crop out in the bed of the Euphrates upstream of Birecik, before the Birecik reservoir inundated this part of the valley (Fig. 4.100a). The

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Fig. 4.97 Early Miocene Fırat limestone formation in the Tigris Valley north of Diyarbakır. Canyons often incise the Fırat limestone formation with slopes exhibiting numerous caves. Here, the Tigris

incises a beautiful antecedent meander north of Eğil (inundated by the Dicle dam lake). Photograph by S. Karadoğan

Fig. 4.98 Şelmo formation (upper Miocene to upper Pliocene) in the Adıyaman basin. This formation fills the two main depressions opened at the foot of the Miocene thrust forming the northern limit of the region: the Adıyaman and Diyarbakır basins. The facies and structures of the sediments record variations in accumulation dynamics related to continental systems (lake, rivers) in an active tectonic context (uplift,

folding, thrusting). On the south-western foot of the Alidağ anticline near Adıyaman (874 m), the Şelmo formation unconformably overlies the chalky Fırat formation, which has been dipped and folded during the mid- or late Miocene. On the flanks and top of the anticline, chalky to reefal facies of the Gaziantep formation outcrop. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 4.99 Plateaus corresponding to aclinal structures: a Aclinal structure of the Şelmo formation plateau is featured here in the Garzan River Basin, a left bank tributary of the middle Tigris east of Diyarbakır. The denudational surface was most probably constituted during the Pliocene. b At Diyarbakır, the Tigris River incises the Şelmo

Formation. Here it is composed of red floodplain clays alternating with coarse fluvial sandstones and conglomerates. A horizontal, 13-m thick, 1-Myr-old basalt flow covering the Şelmo formation fossilizes a denudational surface dating early Pleistocene (Westaway et al. 2009). Photographs by S. Karadoğan (a) and C. Kuzucuoğlu (b)

second (middle Miocene) denudational surface is fossilized below basalts in the western part of the region. Occurrences can be observed north of Kilis in the direction of Pazarcık, below the 21–16-Myr-old basalts resting over lower Miocene reef limestones. This surface, which is now at ca. 800–700 m asl., is composed of residual hills and lower flats resulting from the contrasted resistance to erosion between the partly destroyed remains of the Fırat (younger, harder) and

Gaziantep (older, softer) formations. This surface seems to crop out also below the Şelmo Formation in the uppermost parts of the Euphrates Basin in the region. The third surface truncates both the Fırat and Gaziantep formations. North and east of Gaziantep, it is dated by overlaying 10–7-Myr-old basaltic flows. Its sloped topography descending ca. 100 m in 35 km from west to east (i.e. from ca. 600 to 500 m asl) may have favoured the inception of a palaeoriver Euphrates system

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east of Gaziantep. This interpretation is supported by gravel deposits of Eastern Anatolian origin, fossilized by a 9-Myr-old basalt at Shireen in northern Syria, a few km south of the Turkish border (Demir et al. 2007b). This late Miocene plateau surface is now being incised by a dense stream

network taking advantage of the soft chalky limestones of the Gaziantep Formation down to 350 m (i.e. the altitude of the Euphrates bed before inundation by the Birecik Dam reservoir). Today, remains of all surfaces are covered by a red soil cover (terra rossa) suggesting that long weathering phases

Fig. 4.100 a Oligocene erosional surfaces truncating Eocene formations: upstream Birecik (Urfa), the bed of the Euphrates incises the Gaziantep formation facies: clayey at the base and hard at the top. A lateral movement of the river in the course of the incision has exhumed an erosion surface bearing a typical karstic landscape (a surface pavement marked by clints and grykes), developed during an emersion phase at the end of Eocene or during Oligocene (?). Such a river incision in the bedrock is indicative of a recent local uplift. On the northern edge of the

Adıyaman tectonic basin, b Miocene erosional surface is fossilized by Miocene Şelmo detritics accumulated during the tectonic events related to the Arabian/Anatolian thrust and to the uplift of the eastern Taurus. At the location of the photograph, the Severan Roman Bridge built during the reign of Severe Imperator crosses the Cendere stream, a tributary of the Euphrates River. The stream gorge incised in the Fırat Formation also exhibits numerous caves and other karstic landforms (Kahta district, Adıyaman). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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succeeded the denudation phases and the dismantling of the surfaces. In the entire region between Gaziantep and Şanlıurfa, this terra rossa sustains the production of the famous Antep pistachio. In the eastern part of the region between Mardin to Batman, the Midyat plateau surface truncates the Hoya Formation which dips westward (Fig. 4.89), as does also the surface of the plateau which increases eastward to ca. 1050 and 1100 m asl. Together with the absence of outcrops younger than the Hoya Formation in this area, this observation shows that this part of the region has been subjected to a younger and/or more important uplift or tilting than the western part. Landscapes in the Plateaus, Recording Impacts of Pleistocene Uplift During the Pliocene, river deposits eroding the preceding formations have been dispatched within the plateaus. Their lithological composition mirrors the variety of substrata in the northern highlands (notably the Bitlis Suture Zone), with the addition of clasts from folded Mesozoic series and tilted Cenozoic limestones. These Pliocene deposits are contemporaneous with tectonic deformations affecting both (i) the continental formations in Adıyaman and Diyarbakır continental depressions (Koç Taşgın et al. 2011; Fig. 4.98) and (ii) marine corridors that were persisting while the Taurus was deformed by folds, faults and thrusts. Valleys in the plateaus show many landscapes recording antecedence to

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these tectonic movements, including formation of canyons into the Gaziantep, Hoya (Fig. 4.96a), Fırat (Fig. 4.97) and Şelmo formations (Fig. 4.99), and meander entrenchment (Figs. 4.88a, 4.92, 4.97 and 4.101). Geometry of this river network incision points to a southward flowing system. Possibly recording the late Miocene ancestor already suspected from late Miocene denudation surface remains, an elongated fossil trough directed southward has eroded the Fırat Formation south of Samsat and Bozova near the Atatürk Dam, in the direction of the Harran plain. Mio-Pliocene continental conglomerates and sandstones mostly fill this trough, while its eastern edge is cut into the clayey facies of the Şanlıurfa Formation. On both sides of the trough, basalt lavas form a water divide that separates the Euphrates Basin from the Şanlıurfa region. Pearce et al. (1990) dated these basalts to 0.94 and 0.83 Myr. This age is similar to the early Pleistocene age of pebbly deposits eroding the Şelmo Formation and fossilized by a lava flow near Diyarbakır (Westaway et al. 2009) (Fig. 4.99b). It is interesting to note that the only plateau that resisted the Pleistocene incision is formed by the oldest lava flows emitted during the long life of the Karacadağ volcanic region (the so-called Siverek phase: see below). In the limestone plateaus, terrace staircases record the impacts of climate and tectonics during Pleistocene (Demir et al. 2007a). In the valleys of the Euphrates and its tributary the Sajur stream, Pliocene-to-Pleistocene alluvial terraces, formed by accumulation of pebbles of Eastern Anatolian

Fig. 4.101 Rumkale ancient fortress occupies a site on the convex bank of the Euphrates, corresponding today to a peninsula surrounded by a meander inundated by the reservoir lake of the Birecik Dam. Photograph by S. Karadoğan

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origin, have been studied by several authors (Erol et al. 1987; Minzoni-Desroches and Sanlaville 1988; Mouralis 1999; Demir et al. 2004b, 2007b, 2008; Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2004; Kuzucuoğlu 2006). The terrace staircase in the Euphrates starts south of Samsat at ca. 465 m asl, i.e. +120 m above the pre-dam Euphrates level at Birecik. The valley is then incised into the Gaziantep Formation. From the uppermost fluvial levels down to the floodplain, altitudes and facies of alluvium have provided important clues regarding the rhythms of this incision since the Pliocene. According to Demir et al. (2008), the magnitude of incision reached a total of 270 m, when the regional surface uplift reached ca. 600 m. In this result, the authors calculated that the incision caused by an increase in the regional uplift rates since the early–middle Pleistocene has reached a 55 m height. Similar results have been obtained in the Tigris Valley around and downstream Diyarbakır, where the Tigris River also flows down ca. 120 m within the Şelmo Formation (Bridgland et al. 2007, Westaway et al. 2009; Kuzucuoğlu and Karadoğan 2015) (Figs. 4.91b and 4.99b). This Şelmo Formation records the subsidence in the Diyarbakır Basin since Miocene. Coarse continental deposits at its top have been sealed by 1.3–0.9-Myr-old lava flows emitted from Karacadağ Volcano (Fig. 4.99b). Consequently, and whatever the cause of the incision (climate change or tectonics), the Tigris River and its tributaries started to incise the whole detritic series during the early Pleistocene (Bridgland et al. 2007). Typical sections of following early-to-midPleistocene alternations of lava flows and palaeoriver Tigris alluvium are still well visible around the city of Diyarbakır (Karadoğan and Kuzucuoğlu 2017). The Tectonic Plains Scattered Along the Turkish–Syrian Border Along the Turkish–Syrian border the plateau, which presents almost no surface drainage, is interrupted by plains filled with fertile Quaternary alluvium (Fig. 4.87a). Most of these plains are quite small in size, e.g. the Suruç plain (west of Harran) and the Cizre plain (at the exit of the Tigris south of the Midyat plateau). The largest one, the Harran plain is 50 km N–S and 30 km W–E. South of Şanlıurfa, the Harran plain corresponds to a graben bordered by N–S-trending faults, which cut the Eocene limestones of the Şanlıurfa plateau. According to hydrogeological research, there are two aquifers in the plain: a shallow and unconfined aquifer in the uppermost Pleistocene formation and a confined reservoir in the Eocene limestones (Yeşilnacar and Yenigün 2011). The upper aquifer has nourished, since several millennia, an intense occupation of the plain, connected to a productive agriculture. Today, however, the second, deep and confined aquifer is being pumped by hundreds of metres

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deep wells yielding between 20 and 100 l/s. This growth of irrigation, sustained by the GAP (South Anatolian Project, in Turkish), has completely transformed the landscapes of the area, with problematic side effects on the environment, such as the significant rise of salinization.

4.7.2.2 Volcanic Landscapes and Landforms Intraplate volcanism has caused emissions of basalts at several points over the Arabian Plate (Fig. 4.94). This volcanic activity occurred in four distinct phases between the early Miocene and the late Pleistocene (Arger et al. 2000). Apart from the huge Karacadağ Volcano in the middle of the region, most basaltic products have been emitted during the Miocene. Volcanic Landscapes in the West West, south and east of the middle Euphrates drainage basin, i.e. between Gaziantep, Kilis and Şanlıurfa (Fig. 4.102a), basaltic clusters are dated Miocene. They show an eastward displacement of activity, from Gaziantep in the direction of Şanlıurfa. West of Gaziantep and north of Kilis, in the direction of Pazarcık near the Eastern Anatolian Fault Zone, SW–NE oriented basalt outcrops parallel the Hatay Fault zone. This volcanic system continues in northern Syria (Krienitz et al. 2006), where it is associated with the Dead Sea rift (Adıyaman and Chorowicz 2002; Myr et al. 2011). It is dated to ca. 21–16 Myr, i.e. early to mid-Miocene, and was not reactivated afterwards (Terlemez et al. 1997; Karaca 2008; Gürsoy et al. 2009). East of Gaziantep and in the direction of Şanlıurfa, other basalt flows occur, younger and different in chemical composition (Ekici et al. 2014). Their outcrops are slightly NE–W curved. This orientation parallels the SW lateral movement of the Arabian Plate along the collision line. Basalt clusters have been dated 10–7 Myr east and south of Kilis, 12.1–10.4 Myr east of Birecik (Yoldemir 1987) and 8–7 Myr at Akçale south of Şanlıurfa (Ulu et al. 1991). These flows have formed mesa landscapes similar to those seen in the Gaziantep area. The Karacadağ Volcano The Karacadağ basaltic shield volcano has been built in three phases: Siverek, Karacadağ and Ovabağ (Fig. 4.102 b). The Siverek phase emitted basalts over a ca. 4000 km2 surface today forming a wide plateau. These few but abundant basalt flows have been emitted from SSE–NNW oriented fissures related to the movement of the Arabian Plate (Ekici et al. 2014). Dated to the middle and late Miocene (from 16 to 6.6 Myr ago: Yoldemir 1987; Ercan et al. 1990; Lustrino et al. 2010) (Fig. 4.103a-background), they fossilize Miocene erosion surfaces truncating the autochthonous marine series covering the Arabian Plate (Fig. 4.103b-background).

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Fig. 4.102 a Map of the basaltic volcanic outcrops in the South-eastern Anatolia, with Ar-Ar and K-Ar ages in Myr. Modified from Adıyaman and Chorowicz (2002) and Gürsoy et al. (2009), with

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additional dates from Westaway et al. (2009), Lustrino et al. (2010, 2012), Keskin et al. (2012) and Türkecan (2014). b Map of the Karacadağ volcanism. Modified from Koçbulut et al. (2013)

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Fig. 4.103 Landscapes in the Karacadağ and along its limits a The western side of the Karacadağ, with the Volcano at the horizon (Diyarbakır). b The Siverek basaltic plateau overlies the Şelmo formation (the basalt cliffs border the plateau in the background, left

of the photograph). The Şelmo formation covers the Fırat dolomitic limestones outcropping in the foreground (Baki village, Şanlıurfa). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

The second phase of the Karacadağ volcanism occurred in three periods. The basalts, which flew mostly east of the Siverek plateau, present a chemical composition different from that of the Siverek basalts (Lustrino et al. 2010, 2012; Ekici et al. 2014; Koçbulut et al. 2013) (Fig. 4.102b). During the first period (late Pliocene: 4–2.7 Myr), a few but abundant N–S fissure flows occurred (Ercan et al. 1990; Notsu et al. 1995; Brigland et al. 2007; Westaway et al. 2009; Lustrino et al. 2010). In the Cizre plain, far east from the Karacadağ itself, the İdil basaltic field belongs to this Pliocene phase (Trifonov et al. 2011; Keskin et al. 2012; Türkecan 2015) (Fig. 4.102a). During a second period

(early Pleistocene: 1.7–0.9 Myr), several tens of km-long lava flows extended in all directions over and around the initial products, but with preferential directions towards east and south (Figs. 4.88 and 4.99b). During the third period (mid- and late Pleistocene: 430–50 ka ago), new lava flows produced similar products that terminated the construction of the Karacadağ Volcano (Notsu et al. 1995; Westaway et al. 2009) (Figs. 4.102b and 4.103a). In spite of its size (>80 km width; 120 km length) and because of its mainly fissural origin, its maximum altitude remains modest (1919 m asl), rising above the surrounding plateau by only 650 m.

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The volcanic products of the Siverek Miocene phase and of the Pliocene–early Pleistocene Karacadağ Volcano have been used to evidence and date (i) erosional surfaces (see above) and (ii) the types as well as timing and magnitude of incision in the Euphrates and Tigris river valleys (Bridgland et al. 2007; Westaway et al. 2009). The Mio-Pliocene denudational topography fossilized by the first emissions is testified for both erosional flats (Fig. 4.103b) and a drainage network south of Diyarbakır with fluvial deposits dated to 1.1. Myr (palaeoriver Tigris?). The 1.1-Myr-aged alluvial materials were deposited over a surface standing today at ca. 75 m above the Tigris River bed (Westaway et al. 2009). In 2015, Karadoğan and Yıldırım suggested that the Pliocene palaeofluvial corridor that was disrupted by the Karacadağ Volcano lavas flowing westward, in direction of today’s Euphrates Basin. According to these authors, the construction of the volcano dammed the corridor, disconnected the palaeoriver Tigris system from its western reaches, thus transforming with time the lake depositional environment of the Şelmo Formation south of Diyarbakır into an alluvial one. According to this hypothesis, (i) today’s upper Tigris was a tributary to a westward-flowing palaeoriver, (ii) after the Şelmo depression was filled with alluvial fans terminating its lake infill, and (iii) a tributary to this palaeoriver (today’s upper Tigris) was captured south of Diyarbakır by another fluvial system flowing eastward. The third phase of the Karacadağ activity, called the Ovabağ phase, occurred during the late Pleistocene. Concentrated in the east again, it consists of few fresh Strombolian volcanic fields east of the Karacadağ, north of the Harran plain (Yeşilnacar and Yenigün 2011), near Mardin (Yıldırım and Karadoğan 2010) and near Cizre (Keskin et al. 2012). In all these areas, the volcanic landscapes are fresh solitary cones, surrounded with very fluid alkali lava flows. In the Karacadağ south of Diyarbakır, the flows are vesicular, retaining flow structures such as pahoehoe surfaces and surface breakout structures. Ekici et al. (in press, cited by Ekici et al. 2014) have dated these products to 0.53 ± 1.14 and 0.29 ± 0.13 ka using Ar–Ar method. Remarkably, the flows were directed eastwards, in conformity with the slope controlled by the subsidence of the Diyarbakır Basin. Channelized by small stream valleys on distances up to 20 km over the eastern flanks of Mount Karacadağ (Figs. 4.102b and 4.103a-foreground), the corresponding landscapes express vividly the young age of the latest emissions. The youngest flows disorganized the drainage at the foot of the south-eastern flanks of the Karacadağ, forcing streams to divert around the flows and cones, isolating several small areas in which very beautiful, yet untouched, marshes and lakes landscapes developed.

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4.7.2.3 Karstic Landscapes Karstic landscapes are numerous in the various limestone outcrops of the region. In the Cenozoic limestones, the compressive tectonic regime slowed down karstification (Ekmekçi 2003). In the fold belt however, the compression forced marine Mesozoic carbonate platforms to rise and be both eroded and weathered when coming close to the surface. Laterally Developed Karst In the Eocene-to-Oligocene limestones of the Gaziantep and Hoya formations, karstification occurs only in the upper layers where the clay content is much lower than in the older layers (Eroskay and Günay 1979; Ekmekçi 2003). Accordingly, the karstification processes progress laterally rather then vertically when reaching this contact. This contact has thus been a preferential zone for the development of carved rock cemeteries, cellars and troglodyte houses (Fig. 4.104), especially in the southern plateaus where the limestones have not been uplifted. Besides, the development of karst is controlled by the incision of the main river valleys in the limestones (Ekmekçi 2003). When the valley incision deepens below the floor of the karstic unit, the underground flow is easily captured (Fig. 4.105). According to Ekmekçi (2003), other karstic features commonly observed in the region are: (1) important springs occurring either above or in the river beds, or along the normal faults (e.g. Harran), (2) extensive surface features scattered over carbonate outcrops, including dolines, uvalas and frequently collapsing shallow caves (e.g. Çanakçı 2007), and (3) development of a dense network over the surface of the limestone outcrops, composed of blind, dry and curved runnels up to ca. 15 m deep (e.g. east and west of Şanlıurfa, east of Mardin, south of Midyat, etc.). The spatial distribution of the limestones on both sides of the Tigris River valley takes part to the strong asymmetry of the Tigris Basin (Figs. 4.87c and 4.106) in which several northern tributaries deliver abundant water discharges at each confluence, while tributaries are almost inexistent in the south of the main drain. In the south (the Mardin-Midyat plateau), the absence of northward flowing run-off is caused by the southward and westward dipping of the underground karst. The water divide between the Tigris River and this underground network flowing south and west forms a W–E barrier 15–20 km south of the Tigris Valley. As a result, few streams reaching the right banks of the Tigris River from the Midyat plateau are sustained only by springs occurring at the contact between the Hoya Formation and impervious units in the folds deforming the northern side of the plateau.

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Fig. 4.104 Some of the numerous Roman hypogeae and medieval troglodyte settlements in the Neogene karstic limestones. a The site and city of Hasankeyf, in the Tigris Valley have been inhabited since the Neolithic. The photograph pictures troglodyte houses in horizontal caves resembling a Pueblo site. Down the karstic stream valley, the city

of Hasankeyf dominates the Tigris River with a famous medieval castle and religious centre (Batman). b At Dara, a frontier city built by the Romans at the southern edge of the Plateau near Mardin, a hypogea was built near this rich garrison city. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Gypsum Karst In the eastern and northern parts of the region, gypsum outcrops occur, which have been deposited during the Palaeocene (Gercüş Formation) and the Oligocene (Germik Formation) (Yeşilova and Helvacı 2013; Yeşilova et al. 2018). These formations outcrop along the deformed edges

of the Diyarbakır depression, especially north of Lice and west of Batman. In both these areas, karstic landforms occur in a 20–30 km-wide band. These most remarkable of these are caprock dolines collapsing below the Mio-Pliocene continental formations covering them (Doğan 2005a). These dolines are sometimes filled with water. In other areas, such

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Fig. 4.105 a Canyon incising the Çüngüş anticline in direction of the Euphrates (Diyarbakır). b A blind and dry karstic valley on the right flank of the Tigris Valley through the Hoya plateau at Hasankeyf

(located downstream the valley) (Sinanoğlu et al. 2017). Photographs by S. Karadoğan (a) and C. Kuzucuoğlu (b)

as along the Garzan River NE of Batman, the hidden presence of the same Oligocene evaporites is also signalled by collapse dolines occurring along the valley.

These elongated highlands correspond to anticlines deforming the sedimentary cover of the Arabian Plate. In the regional relief, these landscapes are distributed in two sets: one set parallels the northern limits of the South-eastern Anatolian Region, and the other one develops in the plateaus. This distribution matches the number of folding phases, the last compressional phase being mainly responsible

Jura-Type Landscapes in Folded Highlands Along the northern and eastern borders of the region, elongated highlands are stretching in curved lines (Fig. 4.106).

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Fig. 4.106 Distribution and names of folds in SE Anatolia

for the folds in the southern plateaus. As a matter of fact, folds in the South-eastern Anatolian Region accommodate three distinct compressional phases dated as: (1) late Cretaceous, (2) early Eocene and (3) post-early Miocene (Şaroğlu et al. 1992). While Cretaceous structures usually trend SW–NE, Miocene structures trend E–W and are found mainly in the southern part of the region (Perinçek et al. 1993) (Fig. 4.106). All the folds in South-eastern Anatolia were formed by decollement forces exerted on (1) shales (shallow environments) in marine carbonate sequences deposited since the Palaeozoic, (2) gypsum and anhydrite comprised in the Germav (Palaeogene) and Germik (Oligocene) formations outcropping, for example, north of the Gercüş folds and along the Kurtalan fold (Yeşilova and Helvacı 2016) and (3) evaporites deposited in the early Miocene sebkha environments (e.g. in the Ziyaret fold deforming the Lice Formation) (Fig. 4.95). Such decollement displacements produced numerous recumbent, faulted and reverse folds rolling N–W (in the west) and N–E (in the east). The resulting internal fold structures are currently visible in sections along roads. In the highlands formed by the fold belt, the folds are crossed by the upper reaches of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and their tributaries, with incisions generating pronounced contrasting reliefs (Figs. 4.88a, 4.90a, 4.91a, 4.96a, 4.102, 4.107, 4.108 and 4.109). In the west, folds occur south of the Eastern Anatolian Fault Zone, deforming

geologic formations over which the Bitlis Zone thrusts southwards (Figs. 4.92a, 4.105a, 4.107 and 4.108). Eastward from Adıyaman, faulted and recumbent folds parallel the displacement of the Arabian Plate plunging under the Eurasian Plate along the Miocene thrust zone (e.g. north of Kahta and in the Çermik and Cüngüş areas). In the north-east, folds deform Mesozoic to early Miocene units (e.g. the Hazro anticline south of Lice, the Ziyaret and Silvan anticlines NE of Siirt) (Figs. 4.88a and 4.106). From Siirt to Hakkari, W–E trending folds rise eastwards and connect to the Zagros Range (Figs. 4.87c, 4.90a and 4.106). Because of the intensity and variety of decollements, the folds are currently asymmetric, with steep to overturned limbs, reverse faults and inner thrusts. Erosion in anticlines started during the late Miocene. In the northern folds, it has often reached Cretaceous (Cergüş and Çermik anticlines), Jurassic (Hazro anticline NW of Silvan) and Triassic to Palaeozoic bedrocks (east of Siirt and south of CizreHakkari). In these folds, mineral resources occur, such as the Ergani copper exploited since the Neolithic (Erim-Özdoğan 2011), and oil in the Mesozoic series. Today, oil resources are exploited in the hearts of folds at İdil (Dinçer oil field), Batman (Raman oil field) and Siirt (Garzan-Germik oil field) (Gaziulusoy 2008), while asphaltite veins have been identified south of Şırnak, as well as between Bismil and Batman (Kavak et al. 2010). Paralleling the northern folds, a low fold zone is developed in the southern plateaus over a decollement zone

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Fig. 4.107 Impressive Kocahisar cluse deformed by the East Anatolian Fault Zone (north of Kahta District, Adıyaman). The cluse is drained by a left bank tributary of the Cendere stream that leads to the Nemrut Dağ site. While the folds deform the Cretaceous rocks and their

sediment cover (Eocene limestones of the Gaziantep Formation), the depression downstream the cluse is filled with lower Miocene marine limestones (Fırat Formation). Photograph by O. Akbulut

Fig. 4.108 Antecedence of the Euphrates River over deformations in the Bitlis zone (left of the photograph) through the northernmost band of the region. Cenozoic limestones are deformed by thrust folds (right of the photograph, in the background). These folds contact the intricate

rocks forming the Bitlis zone (centre and right of the photograph). The photograph is taken from the left bank of the Euphrates above the Karakaya Dam, a few km east of the Çüngüş folds. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

generated by the Oligocene/lower Eocene gypsum and gypsum-rich layers. These reliefs are more or less in line through the southern plateaus, from Gaziantep to Siirt. Compared to the northern folds, the southern folds are lower and narrower, giving birth to a more subdued topography except in the Mazıdağ anticline near Mardin (1230 m asl). The Mazıdağ anticline has been beheaded by the addition of a high-amplitude deformation with a superimposed incision along the fold axis, which revealed folded Cretaceous and Palaeozoic bedrocks below Palaeogene marine sediments.

Eastward, the southern folds in the plateaus pass on to the Şırnak and Hakkari folds. The southern folds developed into the Cenozoic limestones present Jura-type landscapes and are as much impressive as in the north, (e.g. the Bozova highs NE of Gaziantep; the Gercüş anticline near Savur village; the Raman anticline east of Batman; the Kurtalan anticline west of Siirt) (Yıldırım and Karadoğan 2011) (Fig. 4.106). This type of landscapes results from the combined impacts of tectonic movements (uplift, folding and faulting) and of

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Fig. 4.109 Jura-type landscapes in south-east Anatolia. At Baki, (Siverek) on the right bank of the Euphrates River, the stream incises a Cretaceous mound corresponding to an anticline overlain by the Fırat Formation. The unconformity is visible in the right of the photograph

where the almost non-deformed lower Miocene limestones cover the dipping Cretaceous rocks. The Euphrates River incises, by antecedence, the lowest part of the anticline deforming the Cretaceous units. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

karstic processes since the late Miocene. In South-eastern Anatolia, differential erosion of fluvial origin adding to other processes has truncated and incised folded rock piles in which they carved beautiful textbook landscapes (Fig. 4.109). In the region, the folds are generated by decollement. This process causes folding, recumbent and rolled anticlines, which are greatly faulted and fractured, especially near the surface. The longitudinal axis of the anticlines becoming easily erodible, most anticlines present an eroded core, named a “combe” in geomorphological literature (Fig. 4.109). When opened in marine carbonates, the breaching of the anticlines has given a way to the development of both surface and underground karstic features. This increased efficiency of erosion allowed for deep-reaching and fast erosion of the combes down to a more resistant or less karstic unit, thus outcropping as a “derived mound” in the middle of the combe. In South-eastern Anatolia, the multiplication of decollement phases in the northernmost folds has caused more cases of reverse faulting and breaching in the anticlines, so that folds are much more eroded, in depth as in length (down into the Mesozoic carbonate platforms), than the ones in the south. This is the reason why, on geological maps, the folds in South-eastern Anatolia correspond very often to concentric circles of contrasting colours with ages getting older away from the central circle. Among typical Jura-type landscapes, crest ridges in limestones, sandstones and conglomerates form escarpments circling the beheaded anticlines (also called breached or scalped anticlines) in which a longitudinal combe develops (Fig. 4.110). If the fold is symmetric, two crests circle the

breached anticline (e.g. the Hazro fold). When the compression has caused the fold to roll sideways, the landform reflects this reverse disposition and there is no crest formed along the faulted flank of the anticline, while a monocline crest dominates the other flank. In a breached anticline, a stream may drain the combe. In South-eastern Anatolia, deep valleys incising perpendicularly the crests surrounding fold axes through a transverse valley (cluse) are quite common features. They record the antecedence of the stream with regard to the folding. In quite a high number of cases, superimposition can be demonstrated because detrital deposition since late Miocene has often sealed previously deformed and eroded geological structures. For example, in the northern belt, the first phase of folding occurred during the Alpine phase at the Cretaceous/Palaeocene transition. During the Eocene, older surfaces were deformed, sealed, deformed again and finally sealed during the late Miocene and Pliocene. As a result, the top of crests in the region often consists of an erosion surface older than the early Miocene. In the southern folds, synclines deforming early Miocene limestones have been invaded by middle-to-late Miocene and Pliocene detrital sediments, which did not attain the top of the truncated Cenozoic limestones (e.g. the Gercüş, Raman and Kurtalan fields of anticlines in the Hoya Formation) (Figs. 4.110 and 4.111). At the easternmost end of the region, the Şırnak-Bağlıca and the Çukurca-Hakkari folds form E–W trending highlands tens of km long. These highlands reach ca. 2000 m altitude south of Bağlıca, near the Syrian border, and ca.

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Fig. 4.110 Morphological map (a) and section (b) of the Gercüş-Raman-Kendalan anticlines crossed by the Tigris River (from Batman to the Hasankeyf area). After Yıldırım and Karadoğan (2011)

3000 m in the Çukurca anticline. In these latter folds, compression has been so intense that erosion in the hearts of the folds has reached Palaeozoic formations down to Silurian (Bağlıca) and Permian (between Çukurca and Hakkari). In this region, anticline cores are usually emptied and their flanks are crossed by streams incising profound transverse valleys in the hard layers. Famous examples of such valleys are (1) the Demirbilek cluse between the Rivers Batman and Tigris valleys crossing the Raman anticline (Fig. 4.110); (2) the Yerlibahçe and Kumlutaş cluses drained by the Botan River south of Siirt through the Kendalan and Kurtalan anticlines (Fig. 4.111) and (3) the Dargeçit cluse in the eastern part of the Gercüş anticline (Yıldırım 2004). The

Tigris River itself incises several successive giant cluses downstream its confluence with the Botan River.

4.7.2.4 Human Occupation Since Palaeolithic Fluvial terraces in South-eastern Anatolia often contain archaeological artefacts. In the terraces along the Sajur and the Euphrates valleys for example, a high quantity of Palaeolithic artefacts have been found and studied in the frame of archaeological and geomorphological surveys. Some of the pieces collected date back to the mid-Pleistocene (Acheulean bifaces pertaining to lower Palaeolithic and younger Mousterian pieces), while others date to late Pleistocene (Mousterian and upper Palaeolithic

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Fig. 4.111 Morphological map of the Tigris and Botan rivers confluence region (south of Siirt). After Karadoğan (2018)

flake industries) (Minzoni-Desroches and Sanlaville 1988; Algaze et al. 1991; Bourguigon and Kuzucuoğlu 1999; Kuhn 2002; Taşkıran 2002, 2018). The flints used for chopping tools were collected from old alluvial terraces as well as from the chalky facies of the Gaziantep Formation. The flints were also exploited from the thick red soils overlying the limestones (Bourguigon and Kuzucuoğlu 1999). In addition, the floodplains of all the rivers in the region host tens of archaeological mounds containing cultural remains and sedimentological archives recording several millennia of development of sedentary lifestyle, agricultural practices and civilizations of increasing complexity since the Late Glacial (e.g. Algaze et al. 1991; Kuzucuoğlu 2006; Özdoğan et al. 2011a, b; Özkaya and Coşkun 2011) (Fig. 4.92). Settlements are dated from pre-Pottery Neolithic (e.g. Göbekli Tepe, Nevali Çori, Cafer Höyük) to Roman (e.g. Zeugma, Apamea) and Medieval times. Both the Euphrates and Tigris valleys have hosted the Neolithic birth and development (Füller et al. 2011; Özdoğan et al. 2011a, b), as well as the development of agricultural production, trade and political movements (Chalcolithic, Bronze Age), army displacements and confrontations (e.g. Iron Age Kingdoms,

Roman Empire, Crusades), and penetration of colonization practices (e.g. Uruk colonies, Roman “buffer States”). In the eastern part of the region, the Tigris Valley and its tributaries have been inhabited since the earliest Neolithic (e.g. Halan Çemi, Çayönü, Sumaki, Körtik Tepe). Among the cultural assets inherited from this long-time occupation, those evidencing profound interest and importance on spirituality, death/life questionings and religious beliefs are numerous and striking. Among several worldwide-known sites, pre-Pottery Neolithic site of Göbekli Tepe (Şanlıurfa) on the plateau cliff overlooking the Syrian lowlands is known as the world’s oldest temple and has been recently added to UNESCO World Heritage list (Fig. 4.112a). Also worth citing is the giant Mount Nemrut tumulus and sculptures built on a peak overlooking the contact between the Taurus and the Adıyaman plain (Fig. 4.112b). Abraham’s Fishpond at Şanlıurfa and traditional houses in the Harran plain (Fig. 4.113c) are also worth mentioning. Dated to the end of the Commagene Kingdom (first century BC), the Roman town of Zeugma and its mosaics (exposed in the Gaziantep Museum) (Fig. 4.114a) and the Syriac Monasteries overlooking the Syrian lowlands from the flank of the Mardin

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Fig. 4.112 Two of the most famous archaeological sites of the region. a Göbekli Tepe (pre-Pottery Neolithic site; Şanlıurfa) (Schmidt 2011). b The Nemrut Tumulus is the funeral monument of King Antiochus Comagene, a Greek-originated ruler who lived during the Roman

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expansion in south-east Anatolia (Kahta District, Adıyaman) (Hamdi Bey and Ozgan Effendi 1883). Photographs by S. Karadoğan (a) and C. Kuzucuoğlu (b)

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Fig. 4.113 Some of the remarkable Prehistoric sites in the Tigris basin. a Körtepe Höyük (or “tell”), 10 km west of Diyarbakır. A höyük is an anthropic landform resulting from the accumulation of cultural layers formed by habitat structures (and eventually political, military and management other structures) and refuses from human activities. Not excavated, the occupation phases of this höyük are not known. b Parietal

C. Kuzucuoğlu et al.

drawings of men and goats, dated Neolithic or Chalcolithic. Many of these drawings have been recently found in some rock shelters located in the Tigris Valley downstream Batman (Kozbe et al. 2017). c Traditional houses in the Harran plain, a type of conic earth construction dating back to the early Bronze Age (3rd millennium BC). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (a), S. Karadoğan (b) and M. Assénat (c)

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Fig. 4.114 Historic importance of the region: Roma and Byzantium Empires buildings and monuments and their associated landscapes. a The excavations at Zeugma on the right bank of the Euphrates (Nizip, Gaziantep). The city was founded ca. 300 BC by Séleucos I, a general from Alexander’s army. First named Seleucia on the Euphrates it was rapidly re-named Zeugma (the “bound” in ancient Greek). It became an important and rich city of the Roman Empire during the first century AD. It was abandoned during the eleventh century AD. Mosaics excavated in the 1990s from rich Roman houses are so famous that during the construction of the Birecik Dam, which eventually inundated the site, huge efforts were made to repair and save them from destruction, and the Gaziantep Museum has built special rooms for their exhibition. b The Rumkale fortress on the right bank of the Euphrates River. Between the Adıyaman Mio-Pliocene basin (north, upstream) and the Birecik area (south, downstream), the reefal facies of the Gaziantep formation forms the cliffs over which the “Rumkale” Hellenistic and Roman fortress was built over Assyrian remains (Gaziantep). It was later occupied/modified during the Middle Ages by the armies of various kingdoms and chief hoods. c Cisterns in the

Roman Byzantine city of Dara (today Oğuz village, Mardin). The town was built in AD 505 by the Emperor as a fortress city to protect the Roman Empire eastern frontier from the Sassanid Empire. The water storage system is composed of seven stepped cisterns, to allow the distinct usage of each cistern in order to manage water withdrawal with scarcity in case of heavy droughts or sieges. d Diyarbakır Fortress and Hevsel Gardens Cultural Landscape (a World Heritage Site). Located on an escarpment dominating the Tigris River, the fortified city of Diyarbakır and the landscape around has been an important centre since the Hellenistic period, through the Roman, Sassanid, Byzantine, Islamic and Ottoman times to present. Inside the fortress the Amida Höyük (tell), topped by a Medieval castle (known as İçkale). The city walls, 5.8 km long, possess numerous towers, gates, buttresses, and 63 inscriptions. All these fortifications have been built with local basalts emitted by the Karacadağ Volcano. Eastwards, the wall dominates the terraced Hevsel Gardens, which date back to the Assyrians, and are still in use today. Since 2015, both the city walls and the gardens are inscribed on the UNESCO’s World Cultural Heritage List. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu (a, c), S. Karadoğan (b) and M. Assénat (d)

fold (Figs. 4.87b and 4.89) are other well-known examples. Occupied by the Romans during the period of the maximum expansion of the Roman Empire (Fig. 4.114b–d) (Pérez 2014; Coşkun 2016), the region has regularly been a frontier and contact zone in which cultures mixed, from the Uruk and Akkad empires (early Bronze Age) to the Iron Age kingdoms of the Hittites and Assyrians. Since two millennia, the Midyat Plateau is named in Syriac “Tur Abdin” (the Mountain of the (God’s) Servants) (Fig. 4.115), words symbolizing the great spiritual attraction of this region

through history. During the early and late Middle Ages, Muslim, Armenian and Syriac holy centres and buildings multiplied, while cities such as Gaziantep, Diyarbakır, Nesibe, Mardin and Şanlıurfa flourished. Today, large dams (Fig. 4.87c) have inundated the whole of the Euphrates valley (with the famous sites of Nevali Çori, Cafer Höyük, Grittile, Lidar Höyük, Zeugma, Apamea), as well as the upper reaches of the Tigris Valley north of Diyarbakır, the upper Batman River (Halan Çemi) and the Tigris reaches downstream Bismil to Ilısu (with the similarly

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Fig. 4.115 Medieval monasteries and urban sites are quite numerous in the south-eastern region of Anatolia: a The Darülzafaran Monastery (Mardin) is an important Syriac Orthodox monastery, located in the Syriac cultural region known as Tur Abdin, a few km SE of Mardin. As

many monuments south of the Mardin-Midyat plateau, it is built over the Hoya Formation. At the edge of the plateau, it looks far southward onto the Syrian lowland. b Medieval village of Savur near Midyat (Mardin). Photographs C. Kuzucuoğlu (a) and S. Karadoğan (b)

famous sites of Körtik Tepe, Hasankeyf, etc., also including very recently found parietal carvings in caves and rock shelters in side canyons near Hasankeyf) (Figs. 4.110 and 4.113).

classical as well as new approaches in physical geography and geomorphology. Our aim in doing so was to provide the reader with the most up-to-date and clearest data available. The reader will recognize the classical approach in geomorphological studies that starts with the description of landforms followed by the listing of geological settings (stratigraphy, lithology, tectonics) and terminating with the landscapes including the possible addition of climate and human-related modifications. We hope that the general characteristics of the regions presented in this chapter will facilitate the understanding of the extraordinary variety of landforms and landscape dynamics of Turkey.

4.8

Conclusion

The region-based presentation and explanation of landforms and landscapes of Turkey exposed above in seven geography-based chapters (Introduction, Northern, Western, Mediterranean, Central, Eastern and South-eastern regions of Turkey) uses a systematic data organization rooted in

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4

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Part II Karst

5

Karstic Landscapes and Landforms in Turkey Lütfi Nazik, Murat Poyraz, and Mustafa Karabıyıkoğlu

Abstract

Approximately, 40% of Turkey’s landmass consists of soluble rocks (limestone, dolomite, and gypsum) highly suitable for karstification. While presenting different lithological composition, lithostratigraphic and structural characteristics, these rocks reach in some places up to 4000 m in elevation. Tectonic movements since the middle Miocene have played, together with climate, a major role in the processes of karst development. Several factors intervene in the formation processes and history of the karstic landscapes of Turkey: structural dynamics (mainly extensional tectonics and block faulting) and its spatial distribution, relief rejuvenation responding to the combination of uplift intensity and sea-level changes and the stratigraphic/ lithologic context. Resulting from the various combinations possible, there are large-scale differences in the evolution of the karstic landscape within short distances. Consequently, six karstic regions and eleven distinct sub-karstic areas can be identified on the basis of their different morphogenetic and morphometric characteristics.




Keywords

Karst Limestone Turkey




Doline




Neotectonic




L. Nazik (&)
M. Poyraz Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Department of Geography, Kırşehir Ahi Evran University, Kırşehir, Turkey e-mail: lutfi[email protected] M. Poyraz e-mail: [email protected] M. Karabıyıkoğlu Faculty of Humanities and Literature, Department of Geography, Ardahan University, Ardahan, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

5.1

Introduction

Turkey is located between Eurasia, Africa, and Arabian plates and on the Alpine-Himalayan Mountain Belt. It is a transcontinental country forming a bridge between Asia and Europe. Among the impressive landscapes and landforms produced by the complex interaction of earth movements, climatically controlled geomorphic processes and volcanic eruptions are karst terrains and forms. These landscapes and landforms have been mainly shaped by extensional, contractional, and strike-slip-related tectonics since the mid-Miocene terminal collision between the Arabian and Eurasian plates (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Robertson and Dixon 1984; Şengör et al. 1985; Göncüoğlu et al. 1997). Soluble rocks of carbonates and evaporites, consisting of limestone, dolomite and gypsium, represent 40% of the country’s landmass. They occur as thick successions in the geological formations of various ages ranging from Paleozoic to Late Cenozoic and they form mainly suitable grounds for karstification and spectacular karst landscape in the mountain ranges, the Taurus Mountains (Taurides) in the south and the Black Sea Mountains (Pontides) in the north, characterized by well-developed active and paleo-karst terrains and impressive cave systems. However, due to considerable variations in relief, bedrock composition and structure, climate and sea-level changes, fluvial dissection (rejuvenation) and tectonic history, the nature and evolution of karst landscapes and landforms display considerable spatial differences (Nazik 2004; Nazik and Tuncer 2010; Günay et al. 2015; Öztürk 2018).

5.2

Outline of the Karst Geomorphology of Turkey

Six karst regions and eleven subregions have been identified within the karst landscape of Turkey (Fig. 5.1 and Table 5.1). The recognition of these regions and subregions is based on morphogenetic and morphometric characteristics of surface and subterranean karst forms (including location,

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_5

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Fig. 5.1 Map of karst regions in Turkey (modified from Nazik and Tuncer 2010)

Table 5.1 Karst regions and subregions in Turkey

Regions

Subregions

The Taurus Mountains Karst Region

Western Taurus Mountains Karst Area Central Taurus Mountains Karst Area

Western Anatolian Karst Region Thrace and the Black Sea Mountains Karst Region

Thrace Karst Area Western Black Sea Mountains Karst Area Central Black Sea Mountains Karst Area Eastern Black Sea Mountains Karst Area

Central Anatolian Karst Region

Greater Konya Basin Karst Area Upper Kızılırmak Basin Karst Area Upper Sakarya and Central Kızılırmak Basins Karst Area

Eastern Anatolian Karst Region

Plateau Karst Area Folded Zone Karst Area

Southeastern Anatolian Karst Region

shape, dimension, distribution, intensity, and development models), which have originated and developed through the interactions between primary factors (tectonic units, lithostratigraphy, and structural features) determining original karst environment, the driving mechanisms and controls on the karst forming processes (relief, porosity and permeability, paleogeography, climate, vegetation, biogenic CO2, and

time) and physicochemical agents that control the degree of dissolution (Nazik 2004; Nazik and Tuncer 2010). However, despite the fact that the presence of the Central Black Sea, the Greater Konya Basin, and the Central Taurus Mountains subregions is geographically considered in different karst regions, they will be regarded here as parts of the Central Anatolian Plateaus Karst Zone since they have been

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subjected to the same tectonic regime and, therefore, are characterized by very similar morphogenetic development.

5.2.1 Taurus Mountains Karst Region (TMK) A collage of varied tectonic units differing in age, lithological content, depositional environments, style of metamorphism, and lithostratigraphic features characterizes the Taurus Mountains Karst Region. This region, which is also known as the Mediterranean karst zone, creates a zone, uninterrupted in horizontal and vertical extent, with the development of multi-period/multi-origin karst forms. The morphotectonic structure of the area began to reshape in the frame of neotectonic movements during and after the late Miocene (Monod et al. 2006), Quaternary sea-level changes, and incision by rivers (Ekmekçi 2003; Nazik and Tuncer 2010; Nazik and Poyraz 2015). Based on both original and secondary karst forming factors, two sub-areas can be defined: the Central and Western Taurus Mountains, which present entirely different morphometric and morphogenetic characteristics within, short distances (Fig. 5.1) (Nazik and Tuncer 2010).

5.2.1.1 Central Taurus Mountains Karst Area (TMKc) This subregion characterizes the Taurus Mountains karst. It is represented by an intensive and impressive karstic terrain, with multiphase and polygenetic development of karst forms reaching very large dimensions, both laterally and vertically without being disconnected. The carbonate-dominated Mesozoic rocks, in particular Jurassic-Cretaceous neritic limestones, and the overlying Miocene carbonates played a major role in the development of the karstic landscape of this area. The overall thickness of these rocks exceeds 1500 m in most parts (Monod 1977; Şener and Öztürk 2019). Differences in factors affecting karstification are related to elevation-related temperature and precipitation change (altitude rises from sea level, up to 3000 m at places), geomorphic rejuvenation due to sea-level changes during the Quaternary and, more importantly, to the continuous uplift of the region since the late Miocene (neotectonic period: Schildgen et al. 2012). The Central Taurus Mountains karst area has the longest (Pınargözü, İnsuyu, Tilkiler) and the deepest (Peynirlikönü, Kuz, Çukurpınar) cave systems and multiphase, polygenetic, and nested deep karst forms with large dimensions. The Taşeli Plateau, the largest and the highest karst terrain reaching in places up to 2500 m in height, is also situated in the Central Taurus Mountains. This plateau is characterized by all types of karst landforms with large dimensions and depths that developed on the Tauride Tectonic Group and the Miocene carbonates (Fig. 5.1). The present outline of the Central Taurus Mountains (an inverted arc-shape) was formed in the paleotectonic period, but the

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actual height and the related karst type originated from uplift and extensional regime in the neotectonic period (Fig. 5.2) (Nazik and Poyraz 2015). The northern flanks of the Central Taurus Mountains, which face Central Anatolia, are a hydrological source area prone to erosion, with several tectono-karst and fluvio-karst poljes. Most of these depressions are occupied with shallow to deep picturesque lakes (e.g., Beyşehir, Suğla, and Eğirdir lakes as well as Kembos Poljes) and multi-story horizontal caves (Pınargözü, Altınbeşik, Çamlık Cave Systems) (Doğan et al. 2017; Doğan and Koçyiğit 2018; Şimşek 2018). The central part of this range, still subject to uplift, is deeply dissected by Köprüçay, Manavgat, Göksu, and Seyhan rivers (Deynoux et al. 2005; Monod et al. 2006). In the eastern part of the Central Taurus Mountains, Aladağlar Mountain constitutes a spectacular karst area with incision of gorges more than 1000 m deep, formation of deep cave systems (Klimchouk et al. 2006), cave canyons— narrow canyon-like features resulting from roof-collapse of the deep caves—(Nazik 2010) (Figs. 5.3 and 5.4) as well as glacio-karst forms (Sarıkaya and Çiner 2017; Oliva et al. 2018). The southern part of the region is also characterized by several high mountains such as Mts. Geyikdağ and Bolkar (Çiner et al. 2015a; Çiner and Sarıkaya 2017; Öztürk et al. 2017; Sarıkaya et al. 2017), where the development of glacio-karst is observed. The southward facing slopes of the Central Taurus Mountains at lower altitudes and their coastal zones are characterized by high groundwater discharges and formation of thick travertines as revealed by Antalya travertines (cool water tufa deposits) (Koşun 2012) and numerous submarine and coastal karst springs. Some of these springs, formed during glacial periods (sea lowstands), emerge today at 100– 150 m below sea level (Fig. 5.1).

5.2.1.2 Western Taurus Mountains Karst Area (TMKw) This area, known as Teke Peninsula, consists of Mesozoic autochthonous carbonate platform(s) overthrust by the Lycian Nappes dated from the late Cretaceous to Pliocene (Şenel et al. 1989). Compared to the Central Taurus Mountains, karst forms are very different in terms of morphology and morphogenetic history (Fig. 5.5). The karstic landscape is mainly represented by shallow karst poljes of large dimensions, covered by shallow lakes during the rainy season (e.g., Elmalı, Korkuteli, Acıpayam poljes). Therefore, the area is also locally known as göl ovalar (the “Lake plains”). These poljes were formed along the weakness lines that run at right angles to the NE–SW-trending orogenic zones consisting of insoluble rocks, and their floors are covered with clastic sediments of Miocene to Quaternary ages. Although the initiation of these very large forms dates back to a paleokarstic period (pre-middle Miocene) (Nazik

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Fig. 5.2 Relief map of Turkey, indicating the main morphologic characteristics of the country. N-S cross section of Central Anatolian Plateau Zone shows locations of karst terrains from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea

et al. 2012; Öztürk et al. 2015), they appear to have failed to keep pace with the geomorphological rejuvenation (renewal) associated with Pleistocene sea-level changes. Because of the different lithological, structural, and stratigraphical characteristics of the underlying rock units (represented by a succession of limestones and impermeable clastic rocks), the base level of the karst has developed independently from the topography at the surface. As a result, karstification remains shallow, with laterally developed large caves. Semi-active doline caves develop in the floors of the poljes, while some horizontal fossil caves occur at higher slopes above the poljes (Figs. 5.1 and 5.5) (Öztürk et al. 2018a, b). One of the highest peaks in this region, Akdağ Mountain (3016 m), hosts an extensive karst with several poljes and dolines that offered a suitable setting for the growth of paleoglaciers (Bayrakdar 2012; Sarıkaya et al. 2014).

5.2.2 Western Anatolian Karst Region (WAK) This region encompasses an area extending from the northern tip of the Western Taurus Mountains in the south to the south of the Marmara Sea in the north. It is composed of structurally complex rocks of the Anatolides (including

cover rocks of the metamorphic complex of the Menderes Massif), Permian–Triassic marbles and Jurassic and Cretaceous limestones (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981). The geomorphological development of this region has resulted from the extensional tectonics during the neotectonic period (block faulting), and from fluvial dissection controlled by sea-level changes. Due to diverse lithostratigraphic characteristics of the carbonate rocks in this area, specific karst base level did not develop. Instead, a series of independent, perched, or hanging base levels developed at various heights above the morphologic base level (Tuncer 2015). Therefore, it is not possible to note a specific karst type represented by a continuous lateral and vertical development. However, thick Permian–Triassic marbles thrusted onto the cover rocks of the Menderes Massif have been subjected to renewed karstification (neokarst), and consequently, they have been transformed into a “nested karst,” a characteristic feature generated by a multiphase and multicyclic (fluvio-karst) karst development in the area. To the south of the Marmara Sea, fossilized karst forms (including poljes, uvalas, and caves), partly exhumed in places or buried beneath the overlying Quaternary sediments, are common and represent relict paleokarst forms.

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Fig. 5.3 Karstic landscapes in the Taurus. a The mouth of a vertical cave at the floor of a 3150 m high glacial valley (Karagöl Glacier Valley) developed during the Late Pleistocene on Aladağ Mountain. b Contemporary karstification between the elevations 2500–3000 m a. s.l. on the Jurassic–Cretaceous limestones on the Central Taurus Mountains. c The appearance of shallow surface karst controlled by lithostratigraphic properties on the north of the Central Taurus Mountains. Karstification of the allochthonous Cretaceous limestones,

which are located on the insoluble units around 1300 m a.s.l. elevation, appears to be poorly developed since it lags behind geomorphological rejuvenation in Quaternary. d An example of a “cave canyon.” These canyons, commonly found in the Central Taurus and Black Sea Mountains, usually form in fronts of valley glaciers and can be as deep as 1000 m a.s.l. The photograph is taken from Ecemiş River valley, southeastern part of Aladağ Mountain

Therefore, long and deep cave systems are not found in this region (Figs. 5.1, 5.2 and 5.6). The cave systems developed at elevations between 50 and 1600 m (Nazik et al. 2005).

common. However, the interrelations between the paleogeographic features and the position of both the morphologic and karstic base levels, influenced by fluctuating fluvial incision related to sea-level change fluctuations (geomorphic rejuvenation), have controlled the geomorphologic evolution. This region, which is characterized by unique surface and underground forms with discontinuous lateral and vertical developments, is composed of four sub-areas defined by morphometric and development characteristics of their karstic landforms: Thrace, Western Black Sea Mountains, Central and Eastern Black Sea Mountains (Nazik and Tuncer 2010) (Fig. 5.1).

5.2.3 Thrace and the Black Sea Mountains Karst Region (BMK) This karst region developed along the Black Sea coast. The area has not been directly affected by neotectonic movements, despite the fact that it is situated to the north of the North Anatolian Fault Zone. In the karst development of this region, structures inherited from paleotectonic period are

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Fig. 5.4 Karstic landscapes in the Taurus (continued). a Entrance of a cave at the east of Central Taurus Mountains formed by Göksu stream (a main tributary of Ceyhan River). The cave is developed on the tectonic line of Paleocene–Eocene detrital contact covering Cretaceous limestones. b The Kembos Polje in the northwest of the Central Taurus Mountains developed along a distinct tectonic line. This polje, located to the south of Beyşehir Lake at the elevation of around 1250 m a.s.l. is a tectonically controlled fluvio-karstic feature: It was initially formed

by a southward draining tributary of a former network of the ancestor Manavgat River at the Pliocene period. c Polygonal doline karst that started to form during the last glaciation on Geyik Mountain in the Central Taurus Mountains where larger holo-karst formations appear. Photography by S. Uysal. d Among the most characteristic features of Taurus karst are travertine bridges. The picture is taken at the upper course of Göksu River that follows a tectonic line dividing the Central Taurus Mountains into two different orographic units

5.2.3.1 Thrace Karst Area (BMKt) This karst area (8600 km2) forms the European part of Turkey bounded by Bulgaria and Greece to the northwest, and by the Black Sea to the northeast and the Sea of Marmara and the Aegean Sea to the south. It contains Permian to Triassic marbles of the Istranca Massif, and Eocene neritic carbonates that surround the Istranca Massif in the south and west, forming a NW–SE extending belt (Fig. 5.1). The Eocene carbonate rocks present a relatively thin succession with undulating and gently sloping topography extending down to the sea level. These conditions provided an extremely suitable background for karstification, which in turn, led to the formation of shallow karst between the altitudes of 40–450 m a.s.l. (Nazik et al. 1998; Ekmekçi 2005). Because

no rejuvenation has taken place, paleokarst features are numerous in this area. Among these mature (old age) and macro-morphologies, the most characteristic is fluvio-karstic multicyclic remains of a Pliocene relief system. Because of the stratigraphic position of the karstified units within this system, karst evolution did not keep pace with the geomorphic rejuvenation triggered by the Quaternary sea-level changes. Therefore, paleokarstic forms give a misleading impression of monocyclic origin. Especially in the Eocene limestones, these forms compose a shallow underground karst, including the development of caves. In general, the caves developed here since the neokarstic period at the altitudes between 240 and 450 a.s.l are mainly multi-story and fossilized, whereas the ones that developed at the

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Fig. 5.5 Acıpayam Polje in the Western Taurus Mountains: an example of poljes resulting from shallow surface karst development

Fig. 5.6 In Western Anatolia, karstification is observed at various levels independent of each other and at various elevations. The photograph is taken at the Ayvaini Cave, which is the longest cave of the region (4866 m) and located on horst positioned karstic plateau, south of the Northern Anatolian Fault. The cave that is hanging 300 m above the level of the plain is developed horizontally, typical for shallow karst

altitudes between 40 and 160 m a.s.l. (e.g., İkigöz, Dupnisa, Kazandere, Yenesu caves) are single story and are hydrologically active to semi-active (Nazik et al. 1998; Ekmekçi 2005).

5.2.3.2 Western Black Sea Mountains Karst Area (BMKw) Karstification in the Western Black Sea Mountains shows considerable similarities with that of Thrace. In this region, karstic landscape and forms have developed in the Carboniferous, Jurassic to Cretaceous and partially Eocene

limestones that lie beneath the disconformably overlying Cretaceous ophiolitic mélange and clastics of Tertiary age (Fig. 5.1). Interactions between neotectonic movements, Quaternary sea-level changes and river incision controlled the formation of the karst landscape. Dolines and uvalas, representing covered and shallow karst forms, are widespread (Fig. 5.7). Due to the lithostratigraphic context, Quaternary-aged dolines and horizontally developed activeand semi-active caves occur at the base of large-scale, partly fragmented, karst hanging landforms found mostly at elevations between 200 and 350 a.s.l (Nazik et al. 1995).

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Fig. 5.7 Karstic Landscapes in the Western Black Sea Mountains. a Interwoven dissolution dolines in the Western Black Sea Mountains karst area as a typical manifestation of covered karst. b A polje in the Western Black Sea Mountains karst area. The polje that has evolved since the Paleokarstic period (Pliocene) is located on insoluble rocks at 160 m above sea level. Hence, it lags behind the geomorphological rejuvenation due to sea-level change and occurs in a hanging form

Multiphase cave systems developed in the North Anatolian Fault Zone, particularly the ones affecting the Paleocene– Eocene limestones exposed along the lower reaches of the Sakarya River, were subjected, at least twice, to alluvial drowning and exhumation in relation with the Quaternary sea-level changes in the Black Sea, representing multiphase development (Fig. 5.2). Further to the east, toward an area where the Carboniferous and Jurassic–Cretaceous limestones are more

widespread, relatively shallow surface and underground karst prevails. In this area, since no definite karst base level has been established and the Black Sea’s Pleistocene sea-level changes were quite effective, rejuvenated (multiphase and nested) karst and hanging shallow karst forms are dominant. The most characteristic of these forms are horizontally developed, active- to semi-active multiphase caves. They are generally found at the altitudes of 15–135 m and 185–365 m a.s.l., and these multiphase caves

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(Kızılelma–Cumayanı, Mencilis, and Gökgöl caves) with their underground river networks constitute some of the longest cave systems of Turkey (Nazik et al. 1995, 2005).

5.2.3.3 Central Black Sea Mountains Karst Area (BMKm) This area forms the northernmost part of Turkey, located to the north of the North Anatolian Zone, with an arc-shaped form pointing toward the Black Sea. It is characterized by plateau-like surfaces, since the southern flanks are deeply dissected by the tributaries of the Kızılırmak, which have generally developed on the tectonic lines of the North Anatolian Fault Zone. Lenticular marbles in the Permian– Triassic metamorphic rocks and the overlying neritic limestones of Jurassic–Cretaceous age are suitable rocks for karst development in the region. They are overlain by Cretaceous ophiolitic mélange and volcanoclastic sedimentary rocks. This plateau-like area, which was initially subjected to uplift as a block in the neotectonic period and then reshaped under the influence of the extensional regime (Çiner et al. 2013; Rojay et al. 2012; Yıldırım et al. 2013), constitutes the most characteristic zone in Turkey’s karst geomorphology, together with the Central Taurus Mountains and the Greater Konya Basin (Figs. 5.1 and 5.2). In this area, paleo- and neotectonic karst forms coexist, revealing a complex pattern of karst landscape. They are characterized by extensive development of plateau-type karst, multiphase and multigenetic karst, partly buried karst and deep cave system (Nazik et al. 2012). The most characteristic forms of the region, which lie at the altitude of approximately 900–1400 m a.s.l., are highly disrupted (altered) remnants of poljes and uvalas, involving subsequent fluvial action, and spectacular canyons with depths up to 800 m. Considering karst depth, the Central Black Sea Mountains karst area is the second deepest region after the Central Taurus Mountains in Turkey. In the development of the karstic landscape, lithological features and the change of Black Sea level as well as climate, vegetation cover and the earth movements during the neotectonic period have been very effective. 5.2.3.4 Eastern Black Sea Mountains Karst Area (BMKe) This area consists of Paleozoic metamorphic rocks and granitoides, Jurassic to Cretaceous limestones and Cretaceous volcanoclastics and clayey limestone interbedded with insoluble rock units of Paleocene–Eocene age at its lower levels. Therefore, this karst area constitutes a zone that does not show any continuity in lateral and particularly in vertical extent. In the geomorphological development of this area, mainly characterized by structures inherited from the paleotectonic period, the combined interaction of Pleistocene sea-level changes of the Black Sea and the related incision of

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rivers and climatic forcing have played a major role. Fragmented poljes, uvalas, and dolines dating from the paleotectonic period occur within the higher plateau areas. These characteristic forms, indicative of laterally developed, shallow karst, occur as hanging forms since they have failed to keep pace with the morphologic rejuvenation in the area, owing to the Quaternary sea-level changes and tectonics. There is no evidence of significant cave development at a regional scale in the area. However, there are some fossil caves in the higher grounds (between altitudes of 1600– 2400 m a.s.l.) on Jurassic limestones and horizontally developed active to semi-active caves at lower elevations (between 80 and 600 m a.s.l.), mainly within the Paleocene limestones.

5.2.4 Central Anatolian Karst Region (CAK) The Central Anatolian Karst Region, with its specific geological, geomorphological, geographic, hydrologic, and climatic characteristics, differs from the neighboring karst regions. Since it is bounded by the Taurus Mountains to the south and by the Black Sea Mountains to the north, it is under the influence of semiarid continental climate due to orographic shadow effect. The northern part of this region drains to the Black Sea through the Sakarya River, whereas its southern part, Konya Ovası (Konya Plain), is a closed basin with internal drainage (Figs. 5.1 and 5.3). The underground waters of this basin probably drain to the Tuz Gölü (Salt Lake) in the northeast and to the Göksu River and, then, to the Mediterranean Sea in the south (Nazik et al. 2004). Geomorphological units developed close to the basin floor (between 1050 and 1350 m a.s.l.) date mainly from the earlier (Miocene) period. These landforms representing multiphase and multigenetic development are in fact fossil forms buried under Upper Miocene to Quaternary sediments. However, some of them are exhumed owing to unroofing of the sediments by erosion. Landforms located at higher elevations indicate an uninterrupted landform development since the Miocene. The Central Anatolian Karst Region is centered on the “Central Anatolian Ova Regime” although this tectonic regime has not developed uniformly in the same style everywhere in this region (Fig. 5.2). To the west and southwest of the Tuz Gölü Fault and the Eskişehir Fault Zone, block uplift occurred with the initiation of the neotectonic period followed by an extensional regime (Figs. 5.1 and 5.2) (Rojay et al. 2012; Fernandez-Blanco et al. 2013; Özsayın et al. 2013). To the north and northeast of this line, adjacent to the Black Sea Mountains, remnant structures from the paleotectonic period are noted. In the region characterized by Permian–Triassic marbles of the Anatolides and the overlying Oligocene gypsum, Miocene and Pliocene

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limestones deposited in paleo-geomorphological depressions, remnants of partly fossilized and partly exhumed paleo-relief system dating from the Miocene, Pliocene, and the Pleistocene occur (Nazik 2004; Nazik et al. 2004). In this region, which resembles tectonogenetic “epirogenetic deep karst”-type development, three different karst areas are recognized, based on the lithostratigraphic character and nature of karst development and its depth: Greater Konya Basin, Upper Kızılırmak Basin, and Upper Sakarya and Central Kızılırmak Basin (Fig. 5.3) (Nazik and Tuncer 2010).

5.2.4.1 Greater Konya Basin Karst Area (CAKo) The Greater Konya Basin, which is bounded by NE–SW and NW–SE trending basin margin faults, developed unconformably on a foundered basement comprising Paleozoic– Mesozoic autochthonous carbonates of the Anatolides, the overlying cover rocks of the Neogene and Quaternary deposits and volcanic rocks. Based on the hydrological character, this basin is divided into two parts: the Konya Closed Basin bordered in the west and the south by a belt of Taurus Mountains and its northern equivalent, the closed basins of Akşehir Lake (Figs. 5.1 and 5.2). The region has evolved since the middle Miocene up to the present under the influence of block uplift and the following extensional regimes. It is composed of surface and underground forms of the late Miocene, Pliocene, and Pleistocene relief systems that developed between the floor of the plain (1000 m a.s.l.) and altitudes rising up to 1750 m a.s.l. (Fig. 5.2). Most characteristic among these multiphase and multigenetic landscapes are: erosion surfaces and plateaus, poljes and uvalas, caves and obruks (collapse sinkholes), canyon-like epigenetic valleys (e.g., Çarşamba stream cave canyon), lake deposits (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1998; Karabıyıkoğlu 2003) and terraces (Erol 1990; Nazik et al. 2004; Nazik 2005). In the Greater Konya Basin Karst Area, the formation and development of epeirogenic deep karst are pronounced, and the karst base level stands below the morphological base level. This area, along with the Central Taurus and the West and Central Black Mountains karst areas, constitutes the most characteristic karst terrain of Turkey in terms of karst development (Fig. 5.1). This area is also characterized by deepening along buried tectonic lines and the associated formation of poljes. Obruks are collapse sinkholes with circular to elliptical shape developed in the Permian, Triassic, Jurassic, and Pliocene limestones and constitute the most characteristic and widespread form in the area. They are noted at different levels within an approximately 700 m vertical zone that developed through the Paleozoic to Mesozoic neritic carbonates and the Pliocene lacustrine limestones, ranging from the surface of the higher grounds that surround the Konya

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Plain at the altitude of about 1550–1600 m a.s.l. down to 100–150 m a.s.l., below the base of the plain (Fig. 5.1). Obruks are formed along the pronounced tectonic lines and their diameters and water depths may reach 350 m and 160 m, respectively. In the development of the obruks along the pronounced tectonic lines, apart from karst forming factors and fluctuations of groundwater table, CO2 emissions related to volcanic activity and paleogeography have also played major roles (Bayarı et al. 2009). In considering regional geologic setting and geomorphic features, its past conditions and current developments, as well as its physical structures, it is suggested that the obruks in the area might have played a very significant role in the late Quaternary desiccation of the Konya paleolake. The obruks in this area, the most characteristic forms of deep karst, not only developed in the alluvial and lake deposits of the basin fill and the Pliocene limestones, but also formed at varying heights (up to 550 m high above from the basin floor) on the exhumed or regenerated paleo-topographic surfaces cut across Permian to Triassic marbles and Jurassic to Cretaceous limestones where they occur as fossilized forms (Fig. 5.8). However, the overall characteristics of the obruks indicate that they have evolved, at least, since the Pliocene (Nazik et al. 2004; Nazik and Poyraz 2015). The northwest area surrounding the closed basin of Akşehir Lake is composed of the Permian–Triassic marbles and the overlying cover of lacustrine limestones (Miocene-Pliocene). Although, in some parts, the cover rocks are eroded and the paleo-surfaces are exhumed as low and dome-shaped undulating hills, most of the paleosurfaces are still covered and fossilized. Furthermore, this area lacks a well-established karst base level and therefore, a well-developed continuous form of karstification cannot be expected. The most characteristic evidence of karstification is poljes, uvala, caves, and shallow obruks.

5.2.4.2 Upper Kızılırmak Basin Karst Area (CAKk) This area is located to the northeast of the Central Anatolian Karst Region; it is 225 km long and about 30 km wide and drained by the Kızılırmak River. It is a fault-bounded basin, bordered by the NE–SW-oriented Ecemiş Fault on its southern side, and the basin fill contains about 700 m thick Oligocene gypsum. Despite the thick succession of gypsum, the basin has no well-developed karst features showing lateral and vertical continuity (Figs. 5.1 and 5.9). The karst forms are mainly represented by the monogenic, shallow surface, and underground features, including poljes, uvala, dolines, and small-scale solution tunnels (Doğan and Özel 2005). In the development of these shallow karst forms, lithology, and tectonic control of the Ecemiş Fault (Sarıkaya et al. 2015a, b; Yıldırım et al. 2016) and the Plio-Quaternary evolution of the Kızılırmak River (Doğan 2011; Çiner et al. 2015b) have been the primary forcing factors.

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Fig. 5.8 Obruks, collapsed sinkholes, in the Konya Basin. a A recent obruk developed on the lacustrine limestones (Pliocene) in the Konya Closed Basin where the most typical forms of deep basin karst are observed. b A paleo-sinkhole developed on the Permian– Triassic marbles

5.2.4.3 Upper Sakarya and Central Kızılırmak Basin Karst Area (CAKsk) This area constitutes the northern extension of the Central Anatolian Karst Region; it is an open basin drained by the Sakarya and the Kızılırmak rivers, which run northwards

into the Black Sea. It represents a passage between the Central Anatolian and the Black Sea karst regions and consists of marble and crystallized limestones (Göncüoğlu 2011), the Central Anatolian Crystalline Complex, and is unconformably overlain by Tertiary evaporitic sediments.

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Fig. 5.9 A shallow lake formed in gypsum dissolution hallow in the Sivas Basin, eastern Central Anatolian Karst Area. Photography by U. Doğan

The latter occurs as lenticular units with limited lateral and vertical extent and are deeply dissected by the Sakarya and the Kızılırmak rivers, forming isolated hills rising above the relatively insoluble and erosion-resistant crystalline basement. Therefore, no significant development of surface karst forms has occurred in this region. However, there are some small caves developed within the crystalline limestones and marbles of the basement, representing multiphase development associated with the paleokarst period.

(Late Cenozoic) river captures and dissection, fluviokarstic basins and poljes—characteristic forms of shallow karst that developed during the tectonically active paleokarst period—are found broken into discrete pieces. On the higher grounds consisting of Jurassic to Cretaceous carbonate rocks, such as the Munzur Mountains, multiphase and nested karst forms are observed (Figs. 5.1 and 5.10). Since climate is a highly effective forcing on the contemporary karst processes on the higher grounds, karst forms that formed during the paleokarstic period have been largely destroyed through physical degradation (Çılgın et al. 2014).

5.2.5 Eastern Anatolian Karst Region (EAK) The Eastern Anatolian Karst Region, an area of compressional tectonics and continuous uplift since the middle Miocene (Şaroğlu and Güner 1981; Schildgen et al. 2014), is characterized by Permian, Jurassic, and Neogene carbonate rocks of the Tauride tectonic zone. In this region combined effects of volcanism, climate and tectonics have been the major factors to control the type of karstification. Because of the presence of a thick succession of insoluble rocks, neither a significant karst base level, nor characteristic karstification with a well-developed lateral and vertical extent has developed. Tectogenetically, the nature of karst appears similar to that of the orogenic accretion karst terrain (Herak 1977; Eroskay and Günay 1979). Therefore, the region has been divided into two subregions, the Plateau Karst Area (EAKp) and the Folded Zone Karst Area (EAKf), respectively, separated by distinct borders (Fig. 5.1) (Nazik and Tuncer 2010).

5.2.5.2 Folded Zone Karst Area (EAKf) The Southeast Taurus Mountains, lying ahead of the Bitlis– Zagros fold and thrust belt and having been subjected to continuous folding and uplifting since the middle Miocene, form the Folded Zone Karst Area. Karstic rocks that outcrop as a narrow belt are composed of Paleozoic marbles and Jurassic–Cretaceous limestones. Due to strong folding, thrusting and uplifting, in places reaching up to 3500– 4000 m a.s.l., high these rocks have been largely disrupted and fragmented and, therefore, are of limited lateral and vertical extent. Since this area has been deeply incised by the Fırat and the Dicle (Tigris) rivers, no development of karst base level, or any fully developed karst forms are found. However, on the varying heights within the steep slopes of the deep gorges, small caves with springs and deep solution cracks, as an evidence of continuous uplift, are noted.

5.2.6 Southeast Anatolian Karst Region (SEAK) 5.2.5.1 Plateau Karst Area (EAKp) This is a zone characterized by a complex assemblage of Permian marbles, Jurassic to Cretaceous limestones and ophiolitic mélange. It is deeply incised by the Fırat (Euphrates) and the Aras rivers and their tributaries and lacks well-developed karstification of significant lateral and vertical extent. In this area, owing to post-collisional

This region is located on the Arabian Plate and covers a large area to the south of the Bitlis-Zagros fold and thrust belt. It consists of stable Tertiary rocks, including Paleocene, Eocene, and Miocene carbonates and is characterized by forms of non-rejuvenated shallow plateau karst consisting of shallow and fragmented poljes, uvalas, and solution dolines

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193

Fig. 5.10 Highland zone karst areas on the Jurassic to Cretaceous carbonate rocks (Munzur Mountains in Eastern Anatolia)

(Fig. 5.1). However, the shallow plateau karst formed in this region differs from the deep karst of the Central Anatolian Plateaus Zone (Central Taurus Mountains, Central Anatolian, and Central–Western Black Sea Mountains karst areas) in a way that the former has developed in an area subjected to limited rejuvenation, whereas the latter have developed in relation to continuous uplift and extension (Nazik and Poyraz 2016). In this area, paleokarst and neokarst are interrelated and tectogenetically, karst development appears to be similar to that of epeirogenic tabular karst. Furthermore, a contrasting style of karst development occurs in this region: the western part of this region, drained by the Euphrates is characterized by dense and deep karst on the Paleocene–Eocene limestones (Bilgin 1963), whereas in the eastern part, which is drained by the Dicle River, shallow surface karst has developed on the Miocene limestones.

5.2.7 Central Anatolian Plateaus Zone Three karst regions, namely Central Black Sea, Central Anatolia, and Central Taurus, extending from north to south, form a rather broad belt, which is represented by different tectonic units (the Pontides, the Anatolides, and the Taurides), geographic regions (the Black Sea, the Central Anatolia, and the Mediterranean) and climate (continental to Mediterranean) (Nazik and Poyraz 2016). This belt is largely characterized by plateaus of different origin (i.e., the plateaus around the Küre Mountains, Central Anatolian Plateau, and Taşeli Plateau), as well as landforms and structures representing characteristic features of block uplift and subsequent extensional tectonics (Özsayın et al. 2013). As a result of continuous uplift, Quaternary sea-level changes in the Black

Sea and the Mediterranean, repeated geomorphic rejuvenation and climatic changes, a rather unique karst landscape represented by deep, nested orogenic karst (deep vertical caves), and closed basin karst (obruks) have extensively developed along this belt. Although the origin of these karst forms is different, they show similar characteristics since they have been subjected to the same tectonic regime. Despite all the differences, this belt is characterized by specific karstic forms that originated from polygenic and monogenic karst development, which led to the formation of an intensive karstic zone that signifies the characteristic features of the karst landscape of Turkey (Fig. 5.2).

5.2.8 Development Stages of Karst Geomorphology Turkey, which is located in an active tectonic region, has experienced different episodes of paleogeographic and paleoclimatic changes during its long geological history. As a result of numerous geological and geomorphological studies undertaken in Turkey, including paleogeographic and karstic studies, considerable progress has been made toward the understanding of the time and space relationships of karst formation and its development through the geologic past (Table 5.2) (Nazik et al. 2012). Some of these karst forms that had developed in geographically and geologically different settings were later buried by young cover rocks and sediments and became fossilized. Some of the most interesting examples of these fossil forms are found in the Permian, Cretaceous, and Eocene limestones exposed in the Western and the Central Taurus Mountains; they occur as extensive

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Table 5.2 Development stages of karstic landscape in Turkey (Nazik et al. 2012)

1. New (actual) karst: Last glacial 2. Young (neo) karst: Pleistocene (Ice ages) 3. Paleokarst (Late Miocene–Post-Late Pliocene) (a) Maturity period (Late Pliocene) (b) Development period (Late Miocene–Late Pliocene) 4. Fossil karst (Permian–Middle Miocene) (a) Covered karst (Eocene and Late Miocene) (b) Buried karst (Permian and Late Cretaceous)

paleo-depressions at different heights and contain thick beds of bauxite, sedimentary iron, and diasporite ores. Some other karst forms developed at various altitudes of the Western and Central Taurus Mountains and the Black Sea Mountains are not covered, due to continuous rejuvenation and/or lithostratigraphic characteristics; they are found as hanging or nested surface and underground karst that have evolved in multiple phases since the middle Miocene. Further, karst development in Turkey occurred largely during the glacial periods (neokarst). The contemporary karstification that characterizes the development of the present-day karst landscape in the Taurus has been effective since at least the last glaciation. Epikarst-type forms, mainly represented by deep and large caves, cave canyons, polygonal dolines, etc., are the dominant forms. Among the large caves, 52 caves with depths exceeding 200 m and 62 caves with lengths more than 1000 m have been recognized; 43 deep caves are found in the Central Taurus Mountains and 7 of them are in the Central Black Sea Karst area. Thirty-four long caves have developed in the Central Taurus Mountains, and 16 caves in Thrace and the Western Black Sea Mountains, 9 caves in the Western Anatolian, and 1 in the Central Anatolian karst areas (Fig. 5.2).

5.3

Conclusions

About 40% of Turkey’s landmass consists of soluble rocks that are highly suitable for karst development. Following important differences within short distances, the karst landscape is divided into six karst regions and eleven subregions (areas). The Central Anatolian Plateaus Zone, which was initially subjected to uplift at the beginning of the neotectonic period and then to extension since the Pliocene, constitutes an interesting karstic region, comprising characteristic features of the karstic landscapes of Turkey. This zone covers the broadest area of the country in a north to south direction, extending from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. It is characterized by plateaus of different origins (i.e., the plateaus around the Küre Mountains, Central Anatolian Plateau

and Taşeli Plateau), as well as landforms and structures representing characteristic features of extensional regime and block uplift. Since the landforms have been continuously renewed (rejuvenated) due to climatic and tectonic controls, karstification in this zone is of deep orogenic (i.e., obruks—sinkholes, poljes and deep cave systems) and closed basin types (i.e., dolines and gypsum karst). These forms result from multiphase development since the Pliocene and attain larger dimensions in both lateral and vertical extent. Additionally, they have been subjected to repeated rejuvenation during the Pleistocene glaciations. The South Anatolian Karst Region forms the best example of plateau karst, which developed on the weakly deformed Tertiary limestones. Because morphologic rejuvenation remained very limited, due to very little tectonic deformation in the area, karst forms have not been subject to polycyclic development. On the other hand, the karst that forms in other regions of Turkey, without showing any evidence of horizontal and vertical development, constitutes a passage between the Central Anatolian Plateau Karst Zone and the Southeast Anatolian Karst Region. To sum up, very rich and varied karstic terrains with small to large-scale karst landforms, including tourist-attracting picturesque caves, occur in Turkey. They are products of complex interactions between tectonics, climate and eustatic sea-level changes that have been operative over the long geological history. Their presence constitutes a challenging task for further interdisciplinary studies aiming to evaluate their mode of origin. Acknowledgements We would like to extend our thanks to an anonymous reviewer and editor for making valuable efforts and immense editorial work for the improvement of the text.

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6

Gypsum Karst Landscape in the Sivas Basin Uğur Doğan and Serdar Yeşilyurt

Abstract

The Tertiary Sivas Basin, Central Anatolia, includes one of the most outstanding gypsum karst terrains in the world, covering an area of 2140 km2. This gypsum karst significantly contributes to enrich the diversity of karst landscapes in Turkey and constitutes an excellent natural laboratory for understanding their evolution because it develops and degrades much faster than carbonate karst landscapes. The ENE–WSW trending Sivas gypsum karst terrain is 280 km long and 55 km wide. The karst landscapes are mainly developed on Oligocene gypsum deposits. Sivas gypsum karst terrain has a wide variety of well-developed karst features such as karren, different types of dolines (solution, collapse and suffosion), blind valleys, karst springs, swallow holes (ponors), karstified paleo-valleys, caves, unroofed caves, natural bridges, gorges, uvalas and poljes. Solution dolines, which riddle a large part of the area, are the most common landform. The Kızılırmak River and its tributaries drain the Sivas Basin. Therefore, Quaternary evolution of the Kızılırmak River has played an important role in the long-term evolution of the karst landscape in the basin. Karst development in some parts of the basin has also been affected by halokinetic structures. Keywords









Gypsum karst Salt tectonic Collapse doline Solution doline Karren Unroofed cave

U. Doğan (&) Department of Geography, Ankara University, Sıhhiye, 06100 Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] S. Yeşilyurt Institute of Geological Sciences, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland e-mail: [email protected]




6.1

Introduction

Dissolution proceeds at much faster rates in gypsum than in carbonate rocks such as limestone or dolomite (Klimchouk 2013). Because of its high solubility (2.531 g l−1 at 20 °C in distilled water) (Klimchouk 1996) and rapid dissolution rate, gypsum karst can evolve significantly within a short timescale (Cooper and Gutiérrez 2013). Therefore, karst landforms are generated and evolve much faster in gypsum than in carbonate rocks (Ford and Williams 2007; Gutiérrez and Cooper 2013). Moreover, rapid dissolution may substantially weaken the gypsiferous rock mass at a human timescale (Gutiérrez et al. 2008a, b). The sudden generation of collapse and subsidence dolines in interstratal, covered and bare gypsum areas may constitute a substantial threat for both lives and property. Gypsum outcrops and the associated karst can be observed in central, eastern and southeastern Anatolia. Gypsum karst areas in Central Anatolia are located around Beypazarı and Çankırı cities (Doğan 2002) and in the Sivas Basin. Bismil-Batman area, in SE Anatolia, is the most important interstratal gypsum karst area (Doğan 2005). The Sivas Basin located in the eastern sector of Central Anatolia includes the most important gypsum karst terrain in Turkey, associated with a thick Oligocene gypsum formation (Doğan and Özel 2005; Fig. 6.1a, b). The Sivas Basin is drained by the Kızılırmak River and its tributaries (Fig. 6.1b). Sivas gypsum karst terrain has a wide variety of well-developed karst features such as karren, solution dolines, collapse dolines, suffosion dolines, blind valleys, karst springs, swallow holes (ponors), caves, unroofed caves, natural bridges, gorges and poljes (Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004; Doğan and Özel 2005). Apart from karst features, the Sivas Basin also shows conspicuous evidence of active salt tectonics involving the Oligocene evaporites (Çubuk and İnan 1998; Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004; Callot et al. 2014). Karst features are especially well represented in

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Fig. 6.1 a Location map of the study area. b Gypsum outcrops in the Sivas Basin shown in black. c Karst features around Tödürge Lake. d Çorakgediği Evaporite Wall at the south of İmranlı

the outcrops of the thick gypsum units exposed in Sivas around Hafik, Zara and İmranlı (Fig. 6.1). The purpose of this chapter is to describe and analyze the bare karst landscape developed on the thick Oligocene gypsum formation, together with halokinetic structures in the Sivas Basin. For the first time, we have mapped the edges of the gypsum outcrops including bare karst areas and salt tectonic structures using GIS, remote sensing techniques (e.g., satellite images) and 1:25.000 scale topographic maps. According to this study, Sivas gypsum karst terrain occurs on an ENE–WSW trending band 280 km long and 55 km wide in eastern Central Anatolia (Fig. 6.1b). The gypsum terrain extends from southeast of Gemerek to the east of İliç in the northeast. The gypsum karst covers an area of 2140 km2 in the Sivas Basin. Accordingly, the basin contains the largest gypsum karst territory of Turkey and one of the most important gypsum karst terrains in the world. Sivas has a continental climate with cold and snowy winters, and hot and dry summers. The average annual precipitation is 452 mm (Sivas meteorological station) and rainfall generally occurs in spring.

6.2

Geological Setting

The Sivas Basin is one of the central Anatolian basins that developed after the closure of the North Tethys Ocean in Late Cretaceous–Early Paleocene times, between the Tauride, Kırşehir and Pontide blocks (Yılmaz and Yılmaz 2006). The sedimentary succession records several phases of paleogeographic evolution of the basin (Cater et al. 1991; Poisson et al. 1996, 1997; Çiner et al. 2002; Koşun and Çiner 2002). Yılmaz and Yılmaz (2006) presented a correlation of various geologic sections related to different subbasins of the Sivas Basin. The first episode corresponds to the late-stage evolution of the foreland basin related to the Taurides collision (Callot et al. 2014). It is composed of Paleocene and Eocene flysch-like deposits, which are deposited onto the ophiolites and ophiolitic mélanges (Yılmaz and Yılmaz 2006). The sedimentary fill of the Sivas Basin was developed unconformably on these series. The Sivas Basin sedimentary history begins with a Late Eocene– Lower Oligocene period of regional emergence followed by

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Gypsum Karst Landscape in the Sivas Basin

the deposition of continental purple strata (Selimiye formation) passing laterally to evaporitic deposits of the Hafik formation (Callot et al. 2014), which contains white-to-gray, thickly bedded massive sabkha gypsum (e.g., Çiner et al. 2002; Fig. 6.1b). The thickness of the gypsum succession observed in this region reaches 500 m around Acıçay Canyon (Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004). The massive gypsum has interbedded halite layers (Alagöz 1967; Çubuk and İnan 1998). The thickest evaporite outcrops in the northern section of the basin are interpreted by Callot et al. (2014) as the result of prograding sedimentation shed from the Taurus in the south, forcing the northward migration of the evaporitic deposition in the accumulation area either by resedimentation or mechanical flow. The outcrops of these massive gypsum units, originally considered as being tectonic slices (Temiz 1996), display evidence of diapiric structures. The Hafik gypsum formation is overlain by Lower Miocene marine units (Ağılkaya Formation), Lower-Middle Miocene fluvial-playa and continental shelf units (Eğribucak Formation) and Lower Pliocene continental units (İncesu or Zöhrep Formations) (Çubuk and İnan 1998; Çiner et al. 2002).

6.3

Salt Tectonics

The Sivas Basin is known for its massive gypsum outcrops interlayered with halite beds (Hafik formation). The presence of halite at depth is supported by the occurrence of hypersaline springs and a deep drilling well (Alagöz 1967; Gedik and Özbudak 1974; Günay 2002). Salt tectonic activity involving Oligocene evaporites in the Sivas Basin is described in several papers (e.g., Çubuk and İnan 1998). According to Callot et al. (2014), gravitational spreading, and to a certain extent gravitational gliding, are the main halokinetic processes involved in the development of salt walls, diapirs, rim synclines, overhangs and canopies, recording the evolution of major depocenters due to salt withdrawal feeding the diapirs and possible canopies (Mohr et al. 2005). In the case of gravitational gliding, the most representative structures are roll-over and turtle-back anticlines, and toe-fold and thrust belts (e.g., Fort and Brun 2011; Callot et al. 2014). Calaforra and Pulido-Bosch (1999) also illustrated the relationship between the development of diapirs and gypsum karst. The central and eastern sectors of the Sivas Basin display a typical wall and basin structure; i.e., minibasins separated by vertical evaporite walls generated by salt flowage. Some of the best examples of wall and basin structures are located around Emirhan and Karayün (Fig. 6.1b), in the central part of the basin (Callot et al. 2014). Several lines of evidence

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suggest that the gypsum walls and diapirs are still active around the central and eastern part of the Sivas Basin where the main minibasins developed, displacing the sabkha and lacustrine deposits at their present altitude on top of active structures (Callot et al. 2014). Other salt tectonic structures are described to the east of the basin south of İmranlı (Çubuk and İnan 1998; Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004) and south of Zara (Ocakoğlu 1999). There are undeformed gypsum formations as well as anticlinal, diapiric structures and gypsum ridges uplifted by salt tectonics in the south of İmranlı (Figs. 6.1d and 6.2). Within those gypsum beds, still covered by younger formations, some changes in elevations are related to salt tectonics (Fig. 6.1d). In these areas “S-shaped” isoclinal folds in gypsum can only be related to vertical tectonics. As a result, cover sediments were uplifted, tilted and overturned during the formation of the anticline, evaporite walls and diapiric structures. For instance, the west-southwest to east-northeast trending Çorakgeçidi evaporite wall deforms younger cover formations and two synclines formed each side of the wall (Figs. 6.1d and 6.2a, b). Another important salt tectonic structure is Gelenli Diapir (Fig. 6.2b), which forced its way through younger formations as it rose. The general structure of the diapir is dome-like, with onion-like layering and small folds (Fig. 6.2c, d). Some parts of this structure are overthrust onto younger units (Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004). The uplift of the gypsum at this site took place in three stages: Early Miocene, post-Mid-Miocene and between the Pliocene and the present (Çubuk and İnan 1998). There are also several salt tectonic structures south of Zara where salt walls (e.g., Kevenli-Yaprakpınar) and some diapiric structures are described by Ocakoğlu (1999). Consequently, at the front of these diapir-like gypsum bodies, there is a pile of thinly stratified beds strongly folded and overturned. Some of them contain reworked gypsum pebbles in the vicinity of the structure, evidencing the coeval development of gypsum relief (Callot et al. 2014). Reworked gypsum was also described in the salt tectonics structures around İmranlı (Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004).

6.4

Karst Features

Two gypsum plateaus occur in the area, higher and lower, and the difference between them can be seen in several karst landscape elements surrounding Kızılırmak River and its tributaries. Relatively younger karst (e.g., solution dolines) is observed on E-W trending higher plateau (1520–1600 m), and a mature karst (e.g., poljes, collapse dolines) is present on the lower plateau (1315–1420 m) (Doğan and Özel 2005).

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Fig. 6.2 Salt tectonic structures in the Sivas Basin. a, b A view of the Çorakgediği Evaporite Wall, Gelenli Diapir and Söğütlü Syncline, located at the south of İmranlı. c, d View to the Tuztaşı diapir, between Sivas and Şarkışla. The ground photograph is from south of the Tuztaşı Diapir

6.4.1 Karren Karren are small-scale, micro (1 cm) dissolution forms that develop on bare rock surfaces and beneath a soil cover. The literature on gypsum karren is very scarce compared to that of carbonate rocks (Gutiérrez and Cooper 2013). On the other hand, in gypsum areas, karren form and degrade much faster than on limestones. However, there are good examples of karren within the Sivas gypsum karst terrain, especially to the southeast of İmranlı (Fig. 6.3). Gypsum karren in the basin were first reported by Alagöz (1967) and different types were documented by Doğan and Yeşilyurt (2004) following the classification by Ford and Williams (2007). The most common types of gypsum karren in the Sivas Basin are rillenkarren and rinnenkarren. Pristine examples of rinnenkarren and rillenkarren on the western slopes of southeast of İmranlı mimic the karren developed on limestone (Fig. 6.3). Rillenkarren or solution flutes are parallel channels that are mm- to cm-wide with parabolic

cross-profiles and separated by sharp ridges. Most of the rillenkarren occur on gypsum outcrops on the edges of solution dolines. These karren, observed in gypsum rock blocks with a surface slope of 70–80º, have a channel length of 30–50 cm, channel width of 3–20 mm and channel depth of 3–10 mm. Their depth increases downslope. Formation of this karren type depends on the melting of snow, and seasonal or annual rainfall, and they are destroyed rapidly. Rillenkarren include microrills or micro-rillenkarren. These microrills are round-bottomed solution channels 1–2 mm wide and up to several cm long, bounded by sharp ridges. They typically develop in fine-grained alabastrine gypsum south of İmranlı. Rinnenkarren or runnels are steep-sided and round-bottomed channels that are larger than rillenkarren and separated by wide interfluves (Fig. 6.3a). They form by water flow on gently inclined slopes, and their sinuosity shows an inverse relationship with the topographic gradient (Gutiérrez and Cooper 2013). The best-developed rinnenkarren have been found in the eastern part of the Sivas

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Fig. 6.3 Karren types south of İmranlı: a Rinnenkarren and wandkarren, b, c, d Rillenkarren developed on the alabastrine gypsum outcrops

Basin on gypsum scarps southeast of İmranlı. The channels, which occur on gypsum slopes within a gradient range of 60–70º, are 2 m in length, and 10–30 cm in width and depth. Solution runnels best develop on gypsum devoid of clay bands and lateral fractures. In case they exist, discontinuities are the starting point of the destruction of the karren channels. In addition to wandkarrens (wallkarren), which are small channels developed in vertical gypsum walls, there are also partly destroyed solution pits that formed beneath the soil in different parts of the gypsum outcrop. Some of the rinnenkarrens and wandkarrens are developed on the slopes of reworked gypsum. The reworked gypsum outcrops could have been formed by salt tectonics effects during Mid-Oligocene to Early Miocene (Callot et al. 2014). These karren types (rillenkarren, rinnenkarren and wandkarren) collectively form karrenfields on a salt wall located in the south of İmranlı (Fig. 6.3a).

6.4.2 Dolines Dolines (sinkholes) are one of the most characteristic features of evaporite and carbonate karst landscapes. They can

display a wide range of geometries and may reach hundreds of meters in diameter and depth (Ford and Williams 2007). These basins usually constitute water inlet features for the karst aquifers and may function as swallow holes (ponors) (Gutiérrez and Cooper 2013).

6.4.2.1 Solution Dolines Solution dolines result from differential corrosional lowering of the ground surface where karst rocks are exposed at the surface or merely soil-mantled (bare karst) (Gutiérrez and Cooper 2013). This corrosional lowering occurs around high permeability paths, fractures and fracture zones generated by salt tectonics and gravitational processes. In the Sivas Basin, solution dolines are the main karst landforms in the gypsum outcrops. These dolines are of two types: (i) drawdown dolines, which are common on the higher plateau between Hafik and İmranlı and related to salt tectonics structures (Fig. 6.1c, d); (ii) recharge-point dolines, which are formed on the borders of the salt tectonic structures (Fig. 6.1d). Density of solution dolines decreases on the lower gypsum plateau, which is deeply incised. There, the depth of Kızılırmak valley reaches 200 m around Zara; in the eastern sector of the basin, the main tributaries of the Kızılırmak River, Açıçay and Acısu streams, have carved a

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canyon 150–250 m deep. When traversing the Gelenli Diapir, the Acıçay stream flows through a gypsum canyon 400 m deep (Fig. 6.1d). Solution dolines also occur in relation to salt tectonic (halokinetic) structures such as diapirs and evaporite walls generated by salt flow (Fig. 6.1d; Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004). Most parts of the higher plateau constitute exceptional doline karst areas and display a truly outstanding karst landscape (Doğan and Özel 2005). There, the diameters of the dolines are between 10 and 500 m with depths down to 100 m in blind valleys. Some of the dolines have merged, acquiring an uvala form (compound dolines). The number of dolines per km2 is high, reaching around 250–300, but most dolines are relatively shallow (< 20 m) and small (< 250 m in diameter). Nearly all of them can be seen on satellite images. In the higher karst plateau, there is a polygonal network of low interfluve ridges that enclose shallow depressions with internal drainage through small sinks (Fig. 6.4a, b). The densely packed solution dolines in outcrops of bare gypsum form striking polygonal karst landscapes as seen on the higher plateau, gypsum anticline, evaporite wall and diapiric structures.

The dolines that developed on the salt tectonic structures are much deeper and tend to have an asymmetrical geometry in plan view. Funnel-shaped dolines are located at the border of salt tectonic structures that function as recharge points. For example, 30-m-deep and 600-m-long funnel-shaped dolines occur to the southeast of İmranlı. Most of these dolines have swallow holes in their floors. All these landforms indicate that some salt tectonic structures are still active. Associated to these geomorphic and salt tectonic structures are salt springs that indicate the proximity of salt to the surface. Solution dolines are seldom seen on the lower plateau that might be related to the higher hydraulic conductivity compared to the upper plateau. This is evidenced by the relative elevation of the lower plateau that reaches between 100 and 60 m above the river level in the Kızılırmak Basin between Hafik and south of Zara (Fig. 6.1c). However, large and shallow dolines are located on the lower plateau, especially in the karstified paleo-valleys (Fig. 6.4c). Because of rapid downcutting of the Kızılırmak River during the Quaternary and of diversion of surface drainage into the underground below the tributary valleys on the lower plateau, these latter

Fig. 6.4 Doline types south of İmranlı: a Solution doline topography on the gypsum outcrop. b Polygonal doline topography on the higher plateau and a landslide on the valley slope. The number of dolines is over 500 per km2 on the plateau. c Karstified paleo-valley turned to a

blind valley. There is a recharge-point or a ponor cave at the end of the valley. d Two suffosion dolines formed on the soil-covered floor of a blind valley

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valleys became hanged (Doğan and Özel 2005) and turned into karstified paleo-valleys with dolines and swallow holes. There is residual soil at the base of these dolines and the floors of larger dolines with soil cover are used for agricultural purposes.

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6.4.2.3 Collapse Dolines There are numerous collapse dolines in the gypsum karst of Sivas (Fig. 6.1c). These are bedrock collapse and cover collapse dolines (Fig. 6.5). Bedrock collapse dolines may develop by upward propagation of cavities through progressive roof breakdown. According to Andrejchuk and

Klimchouk (2004), breakdown structures related to cavities of the Kungurskaya Cave-type develop by two mechanisms: gravitational (sagging and fall-in of ceilings of cavities) and filtrational/gravitational (crumbling and fall-in of ceilings of vertical solution pipes, facilitated by percolation). In general, collapse dolines are rarely seen on the Sivas higher gypsum plateau. However, there is a large number of generally circular dolines with variable diameters and depths on the lower plateau between Hafik and Zara. Collapse doline’s density increases between Lake Tödürge and Ekinli village (Fig. 6.1c). To the north of the Kızılırmak Valley, west of the Yarhisar village, several collapse dolines are found. Among them, West and East Lota collapse dolines are the biggest (Fig. 6.1c). The West Lota collapse doline is 300 m in diameter and 15 m depth. The diameter and depth of the lake located inside are 250 m and 8.5 m, respectively (Alagöz 1967). The development of the doline still continues on its southern edge, with rockfalls from steep gypsum walls. The East Lota doline has a diameter of 425 m and a depth of 5 m up to the surface of the lake. The lake has a diameter of 325 m and a depth of 38 m (Alagöz 1967).

Fig. 6.5 Bedrock and cover collapse dolines in the Sivas Basin. a Kızılçam collapse doline is a funnel-shaped bedrock doline with a lake. b A collapse doline located between Bulakbaşı (Canova) and

Çimenyenice villages. c One of the numerous cover collapse dolines located around the Ekinli village. d There are numerous cover collapse dolines in the agricultural area around Canova village

6.4.2.2 Suffosion (Alluvial) Dolines Suffosion dolines are related to the downward migration of cover deposits through conduits and the progressive settlement of the ground surface. Suffosion dolines are observed in numerous areas of the Sivas Basin where gypsum is mantled by alluvial deposits. They are located in blind valleys, karstified paleo-valleys and in the Kızılırmak Valley itself (Fig. 6.4d). In most occurrences, the diameter of the suffosion dolines is smaller than 20 m.

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The lower plateau contains several karstified paleo-valleys where surface drainage has been incorporated into the groundwater flow in relation to (i) the continuous incision of the Kızılırmak River during the Middle and Late Pleistocene and (ii) the enlargement of the small dissolution conduit systems in gypsum. As a result, the small tributaries of the Kızılırmak River became karstified hanging valleys above the present channel, with several caves forming under the karstified floor or the fossil valleys. With time, upward propagation of the cavities led to the formation of several collapse dolines in the paleo-valleys. Previously eroded gypsum in the karstified paleo-valleys causes an unloading effect on the cave roofs. This process and probably recharge points (or ponors) facilitated the formation of collapse dolines and unroofed caves. Some of these dolines located to the east of Tödürge Lake have merged to form uvalas. The coalescence of some of the large dolines indicates that the decline of their slope profiles can be very fast. Active enlargement processes continue today as shown by large and small rockfalls from the gypsum cliffs undermined by dissolution and cave roof collapse. Also, collapse dolines are still forming. Permanent or temporary lakes that occupy some of them respond to the groundwater level and flow system. Kızılçam Çukuru collapse doline, located to the south of Canova (Bulakbaşı), is filled by such a lake. This funnel-shaped doline with a regular circular rim is 300 m in diameter (Figs. 6.1c and 6.5a) while the lake diameter is 220 m. When the alluvial cover behaves in a brittle way, upward migration of a cavity by successive failures eventually leads to the formation of a cover collapse doline (Gutiérrez and Cooper 2013). Cover collapse dolines occur on the floodplain of the Kızılırmak River. There is a large number of cover collapse dolines with lakes in the floodplain of the river around Canova (Fig. 6.5c, d) and east of Ekinli. These dolines reach as much as 100 m in width and 3 m in depth. Karst conduits responsible for their formation formed possibly by the downcutting of the river during the Last Glacial period. According to Doğan (2010), at *19 ka cal BP the Kızılırmak Valley floor, in its Cappadocia section further downstream, was *18 m lower than its present level. This observation means that any drastic water table decrease or fluctuation in the future might trigger new occurrences of cover collapse dolines in the Sivas region.

6.4.3 Poljes Poljes are large closed depressions with flat alluvium-covered floors. They typically present an elongated geometry parallel to the structural pattern. Seasonal drainage of these plains typically ends in swallow holes (ponors). In the Sivas gypsum karst terrain, large depressions with

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alluvium cover and permanent or temporal lakes are described as base-level poljes by Doğan and Özel (2005). These poljes are located on the lower plateau, at elevations very close to that of the local base level. For example, Çimenyenice polje is 2.5 km2 in area and 2.4 km long on its N-S axis. We suggest that the origin of these depressions is related to corrosional lowering and widening processes related to the position of the water table controlled by karstified palaeovalleys. On the other hand, most of them contain one or more collapse dolines formed at the edges: examples are Mağara Lake Polje and Çimenyenice Lake Polje (Fig. 6.1c). These palaeovalleys were probably converted to blind valleys by the formation of collapse dolines. Subsequently, these gypsum blind valleys may have turned into large closed basins or poljes favored by the rapid dissolution rate, low mechanical strength and ductile rheology of the gypsum. Some of these poljes are cut by river meander lobes at one side, which made them evolve into open poljes (e.g., Mağara Lake Polje).

6.4.4 Caves There are numerous caves in the Sivas gypsum karst terrain (Fig. 6.6). However, only a few caves in the area east of Hafik and south of İmranlı have been investigated (Waltham 2002; Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004). Under the karstified palaeovalleys (Fig. 6.4c), solution sinkholes resembling ponors, and especially, those located at the border of evaporite walls, diapirs as well as in the polje bottoms may have created suitable conditions for the development of caves (Fig. 6.6). Several natural bridges and unroofed caves are related to the enlargement of the passages favored by the lower mechanical strength of the gypsum. Because of the roof collapses at the entrance of the caves they are very difficult to investigate. The entrance to a cave in a steep gypsum cliff located to the east of Mağara Lake is 20 m wide, with a roof height of 15 m. The cave passage narrows after the first 40 m. Another cave is located south of the West Lota collapse doline, where its major portion (225 m) collapsed and turned into an unroofed cave (Doğan and Özel 2005; Fig. 6.6b). A small portion of the cave roof turned into a natural bridge after this roof collapse (Fig. 6.6a). Most of the caves located at the south of İmranlı are of swallow hole (Fig. 6.6c) or spring type. In this area, blind valleys and their corresponding cave systems evolved at the border of the halokinetic wall and diapir. Water sinking into swallow holes in dolines or blind valleys (Figs. 6.4c and 6.6c) resurges from valley floors or slopes as springs. For example, the İnhas Cave system resulted from the dissolution by a surface flow sinking into the karst via a recharge-point doline (Fig. 6.1d). The cave system has fossil

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Fig. 6.6 a A tunnel cave or natural bridge located southwest of the West Lota collapse doline. b An unroofed cave is located between the West Lota collapse doline and the tunnel cave. c A tunnel cave is

located at the northeast of Çekem Village. The cave entrance is about 20 m high and the cave is about 50 m long

semi-active (180 m) and active (75 m) storeys (Doğan and Yeşilyurt 2004).

Gypsum, due to its soluble nature, is a lithology particularly prone to the development of landslides. Factors and processes that favor or trigger slope movements or landslides in the gypsum karst areas are outlined by Gutiérrez and Cooper (2013). Rockfalls are mainly found on slopes of the Kızılırmak and Acıçay River canyons. Rockfall hazard is an especially important risk for Demiryurt (Tödürge) village, located in the Kızılırmak Valley (Fig. 6.1c). Generally, landslides are widespread in the Sivas gypsum karst and are concentrated to the south of İmranlı (Fig. 6.4b).

6.5

Natural Hazard in the Gypsum Terrain

Two main geomorphic hazards occur in the Sivas gypsum karst: the sudden occurrence or deepening or collapse dolines, and landslides of various types, particularly rockfalls. Collapses in karst terrains are very serious geological hazards. They can damage engineering structures and facilitate groundwater contamination (Yılmaz 2007). Collapse dolines (bedrock and cover collapse) and unroofed caves in the Sivas gypsum karst are mainly distributed on the lower plateau between Hafik and Zara. A good example of such a hazard is the recent, sudden formation of a bedrock collapse doline (Doğan and Özel 2005). In spite of the high level of risk related to this phenomenon, only one study on hazard mapping of karst collapse and sinkhole susceptibility zonation in the Sivas gypsum karst terrain has been carried out (Yılmaz 2007).

6.6

Conclusions

Sivas gypsum karst terrain covers an area of 2140 km2, where solution dolines are one of the most widespread karst features. The densely packed solution dolines in outcrops of bare gypsum form striking polygonal karst landscapes. In the polygonal karst area, the maximum number of dolines per km2 reaches *300. Solution dolines are also found on halokinetic structures such as diapirs and salt walls. Nearly

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each doline contains a swallow hole. On the other hand, collapse dolines, degraded and merged collapse dolines, suffosion dolines, unroofed caves, natural bridges and poljes are seen on the lower plateau and around the Kızılırmak River floodplain between Hafik and Zara. Quaternary evolution of the Kızılırmak River has played an important role in the long-term evolution of karst landscape in the basin. An especially rapid downcutting during the Middle and Late Pleistocene affected the formation of the karstified paleo-valleys, collapse dolines and poljes on the lower plateau. Additionally, karst development in some parts of the basin has been affected by halokinetic structures. Two main geomorphic hazards occur in the Sivas Gypsum Karst. These are the development of collapse dolines, and mass movements of various types, particularly rockfalls. The Tertiary Sivas Basin includes one of the most outstanding gypsum karst terrains in the world. Despite its importance, the number of comprehensive and detailed gypsum karst studies is still limited and further work is needed. Acknowledgements We are grateful to Francisco Gutiérrez and Alexander Klimchouk who reviewed and greatly improved this chapter.

References Alagöz CA (1967) Sivas Çevresi ve Doğusunda Jips Karstı Olayları. Ankara Üniversitesi Dil ve Tarih-Coğrafya Fakültesi Yayını, Ankara, 126 p Andrejchuk V, Klimchouk A (2004) Mechanisms of karst breakdown formation in the gypsum karst of the fore-Ural region, Russia (from observations in the Kungurskaja Cave). Speleogenesis Evol Karst Aquifers 2(2):1–16 Calaforra JM, Pulido-Bosch A (1999) Gypsum karst features as evidence of diapiric processes in the Betic Cordillera Southern Spain. Geomorphol 29:251–264 Callot JP, Ribes C, Kergaravat C, Bonnel C, Temiz H, Poisson A, Vrielynck B, Salel JP, Ringebach JC (2014) Salt tectonics in the Sivas Basin (Turkey): crossing salt walls and minibasins. Bulletin de la Societe Géologique de France 185:33–42 Cater JML, Hanna SS, Ries AC, Turner P (1991) Tertiary evolution of the Sivas Basin, Central Turkey. Tectonophys 195:29–46 Çiner A, Koşun E, Deynoux M (2002) Fluvial, evaporitic and shallow-marine facies architecture, depositional evolution and cyclicity in the Sivas Basin (Lower to Middle Miocene) Central Turkey. J Asian Earth Sci 21:147–165 Cooper AH, Gutiérrez F (2013) Dealing with gypsum karst problems: hazards, environmental issues, and planning. In: Shroder JF (ed) Treatise on geomorphology. Elsevier, pp 451–462 Çubuk Y, İnan S (1998) İmranlı ve Hafik Güneyinde (Sivas) Miyosen Havzası’nın Stratigrafik ve Tektonik Özellikleri. MTA Dergisi 120:45–60 Doğan U (2002) Çankırı Doğusunda Jips Karstlaşmasıyla Oluşan Sübsidans Dolinleri. Gazi Egitim Fakültesi Dergisi 22(1):67–82

U. Doğan and S. Yeşilyurt Doğan U (2005) Land subsidence and caprock dolines caused by subsurface gypsum dissolution and the effect of subsidence on the fluvial system in the Upper Tigris Basin (between Bismil-Batman, Turkey). Geomorphol 71:389–401 Doğan U (2010) Fluvial response to climate change during and after the Last Glacial Maximum in Central Anatolia, Turkey. Quat Int 222:221–229 Doğan U, Özel S (2005) Gypsum karst and its evolution east of Hafik (Sivas, Turkey). Geomorphol 71(3–4):373–388 Doğan U, Yeşilyurt S (2004) Gypsum karst south of İmranlı. Cave Karst Sci 31(1):7–14 Ford D, Williams P (2007) Karst hydrogeology and geomorphology. Wiley, Chichester, 562 p Fort X, Brun J-P (2011) Salt tectonics at passive margins: geology versus models. Mar Pet Geol 28:1123–1145 Gedik A, Özbudak N (1974) Sivas Celalli-1 sondajı bitirme raporu. MTA Rap., 5260 (yayımlanmamış), Ankara Günay G (2002) Gypsum karst, Sivas, Turkey. Environ Geol 42:387– 398 Gutiérrez F, Cooper AH (2013) Surface morphology of gypsum karst. In: Shroder JF (ed) Treatise on geomorphology. Elsevier, pp 425– 437 Gutiérrez F, Cooper AH, Johnson KS (2008a) Identification, prediction and mitigation of sinkhole hazards in evaporite karst areas. Environ Geol 53:1007–1022 Gutiérrez F, Guerrero J, Lucha P (2008b) A genetic classification of sinkholes illustrated from evaporite paleokarst exposures in Spain. Environ Geol 53:993–1006 Klimchouk A (1996) The dissolution and conversion of gypsum and anhydrite. Int J Speleol 5:21–36 (In: Klimchouk A, Lowe D, Cooper A, Sauro U (eds) Gypsum karst of the world) Klimchouk A (2013) Evolution of intrastratal karst and caves in gypsum. In: Shroder JF (ed) Treatise on geomorphology. Elsevier, pp 438–450 Koşun E, Çiner A (2002) Lithostratigraphy and facies characteristics of continental to shallow marine Miocene deposits; south of Zara (Sivas Basin). Bull Miner Res Explor (MTA J) 125:65–88 Mohr M, Kukla PA, Urai JL, Bresser G (2005) Multiphase salt tectonic evolution in NW Germany: seismic interpretation and retro-deformation. Int J Earth Sci 94(5–6):917–940 Ocakoğlu F (1999) Evaporitlerden kaynaklanan sünümlü deformasyona ilişkin bazı veriler (Zara, Sivas doğusu). MTA Dergisi 121:83–95 Poisson AM, Guezou JC, Öztürk A, İnan S, Temiz H, Gürsoy H, Kavak K, Özden S (1996) Tectonic setting and evolution of the Sivas Basin Central Anatolia, Turkey. Int Geol Rev 38:838–853 Poisson A, Wernli R, Lozouet P, Poignant A, Temiz H (1997) New stratigraphic data concerning the marine Oligo-Miocene formations of the Sivas Basin (Turkey). Comptes Rendus de l’Academie des Sciences-Series II A—Earth Planatery Sci 325(11):869–875 Temiz H (1996) Tectonostratigraphy and thrust tectonics of the Central and eastern parts of the Sivas Tertiary basin (Turkey). Int Geol Rev 38:957–971 Waltham T (2002) Gypsum karst near Sivas Turkey. Cave Karst Sci 29 (1):39–44 Yılmaz I (2007) GIS based susceptibility mapping of karst depressions in gypsum: a case study from Sivas Basin (Turkey). Eng Geol 90:89–103 Yılmaz A, Yılmaz H (2006) Characteristic features and structural evolution of a post collisional basin: the Sivas Basin, Central Anatolia, Turkey. J Asian Earth Sci 27:164–176

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The Antalya Tufas: Landscapes, Morphologies, Age, Formation Processes and Early Human Activities Erdal Koşun, Baki Varol, and Harun Taşkıran

Abstract

Tufa formation is a very common feature in the geological record of the Antalya region where it covers an area of 630 km2 and is up to 280 m thick. The oldest date obtained from this tufa deposit is >600 ka, and the youngest one is modern. Characteristic water landscapes are falls/cascades, fluvial channels and local pools. This tufa forms three major plateau systems that developed during the Quaternary. The upper plateau and the middle plateau are exposed above the sea, and the lowermost plateau is below sea level. Stable isotopic data (d18O, d13C) of Antalya Tufa indicate a formation under cold water conditions which were evidently affected by plant-induced CaCO3 precipitation and seasonal temperature changes. The isotopic ages and flora contents of Antalya Tufa clearly indicate that the middle and lower plateaus were formed during the Würmian regression period. Most geochemical and geomorphological data suggest that the deposition processes and morphologic features of the Antalya Tufa are related to sea level changes and climatic forcing rather than to tectonics. In addition to the geological settings of Antalya Tufa, caves and rock shelters located at the base of the southern and eastern limestone slopes of the Katran Mountains above the Döşemealtı tufa surface forming the upper plateau have

E. Koşun (&) Department of Geological Engineering, Akdeniz University, 07058 Antalya, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] B. Varol Department of Geological Engineering, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] H. Taşkıran Department of Prehistory, Faculty of Letters, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

been intensely occupied by humans intensively during the Palaeolithic and the Neolithic. Keywords









Antalya Tufa Palaeolithic cave Karain Cave Pleistocene Karstification Turkey

7.1




Introduction

7.1.1 Antalya Tufa Antalya Tufa is one of the most important tufa examples around the Mediterranean. It builds the “Pamphylia Plain” (Burger 1990), the ancient name of the Antalya “coastal plain”. Positioned approximately 35°45′ E and 37°00′ N, it supports three plateaus covering 630 km2 in total. The cumulative thickness of the Antalya Tufa reaches 250 m (Özüş 1992). From west to east, i.e. from the foot of the Taurus Mountains (Antalya Nappes and Beydağları) to the Aksu Valley, it extends for 19–30 km. From north (foot of the Taurus Mountains) to south (the seaside), it also has a vast extent (29–34 km) (Figs. 7.1 and 7.2). Travertine and tufa are essentially composed of the same mineral, mainly low-Mg calcite and share many common features (Pentecost 1995). Therefore, these extraordinary carbonate rock formations in Mediterranean of Turkey are evoked by various researchers as Antalya Travertine or Antalya Tufa (Burger 1990; Glover and Robertson 2003). However, travertine and tufa result from different depositional conditions. Tectonic-induced hydrothermal springs (fissure ridges) deposit travertine, in a similar way as in the Denizli Travertine (Pamukkale) in western Anatolia (Altunel and Hancock 1993; Özkul et al. 2013). On the contrary, cool freshwater systems such as bicarbonate-rich water (e.g. karstic spring lines, cascades, fluvial and lacustrine environments) produce tufa (Pedley 1990; Henchiri 2014).

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_7

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Fig. 7.1 a Geological map of the studied area (simplified from Poisson et al. 2011; Çiner et al. 2008). The A-A′ section is shown in Fig. 7.2. b Location of the studied area and the possible route of Palaeolithic people of Karain Cave

Fig. 7.2 Digital elevation model of the area built by Antalya Tufa

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7.1.2 Environmental, Biological and Physical Conditions of Tufa Formation While process(es) generating carbonate precipitation is(are) still commonly debated, carbonate precipitation in tufa (as in travertine) can be related to several factors such as organic and physicochemical conditions, microbial activity, photosynthesis, water chemistry, hydrology and climatology.

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(1) phytoherm framestone, (2) boundstone (a-phytoherm boundstone, b-stromatolitic-like tufa), (3) bedded micritic tufa, (4) phytoclastic, (5) oncoidal tufa, (6) intraclastic tufa, (7) microdetrital tufa, (8) palaeosols, (9) pisolitic tufa, (10) tufa conglomerate (a-channel type, b-pool type and c-intraformational) (Table 7.1; Fig. 7.4a–h).

7.2 7.1.2.1 Tufa Deposition and Climate In Western Europe, Quaternary tufas were deposited during the mild climatic conditions of interglacials and interstadials. However, in the Eastern Mediterranean the climate remained rather mild through all glacial periods along the coastal areas, as shown, for example, by the continuous presence of olive trees in these territories. Glaciations, however, affected the high mountains overlooking the coastal areas along the Mediterranean Sea, with widespread glacial environments in the uppermost parts (e.g. Çiner et al. 2015; Çiner and Sarıkaya 2017; Sarıkaya et al. 2008, 2009, 2014, 2017; Zahno et al. 2009; Zreda et al. 2011). Climatic impacts on the Antalya Tufa formation during the Quaternary must thus have occurred more through precipitation changes than temperature changes (Roberts 1983; Jones et al. 2007; Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015, 2017). 7.1.2.2 Processes of Tufa Formation Characteristic deposits of many large and small tufa precipitates depend on their sources, depositional ranges and ecosystems. It is widely accepted that tufa is dominated by inorganic and organic (microphytes and macrophytes, invertebrates and bacteria) interactions (Ford and Pedley 1996; Janssen et al. 1999). Hence, it is considered to be an external sedimentary output of karstic systems (e.g. Magnin et al. 1991). Besides, tufa formation does not require any specific environment. And a wide range of continental environments such as stream, lake, swamp and slope is suitable for this type of carbonate precipitation. Also, small lakes and their peripheral areas bounded by extensional fault blocks can provide favourable places for tufa precipitation. In these freshwater continental environments, tufa forms some typical carbonate formations, which are very similar to those of their marine counterparts. Tufa formations widely include stromatolites, biostromes, bioherms and all kinds of coated grains (Arenas et al. 2000).

7.1.3 Facies Types of Antalya Tufa In the proposed depositional model (Fig. 7.3), Antalya Tufas are classified into ten lithofacies defined on the basis of their lithological and petrographical diversity. These are

Geomorphology and Landscapes

Field observations indicate that perched springs, waterfalls/cascades, local ponds and fluvio-lacustrine environments serve as the starting point for the deposition of Antalya Tufa. All around and in the Antalya plain, carbonates precipitate indeed from high-discharged karstic waters rich in bicarbonate such as the Kırkgöz (“Forty Springs”) and other springs which feed lakes, ponds and streams. In addition, when considering 100–120 m magnitude difference between low glacial sea stand and high interglacial sea stand during the Quaternary, it is clear that tufa construction contexts together with the resulting plateaus and cliffs in the Antalya plain are mainly controlled by palaeoclimatic fluctuations acting on the adjustments–readjustments of the ground and surface water flows and networks.

7.2.1 Three Tufa Plateaus Morphologically, the Antalya Tufa forms three different topographic flat levels named here “upper”, “middle” and “lower” plateaus (Fig. 7.5) (Koşun et al. 2005). Cliffs separate the plateaus. Between the upper and middle plateaus, the height of the cliff changes between 40 and 60 m. Between the middle and lower plateaus, the cliff is not as high: 10–40 m. According to Koşun (2012), these cliffs are the result of wave erosion related to sea level changes, possibly accentuated by uplift movements. The upper plateau surface (Döşemealtı Plateau: Fig. 7.2) is at 200–320 m (a.s.l). The thickness of the tufa forming this plateau varies between 100 and 245 m (data from the Turkish Water Office water wells). Laterally, the tufa thins westwards down to 20–30 m. The middle plateau surface (Düden Plateau: Fig. 7.2) slopes down from 180 to 40 m (a.s.l) (Fig. 7.5), with a thickness remaining constant between 65 and 85 m. At this level series of karstic springs outflows from the Taurus limestone scarps. Among these springs, the Kırkgöz group feeds marshes (Fig. 7.3), which overflow into the Düden stream. Besides, the Düden stream (Fig. 7.2) runs over the surface of the middle plateau while it is also partly fed by local groundwater at places. The lower plateau is today between −50 and −100 m below the sea level and ends with a 50 m high cliff. The

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Fig. 7.3 Proposed depositional model for Antalya Tufa

surface water and groundwater join the lowest terrace level and flow into the Mediterranean Sea, forming waterfalls over the tufa cliff. Occasionally, fresh groundwater of the karstic caves is discharged into the sea, leading to cooler seawater invading beaches.

7.2.2 Age of the Antalya Tufa and Formation of the Three Tufa Plateaus Penck (1918) was probably one of the first researchers to mention the Antalya Travertine. He attributes it to the Plio-Quaternary because it unconformably overlies Pleistocene terrestrial conglomerates in the east and marine carbonates of the Beydağları autochthonous and ophiolites in the west. These Pliocene basement rocks are exposed to the east of Antalya Tufa basin (Fig. 7.6a). de Planhol (1956), Vita-Finzi (1969) and Burger (1990) used biostratigraphic data to propose a pre-Würmian age (before 115 ka) while Straus (1991) evokes a Würmian age (115–10 ka). In addition, Burger (1990) used 230Th/234U method for dating Antalya Tufa between 87 and 294 ka. In 2003, Glover and Robertson obtained 230Th/234U ages between 400 and >600 ka. These isotopic ages suggest that

the Antalya Tufa formation started at least ca. 600 ka, lasting until 87 ka ago at the latest. More recently, Koşun (2012) published new dates from the tufa of the middle plateau. According to a 230Th/234U date, the deposition started 380 ka ago, and according to two 14 C ages from the upper parts (16.85 and 3.56 ka cal BP), the deposition continued until Late Holocene. In spite of these results, it must be stressed that the role of the underground water flow dynamics coupled with its impact on carbonate dissolution and consecutive precipitation makes it very difficult to attain a consistent and trustful biostratigraphic and isotopic chronology.

7.2.3 Formation of the Three Tufa Plateaus and Origin of the Cliffs Isotopic age data published by Burger (1990) and Glover and Robertson (2003), show that the upper plateau formed during Early–Mid-Quaternary (Fig. 7.6b, c). In their model, Glover and Robertson’s (2003) consider that the two other plateaus are younger and result from a combination of karstic processes associated with sea level variations triggered by global climate change. According to this model, the

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Table 7.1 Facies types of Antalya Tufa (Koşun 2012)

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Autochthonous deposits Facies type

Description

Depositional environment

Boundstone a. Phytoherm boundstone b. Stromatolitic-like tufa

Laminated tufa, in situ, biogenic Stromatolitic tufa, in situ, non-biogenic

Waterfall/cascade (Fig. 7.4a, d, e, f)

Phytoherm framestone

Tufa facies which is formed by encrust plant material, in situ

Paludal/marsh (Fig. 7.4b)

Bedded micritic tufa

Tufa facies consisting of fine crystalline, massive and highly consolidated carbonate minerals

Lake/lacustrine

Phytoclastic tufa

Allochthonous tufa facies which consists of plant fragment cemented during or after transportation

In stream, fluvial and lake system

Oncoidal tufa

Cylindrical tubes surrounded by laminae, resembling water pipe-like structure tufa facies

In the agitated pools environments

Intraclastic tufa

Plant fragment-rich, unconsolidated, sand–silt size detrital tufa facies

Generally, around of the phytoherm framestone and in fluvial channels

Microdetrital tufa

Tufa facies consisting of fine, unconsolidated carbonate sediments

In lake and pool (Fig. 7.5b)

Palaeosols

Organic materials and carbonate-rich, unconsolidated red mudstone

As overbank deposits in fluvial environments

Pisolitic a. Pool type b. Channel type

Tufa facies consisting of hard, spheroidal or subspheroidal, pearly like balls accumulate in small terraces and pools on the gentle cascade slope or in the fluvial channels

Fluvial channels and pools (Fig. 7.4c)

Intraformational tufa conglomerate

Tufa conglomerate consists of subrounded to rounded pebbles

In fluvial channels and wave-worked beach (Fig. 7.4g)

Allochthonous deposits

formation of each plateau corresponds to a marine transgression, while cliffs formed during sea regressions. Koşun (2012) opposes Glover and Robertson (2003)’s model on the basis that their model claim that the sea covered the middle plateau although there is no evidence on top of the middle plateau of any marine sediment nor marine erosional morphology. As a result and on the basis of radiochronologic data obtained until now, Koşun (2012) assumes that (i) both the middle and lower plateaus developed during the period spanning from the Mid-Quaternary to the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), under conditions mostly generated by uplift forcing phasing (Fig. 7.6d, e), and (ii) the lower plateau submersion to its present position is due to the sea transgression that followed the Late Glacial temperature increase (Fig. 7.6f). According to Koşun’s model the escarpment at the middle plateau results from a combination of uplift and cliff erosion by the sea (Fig. 7.6g). Such a minoring of the role of global sea level changes in the formation of the Antalya Tufa plateaus and of their stepping, is supported by Desruelles et al. (2009) and Çiner et al. (2009)

who claim that the major causes of sea level changes observed along the Turkish Mediterranean coast during the last 4000 years can be attributed to local tectonics rather than to climate and/or glacio-eustasy.

7.2.4 Karstification Processes in the Tufa Plateaus The uplift of the Taurus Mountains, which started during the Late Miocene (Schildgen et al. 2012), provoked the shift of both underground and surface river systems downward to the deeper part of the range which is composed of >100 m thick limestone series. During the Pliocene, the intense development of this underground river system started to produce geomorphological and geological impacts on the surface, such as carbonate-rich karstic springs feeding tufas positioned in areas of tectonic contacts. Meanwhile, continuous uplift, possibly acting in more or less rapid phases, provoked several downshifts and development “crises” of

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Fig. 7.4 a Lateral and vertical growth patterns from bottom to top of stromatolitic-like tufa, b Phytoherm framestone in paludal marsh environment (Kırkgöz Spring), c Well-rounded pisolites in the small pools, d Düden River (one of the major rivers responsible for the present tufa formation) waterfall; the waterfall is positioned 40 m above sea level, east of Antalya (Lara District) and on the middle plateau, e Active tufa formation over the middle plateau at the cascade (Lara District), f Active tufa formation in the Düden Waterfalls (12 m height), g Wave-reworked detrital tufa with cross-bedded beachrock (Konyaaltı Beach), h A large doline in the upper plateau

the underground systems positioned in all carbonate formations, whether these are in the highlands, or in the lowlands as is the case of the Antalya Tufas (Ekmekçi and Tezcan 2011). This is one of the reasons why dates obtained in the tufas must be considered with caution. Karstification processes are evident in both the Taurus Mountains and within the tufas (e.g. Öztürk et al. 2018). At the north-western end of the tufa plateaus, the Kırkgöz Springs (the Forty Springs) are positioned along the sharp contact separating the foot of the Taurus Range and the upper tufa plateau of the Antalya “coastal” plain. These springs feed marshes and lakes drained into sinkholes that give them access to underground flows. From this upper

underground system inside the tufa, the water springs and waterfalls above the middle terrace level form another generation of surface drainage (e.g. “Düden stream”). Karstification of the upper and middle plateaus is also shown by ellipsoidal dolines commonly occurring on their surface (Fig. 7.4h). Some of them are several hundred metres in diameter. Thus, the tufas in the Antalya plain result from a continuous carbonate alimentation developed along three stepped and similar dynamic phases: (1) continuous karstic dissolution from the Taurus karst loads in underground water flowing from “mother springs”, which construct tufas and form marshes in the lowland fringing the range, and feed

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Fig. 7.5 a Topographic profile of the Antalya Tufa deposits, b lake-type tufa facies of the upper plateau near Varsak Village, (Pc: phytoclastic, Md: microdetrital), c tufa facies of the middle plateau in SE of Kemerağzı Village (palaeosol, phytoherm framestone, phytoherm boundstone). C1 14C age sample in the lignite zone. C2 14 C age sample in palaeosol zone

streams; (2) these streams feed, via sinkholes, a second-generation underground system developed within the tufas, and nourish magnificent waterfalls which give birth to a second surface drainage flowing over the “middle” tufa plateau surface; and (3) this surface flow generates a third infiltration–dissolution–deposition process suite within the lower tufa, which outflows on the lowest tufa surface where they discharge into the sea (Efe et al. 2008), and above the immerged tufa below the Antalya coastline.

7.2.5 Impact of Human Activities on the Tufa Landscapes of the Antalya Plain According to the last population count in 2011, the Antalya population is today >1 million, and more than 10 million tourists visited Antalya each year until 2015. In addition to the heavy impacts generated on the landscapes by the needs of these populations (soil loss, water withdrawal and quality loss, resources management and touristic impacts), the plain is also an important producer of agricultural goods. This production has generated a dense development of greenhouses over the tufas, while intensive technologies for vegetable and fruit production have not only accelerated the water withdrawal out of the underground systems, but also introduced chemicals inside these systems. Today all springs

and streams are human-controlled (mainly discharged into irrigation and drainage networks). For example, the swallow hole in the middle plateau, which used to drain part of the Kırkgöz surficial water, is now completely diverted by an intake structure for irrigation (Ekmekçi and Tezcan 2011). Due to intense water use and groundwater withdrawal for irrigation and drinking needs of the Antalya agglomeration, tufa deposition in the plain is now minimal while spring water discharge has been decreasing for several decades. Some local ponds, cascades and waterfalls inland (e.g. Düden River/Waterfalls) and along the coast (e.g. Kurşunlu) are still active. This activity still allows the formation of modern tufa over the pre-existing tufa surfaces (Glover and Robertson 2003; Koşun 2012).

7.3

The Importance of the Antalya Plain for the Mediterranean and European Prehistory

At the meeting point between Europe, Asia and the Near East, Anatolia has been for million years on the routes of human migrations. It is thus a significant mainland in terms of investigating the oldest human activities. First humans migrated out of Africa where the oldest fossil human records are found and entered Anatolia via the Levantine Corridor

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Fig. 7.6 Hypothetical depositional evolution model of the plateau morphology of Antalya Tufa

(Bar-Yosef 1994). On this route, Hatay (near the Syrian border) and Antalya are two important focal points of archaeological research on in Turkey. Between Hatay and Antalya, only two Palaeolithic sites are known today (Sırtlanini in Silifke and Kadıini in Alanya, identified by Kökten’s surveys in 1959 and 1964). Above the Antalya plain, caves have been intensely surveyed, especially in the Katran Mountain (1450 m), which rise in the northwest of the Antalya Tufa plain. These surveys have evidenced that

almost all of the caves in Katran Mountain were used for settlement during various periods (Taşkıran 1994; Yalçınkaya 1995). Palaeolithic populations were hunter-gatherers and had nomadic life. Thus, their major problem was to find shelter and food. Caves and rock shelters provided habitation places. The many karstic springs as well as ecosystems around (forests, marshes, lakes) provided them with multiple other resources such as water, game animals and plants

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(vegetables, fruits, seeds, fuel wood, etc.). Another significant need of Palaeolithic people was to find proper and high-quality raw material sources for chipping stone tools. The main raw material used by Palaeolithic people in the region is radiolarite, which is commonly found stratified in limestone series around the Katran Mountain (Taşkıran 2007). Chopped radiolarites were also collected from the gravels in the Kızılin streambed.

7.3.1 Palaeolithic 7.3.1.1 Lower Palaeolithic The archaeological site of Karain Cave, which overlooks the Döşemealtı tufa plain, testifies to the first arrival of Palaeolithic people in the Antalya region. After excavations started at Karain in 1946 under İ. Kökten’s direction, these continued in the 1990s under the leadership of İ. Yalcınkaya (Yalçınkaya et al. 1993; Otte et al. 1998). Although the Karain Cave has been occupied during various periods between Palaeolithic and Early Byzantine, it is most famous for its Lower and Middle Palaeolithic remains, some of them being exposed in the Museum of the cave. Lower Palaeolithic cultures are characterized here by flakes and bifaced tools (hand axes), including Acheulian bifaces (Yalçınkaya et al. 2009) (Fig. 7.7a). The technology producing such tools was developed by Homo erectus, who lived between 1 Ma and 300 ka ago. Accordingly, the first occupants of Karain Cave belonged most probably to the Homo erectus species. Archaeologists estimate the age of the Acheulian bifaces found in Karain Cave to be 500 ka. At this time, the upper plateau was already formed and accessible (see above), while the rest of the landscape to the east and south was not a tufa plateau but deep valleys invaded by the sea during interglacial periods. The proposed 500 ka age is based on a similar age obtained at the bottom of the upper tufa, and on the fact that Homo erectus was most probably present in the Antalya region as it is already known to be present in the Denizli region (170 km NW of Antalya) since 1.3–1.1 Ma ago (Kappelman et al. 2008; Lebatard et al. 2014). 7.3.1.2 Middle Palaeolithic Both the surface archaeological survey conducted around the Döşemealtı tufa plain and the excavations in the Karain Cave demonstrate the presence of Middle Palaeolithic population. In Cavity E of the Karain Cave, an Early–Middle Palaeolithic phase belongs to a Charentian-type Mousterian culture, with no trace of Levallois technology. This period may date back to ca. 350 ka. Industry from a younger Middle Palaeolithic level, which belongs to a Karain-type Mousterian or Zagros-type Mousterian, is represented by a very rich chipped stone industry dated ca. 160 ka ago by Rink et al.

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(1994). These layers delivered remains of Homo neanderthalensis (Otte et al. 2003), a human species who lived between ca. 250 ka and ca. 28 ka ago. These pieces are the only fossil remains of Homo neanderthalensis in Turkey. The lithic assemblage is mostly produced from radiolarite and rarely from flint or other stone. These Neanderthals applied the Levallois technology as shown by Levalloisian cores, discoidal cores and Levallois flakes (Fig. 7.7b). Animals composing the faunal remains from these levels are very diverse. Herbivores are elephant, hippopotamus, rhinoceros (Fig. 7.7c), fallow deer, Capra ibex; carnivores are lion, panther, hyena, wolf, fox, lynx and Ursus spelaeus. This diversity evidences the richness in terms of ecological environment of the territory around the Karain Cave during the Last Interglacial and the Last Glacial.

7.3.1.3 Upper Palaeolithic Industries dated Upper Palaeolithic Period (ca. 45–18 ka ago), associated with Homo sapiens, are surprisingly rare in Turkey. Apart from Hatay where it has been found in quantity, only Cavity B of the Karain Cave contains an industry attributed to this period (Fig. 7.7d) in Turkey. 14C dated ca. 28 ka, it is represented by carinated end scrapers on flakes as well as by high proportion of bone tools and decorated objects. 7.3.1.4 Epipalaeolithic During this period, caves and rock shelters in the Antalya region were densely occupied. Appearing during the Late Glacial, Epipalaeolithic cultures are known throughout Turkey where they coexisted with Neolithic populations until the Mid-Holocene, sharing neighbouring territories (Düring 2011). In the Antalya region, Epipalaeolithic artefacts are present in the caves of Karain (19–15 ka cal BP: Otte et al. 2003), Öküzini (15–9 ka cal BP: Yalçınkaya et al. 2002), Beldibi and Belbaşı (Late Epipalaeolithic, until 8 ka cal BP).

7.3.2 The Holocene Period (After 11.4 Ka Cal BP) Evidences of plant-domestication practices in the area dating back to the Late Glacial and onset of the Holocene have been evidenced in the Öküzini Cave (grinding stones, plant remains: Yalçınkaya et al. 2002; Emery-Barbier and Thiébault 2005) and in a core retrieved from the Kırkgöz marshes in front of the Öküzini Cave (Emery-Barbier 2002). In this core, the lowest layers below the archaeological material-rich marshy sediments have been deposited in connection with a lake dated 45 ka ago to the end of the LGM (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2002). During Neolithic, sedentary life as well as sheep and goat domestication and cultivation of plants became the bases of

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Fig. 7.7 a Cavity E of the Karain Cave, b One of the Mousterian points from the Karain Cave, c Rhinoceros and hippopotamus teeth samples from Karain faunal remains, d The cavity B of the Karain Cave

the development of human societies. Settlements of this period have, however, not been evidenced in the Antalya region neither in the caves nor in connection with the tufas, although they are numerous and quite well known north of the Taurus highlands in the Lake Region. On the contrary, later periods (Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age) are known from several caves. At Suluin Cave (1.5 km northeast of the Karain Cave), a Late Neolithic site 14 C dated 8th mill. cal BP consisting of stoned walled houses, delivered archaeological artefacts evidencing multiple cultural relationships with inland Anatolia (Lake District, Central Anatolia) (Taşkıran and Aksu 2009, 2011). Moreover, new evidences within the stalagmites from Tabak Cave show that there were human occupations more than once in the cave during the Early–Middle Chalcolithic (Koç et al. 2018). During the Early Bronze Age, human occupation was intense everywhere, including in most caves in the Katran Range. During the Roman period, the Katran Mountain caves continued to be used, although in a religious perspective (Şahin 1991). During the Ottoman Empire and

Turkish Republic times, the caves were used for milky food conservation. Today, some of the caves are used as sheepfold.

7.4

Conclusion

Since the Middle Pleistocene, the Antalya Tufa is continuously being built from water carbonate precipitation in the presence of plants and bacteria, and in a depositional environment fed by freshwater discharged by a karstic system outflowing from the Taurus range, and by an underground system activity within the tufa itself. Today, the CaCO3 precipitation is especially noticeable around springs, waterfalls, fluvial channels and pools. Antalya Tufas have been formed as three plateaus (upper, middle, lower), the upper one being the oldest. The lowest one is presently below the sea level. The shaping of the cliffs separating the plateaus as well as the inner structure of the tufa is related to (i) sea level changes during glacials (very

7

The Antalya Tufas: Landscapes, Morphologies, Age …

low level) and interglacials (high level), and (ii) tectonic movements (uplift) which affect the plateaus as a whole as well as the karstic and underground water networks which descend within the tufa when the region is uplifted. The 230Th/234U ages from the lower parts of the middle plateau suggest that the deposition started prior to 380 ka. On the other hand, recently obtained 14C ages (16.85 and 3.56 ka cal BP) from the upper parts of the middle plateau indicate that the deposition is recent, and most probably modern. These dates suggest that the upper plateau tufa deposition occurred in the Early–Mid-Quaternary and was much impacted by tectonic uplift. After the shaping of the escarpment during the Mid-Quaternary (before or after the Lower Palaeolithic occupation of the Karain Cave), the lower and middle plateau deposition was also controlled during the Middle to Late Quaternary by eustatic sea level changes in addition to continuing tectonic uplift. Since the Mid-Pleistocene, tufa formation processes have been generally controlled by palaeoclimatic fluctuations, the periods of increasing deposition being connected with phases of climate amelioration. The terraced morphology, except for small areas (e.g. Masadağı), should be considered as the result of erosion related to low sea level changes as well as the downshift of the karstic network and water exchanges within the tufa. The area around the Döşemealtı tufa plain has been continuously inhabited since 500,000 years ago. Archaeological excavations carried out in the caves and multi-disciplinary studies of the sites provide crucial data on the history of settlement and palaeoecology of the region. Groundwater, rivers and karstic springs supply drinking and irrigation waters. In addition, the rivers flowing on the upper terrace level produce hydroelectric energy (Kepez hydroelectric power plant). Most parts of the Antalya city settlement areas have been set up on tufa deposits. Acknowledgements Akdeniz University Scientific Research Project provided financial support for this study. We would like to thank Muharrem Satır (Tübingen University, Germany) and Uğur Temiz (Bozok University, Yozgat, Turkey) for the isotopic analyses.

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8

Pamukkale Travertines: A Natural and Cultural Monument in the World Heritage List Erhan Altunel and Francesco D’Andria

This paper is dedicated to late Prof. Paul Luis Hancock (PhD supervisor of the first author) and Anne Hancock for their stimulating company and great interest in the scientific and historical aspects.

Abstract

The actively accumulating Pamukkale travertines and the ancient city of Hierapolis are located along the northern margin of the Denizli Basin in Western Turkey and are both included as a mixed natural and cultural property in the World Heritage List. Travertine terraces and pools (terraced-mound travertines) attract visitors to Pamukkale, but fissure-ridge travertines and self-built channel travertines are as attractive as terraced-mound travertines and they should be considered as natural monuments. In addition to major ancient buildings in the city centre of Hierapolis, there are other ancient structures such as quarries, water channels and aqueducts in the Pamukkale area. In order to save these natural monuments and cultural heritages for future generations, boundaries of the existing preservation plan should be enlarged immediately to cover all travertine bodies and cultural structures in the Pamukkale region. Keywords

Pamukkale Turkey

8.1




Travertines




World Heritage List




Introduction

Pamukkale (means cotton castle in Turkish) is so named because of the accumulation of snow-white travertines (Fig. 8.1). Pamukkale is located on the northern side of the E. Altunel (&) Department of Geology, Eskişehir Osmangazi University, 26040 Eskişehir, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] F. D’Andria Department of Cultural Heritage, University of Salento, Lecce, Italy e-mail: [email protected]

Denizli Basin which is a roughly E-W trending depression framed by topographic escarpments on both the northern and the southern sides (Fig. 8.2). The Mount Küçükçökelez to the north of the basin rises to a maximum of 1739 m, whereas to the south the higher mountains of Babadağ and Honazdağ reach 2300 m and 2571 m, respectively. The northern margin of the flat-floored Denizli Basin, containing the Çürüksu River (ancient Lykus River), is about 100-m-high south-west-facing escarpment, rising from the basin floor at about 250 m above sea level. Towards the north, there is the south-facing degraded Pamukkale range-front fault (Altunel and Hancock 1993a) and the Pamukkale travertines and the ancient city of Hierapolis are located between the Denizli Basin and the Pamukkale range front (Fig. 8.3). Travertine deposition at Pamukkale, one of Turkey’s most important tourist destinations, has been in progress for at least 400,000 years (Altunel 1994) and has partially overwhelmed the Roman city and necropolis of Hierapolis (Bean 1971). Travertines are visible from more than 30 km away because of their snow-white appearance. Among the many natural phenomena that claim the attention of a visitor to Turkey, these travertines and hot springs rank first in general interest. The unique appearance of travertines and curative properties of Pamukkale’s springs have attracted settlers from very early times, and as a result, the ancient city of Hierapolis was established. Both Pamukkale travertines and Hierapolis form a mixed property (natural and cultural) inscribed in 1988 on the World Heritage List. The purposes of this chapter are: (1) to describe selected travertine types which render this area most popular throughout both historical and modern times, (2) to introduce the adjacent ancient city of Hierapolis and other man-made ancient structures in the Pamukkale area and (3) to emphasize the case of safeguarding these natural and

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_8

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E. Altunel and F. D’Andria

Fig. 8.1 Actively accumulating travertines at Pamukkale. Flat surface is the Denizli Basin. View towards west. Photograph by A.İ. Gökçen

cultural heritages in the Pamukkale area because some of them are under threat and need urgent protection which is critical to transfer it to future generations.

8.2

Evolution of Travertine Deposits in Pamukkale

Travertine is a hard compact limestone deposited from solution at springs or from percolating waters. The word “travertino” is Italian, and a corruption of the term Tiburtinus, the stone being formed in great quantity at Tibur, near Rome, and hence, it was called by the ancient Lapis Tiburtinus (Wyatt 1986). At Pamukkale, hot waters emerge from springs located along fractures (faults, fissures, etc.) and when waters flow on the surface, travertine precipitates in different forms depending on the sub-environments (Altunel and Hancock 1993b). The most visually attractive travertine types in the Pamukkale area are terraced-mound, fissure-ridge and self-built travertines (Fig. 8.3).

8.2.1 Terraced-Mound Travertines The active terraced-mound travertines at Pamukkale are the result of deposition from thermal spring waters (35 °C) that issue from point sources within an active fault zone (Altunel and Hancock 1993b). Water flows down the sides of mounds that have built up on a south-facing gentle slope. It is these travertines that attract visitors to Pamukkale (Fig. 8.1). Their beautifully ornate architecture consists of a curving and

steeply raked, or overhanging, ramp of overlapping cup-shaped pools on all scales, from a few centimetres to a few metres. The travertine deposited on the lips and outer sides of pools is commonly of snow-white appearance, although when the water flow stops, the travertine turns to a buff colour, and ultimately acquires a grey to black weathering varnish. The maximum development of active terraced-mound travertine occurs about 500-m north-east of Pamukkale village, along an approximately 1-km-long terrace where numerous terracettes are being formed. Terracettes vary in height from a few centimetres to a few metres. Their outline is rarely crescentic, but is usually irregular and wavy. As long as water continues to flow over terracettes, they grow higher. Terrace-mound travertines also display a variety of small-scale morphological forms. Travertine on a terraced mound tends to be initially deposited at features such as breaks of slope, leaves and twigs, pebbles or wall-like self-built channels. Where water flows around or over such obstructions, it becomes turbulent and travertine is precipitated. Outstanding examples of depositional morphology on terraced-mound travertines are pools (Fig. 8.1). Pools are formed in places where raised rims develop around the edge of each crescentic terracette due to precipitation of travertine from water flowing over the edge and down the vertical side to the next pool below. Microterracettes occur on rims and terracette walls. The surfaces of rims commonly have a corrugated appearance. Where rims are overtopped by flowing water, there is seepage from pool to pool. Travertine forming rims and terracettes is dense and compact, whereas

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221

Fig. 8.2 a Location of the Denizli Basin (box) in Western Turkey. b Digital elevation model of the Denizli Basin. White box indicated by white arrow is the Pamukkale site. Both figures drawn from SRTM data

the travertine that accumulates on the floor of each pool is softer and muddier, consisting of roughly spherical pellets. In front of pools, stalactites form as a consequence of overflow and give rise to a rope-like fringe or guard.

8.2.2 Fissure-Ridge Travertines Fissure-ridge travertines are deposited by hot waters emerging from springs within fissures (Altunel and Hancock 1993a). A typical fissure-ridge comprises flanking bedded travertines dipping away from the fissure and a nearly vertical central fissure partly filled by fissure travertine (Fig. 8.4). Bedded travertines form as a result of degassing during the flow of surface waters away from source fissure. Thus, the sloping sides of ridges adjacent to fissures are gradually

erected. The general depositional pattern consists of wedge-shaped layers, which are thick near the fissure and thin out with increasing distance from the fissure. The formation of fissure travertine involves transport of carbonates in hot water solutions from a source region to the zone of deposition in the fissure. Such travertines are generally banded and parallel or sub-parallel to fissure walls.

8.2.3 Self-built Channel Travertines Self-built channels evolve as a result of water flow in a channel which is either man-made for irrigation or natural as a result of seepage from travertine mass (D’Andria 1987; Altunel and Hancock 1993b). They are as spectacular as active terraced-mound travertines (Fig. 8.5). Water flow is

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Fig. 8.3 Map of the Pamukkale area showing the distribution of terraced-mound, fissure-ridge and self-built channel travertines and man-made structures. Main geological units in the Pamukkale area are Neogene clastics and other Quaternary deposits (white area) (approved boundaries of the area subject to preservation plan taken from Pamukkale (Hierapolis) Preservation and Development Plan 1991)

less turbulent in the centre of a channel in contrast to its margins, and hence, travertine precipitation is rapid where water is agitated on channel sides. Self-built channels form as a result of the continuous deposition of travertine from turbulently flowing water on the floors and sides of relatively narrow channels so that the flat-floored, steep-sided channels gradually amplify (Fig. 8.5). Wall-like channels are up to 10 m high and are commonly sinuous in plan.

8.3

Historical Background

The unique appearance and curative properties of hot springs at Pamukkale attracted settlers from very early times. The ancient city of Hierapolis, located on the hanging wall of the Pamukkale range-front fault (Fig. 8.3), was found around

third century B.C. by the Hellenistic kingdom of the Seleucids (Ritti 1987; D’Andria 2003). According to Bean (1971), the name Hierapolis signifies “the holy city” because of the religious traditions that developed around the sacred cave. Hierapolis became part of the Roman province of Asia in 133 B.C. Industrial activities, in particular those focused on wool production and dyeing of textiles, developed between second century B.C. and first century A.D. An earthquake destroyed the city in 60 A.D., and after this event, with help from the Emperor Nero, the city was rebuilt in its present form. Around fifth to sixth century A.D., Hierapolis transformed into a Christian city, and in A.D. 535, Hierapolis became the metropolis of Phrygia. Some buildings such as the theatre were abandoned, and churches, including the Cathedral, the Martyrion of St. Philip, the Pier Church and the suburban church (Baths Basilica) were constructed at that time.

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Fig. 8.4 An E-W trending fissure-ridge travertine in the Çukurbağ area. Red arrow indicates a Roman quarry in the ridge, and blue arrow indicates a hot spring

Fig. 8.5 About 10-m-high self-built channel in Pamukkale. White travertines in the back are active terraced-mound travertines

The Plutonium is still a place to visit. An earthquake seriously damaged the city in the second half of the seventh century A. D. leaving the most important monuments in ruins. In 1190, the crusade of Frederick Barbarossa passed through the ruined

city “where it is said that the Apostle Philip is buried”. Towards the thirteenth century, the region passed permanently to Turkish hands. Shortly after that time, people moved to Emirate of Denizli and Hierapolis was abandoned.

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E. Altunel and F. D’Andria

Historical Buildings and Ancient Structures

8.4.1 Historical Buildings The ancient city of Hierapolis, which occupied an area of about 1000 m  800 m (Fig. 8.6), is situated on the terrace-mound travertine. Although the city is the Hellenistic foundation, nothing from the Hellenistic era has survived until today, except for a few ruins. As it stands today the whole city dates from the Roman and Byzantine periods. The city was mainly built around the 14-m-wide colonnaded street (plateia) (Fig. 8.7), which ran through its centre in a nearly N-S direction (Fig. 8.6). At both ends, the street extended to monumental gateways outside the city wall. The main drain covered with large stone blocks runs in the centre of the main street. Along the sides are a number of building comprising houses, shops and warehouses, unified by a travertine facade, which was 170 m long and terminated at the so-called Byzantine Gate built at the beginning of the fifth century. The so-called sacred pool is located near the middle of the colonnaded street (Fig. 8.6). The pool is of Roman foundation and is believed to have been called Thermodon. The Sanctuary of Apollo lies within the sacred area and was surrounded by an enclosure wall (temenos). The Plutonium is located to the south of the Sanctuary of Apollo (Fig. 8.6).

This monumental complex is characterized by the presence of a theatre and a cave from which spring water and carbon dioxide emerge. The carbon dioxide results in the death of birds and small animals drawn by the heat, especially at night, when the presence of gas is more intense. The structure is surrounded by an exceptional temenos, dated to the first century B.C. (D’Andria 2013). The theatre is well preserved and impressive in size (Fig. 8.8). It is located to the east of the sacred area and slightly higher up the hillside. The northern baths are located on the north side of the northern gate to the city (Fig. 8.6). They were built towards the end of the second century and converted into a Byzantine church in the fifth century. The southern baths (now a museum) are located on the edge of the travertine scarp to the south-west of the sacred pool (Fig. 8.6). Roman tombs surround Hierapolis, but the main necropolis is sited a short distance to the north of the northern gate (Fig. 8.6). The octagonal Martyrion (Fig. 8.9) stands on a high terrace, within a cemetery area, from which it dominates the town and the surrounding landscape up to Honaz Mountain (Mt. Kadmos). The building dates to the end of the fourth or beginning of the fifth century. This building complex, typical of martyria, was erected within a funerary area and has been plausibly linked to the tradition of Philip the Apostle who came to Hierapolis from Jerusalem and Caesarea with his four prophetic daughters.

8.4.2 Ancient Structures

Fig. 8.6 City plan of Hierapolis. Major buildings, introduced in the text, are shown on the plan (simplified from De Bernard Ferrero 1987)

Among ancient structures, there are quarries, water channels and aqueducts in the Pamukkale area (Fig. 8.3). There are several ancient quarries in the region, and almost, all buildings in the ancient city of Hierapolis were built of travertine. Well-preserved quarries are in the fissure ridges. The distinctive attribute of these quarries is that many of them are narrow (2–10 m wide) but deep (5–20 m deep) vertical-sided trenches (Fig. 8.10). The dense and attractively banded travertine from fissures (one type of the so-called Phrygian marble) was mainly used as an ornamental stone, whereas the bedded travertine from ridge sides was used as building stone and for making columns. Tool marks are identical on the quarry walls. There are two types of water channels in the Pamukkale area (Fig. 8.3). The first type supplied freshwater to the city from mountains to the east and the north-east. Irrigation channels comprise the second type. The first type of water channels is a subsurface channel with clay pipes leading to the water reservoirs in the city. These channels supplied drinking water to Hierapolis. A small ancient channel was excavated in the basement rocks in the eastern wall of the canyon-like Yel stream

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Fig. 8.7 View of the northern city gate (view towards north). Blue arrow shows the colonnaded street (plateia), and white arrow shows the northern Roman bath

Fig. 8.8 A general view of the theatre towards west. Blue arrow shows the southern Roman bath, white arrow shows the sacred pool, yellow arrow shows the Sanctuary of Apollo, and red arrow shows the plutonium

(Fig. 8.3). This channel, which is heavily ruptured by fissures, was an irrigation channel carrying water from Yel stream to fields for irrigation. Some self-built channels have been used for irrigation. They can be traced on the Pamukkale plateau for over 2 km from Hierapolis (Fig. 8.3). Self-built channels crossed valleys via aqueducts. Remains of ancient aqueducts are recognizable both on the Çaltılı stream in the north-west of Hierapolis and on the Kadı stream in the south of Hierapolis (Fig. 8.11). An active self-built channel is crossing the Çaltılı stream via an aqueduct in the north-west of Hierapolis.

8.5

Suggestions to Preserve Natural and Historical Monuments in the Pamukkale Area

Hot waters, actively accumulating travertines and the ancient city of Hierapolis in the Pamukkale area attract visitors in increasing numbers, and consequently, there has been considerable recent urbanization in the area. Although the General Directorate for the Preservation of the Cultural and Natural Heritage of the Turkish Republic aims to preserve

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Fig. 8.9 Ruins of Martyrion

Fig. 8.10 Close-up view of a Roman quarry in a fissure-ridge travertine in the west of Hanife Hill. White arrows show banded travertines on the fissure wall (from Altunel 1994)

natural and archaeological sites at Pamukkale under the “Pamukkale (Hierapolis) Preservation and Development Plan” (1991), the approved boundaries of the area subject to preservation plan cover only a limited proportion of the total area that includes travertine bodies and ancient structures (Fig. 8.3). Disappointingly, a result of this lack of foresight is that the number of modern buildings is increasing in a small area and inactive travertines; especially, fissure-ridge travertines have been quarried in the region.

Urbanization and modern quarrying in the Pamukkale area have given rise to the following problems. Extraction of subsurface thermal waters by private properties has led to fall in the water table and is beginning to exhaust some of the natural hot springs. As a result, natural travertine deposition will stop. Some fissure-ridge travertines will disappear as a result of modern quarrying in the Pamukkale region. There are ancient quarries in fissure-ridge travertines that will be destroyed or disappear as a result of modern

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Fig. 8.11 A self-built channel (yellow arrows) was crossing the Kadı stream via an aqueduct. The aqueduct was collapsed, but its walls are visible on both sides of the valley (white arrows)

quarrying. Ancient quarries have been used as garbage disposal sites in the territory, this should be stopped, and ancient quarries must be cleaned immediately. Evolution of terraced-mound travertines, fissure-ridge travertines and self-built channel travertines takes thousands of years, but modern quarrying will completely remove them in a few years. For example, self-built channel travertines have been forming only at Pamukkale. Thus, these travertine bodies are unique in the world and they can be considered as a natural monument. Modern quarrying will also remove ancient quarries, which are cultural heritage. In addition, there are many illicit archaeological excavations outside Hierapolis (Fig. 8.12) and a strong control on this territory is requested. In order to save these natural monuments and cultural heritages for future generations, boundaries of the existing area subject to

preservation plan should be enlarged immediately to cover all travertine bodies and cultural structures in the Pamukkale region between Akköy in the west and Yeniköy in the east (Fig. 8.3). Destructive earthquakes damage man-made structures as a result of both rupturing along a fault or fissure and widespread ground shaking. Because travertines and hot springs attracted settlers from very early times, there is a long record of historical seismicity in the area. Thus, man-made structures in Hierapolis, which is located right on an active fault zone, provide a broad basis to realize the relationship between archaeoseismic damage and active faulting. We strongly suggest that Hierapolis should be designed as an “Archaeoseismological Park” where it will be possible to see the main seismic effects on the monuments as a result of both faulting and ground shaking.

228 Fig. 8.12 a Carving on the fault plane of the Pamukkale range-front fault (about 600 m north of the modern northern gate). Figures are (from left to right) probably Artemis, Apollo or Hierapolis and Hercules (from Altunel 1994). b Photograph of the same fault plane in 2014. Carving removed as a result of illicit excavation

E. Altunel and F. D’Andria

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References Altunel E (1994) Active tectonics and the evolution of Quaternary travertines at Pamukkale, Western Turkey. PhD thesis, University of Bristol (UK), 236 p Altunel E, Hancock PL (1993a). Active fissuring, faulting and travertine deposition at Pamukkale (W Turkey). In: Stewart IS, Vita-Finzi C, Owen LA (eds) Neotectonics and active faulting. Zeitschrift fur geomorfologie supply, vol 94, 285–302 Altunel E, Hancock PL (1993b) Morphological features and tectonic setting of Quaternary travertines at Pamukkale, Western Turkey. Geol J 28:335–346 Bean G (1971) Turkey beyond the Maeander. Ernest Benn, London, 276 p D’Andria F (1987) Background of Hierapolis: geography and topography. Hierapolis di Frigia 1957–1987. Fabbri, Turin

229 D’Andria F (2003) Hierapolis of Phrygia (Pamukkale). An Archaeological Guide, Istanbul D’Andria F (2013) Il Ploutonion a Hierapolis di Frigia. Ist Mitt 63:157–217 p De Bernardi Ferrero D (1987) Travellers. Hierapolis di Frigia 1957–1987. Fabbri, Turin Pamukkale (Hierapolis) Preservation and Development Plan and the International Workshop on Pamukkale (1991) Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture, general directorate for the preservation of the cultural and natural heritage, 140 p Ritti T (1987) History of Hierapolis. Hierapolis di Frigia 1957–1987, Fabbri, Turin. Wyatt A (ed) (1986) Challinor’s dictionary of geology 6th edn. University of Wales Press, Cardiff, 374 p

Part III Coastal Landforms

9

Coastal Landforms and Landscapes of Turkey Attila Çiner












Abstract

Keywords

The Turkish Peninsula is delimited by three surrounding seas (Mediterranean, Aegean and Black seas) and one inland sea (Sea of Marmara). Each of them has its own typical coastal geomorphology in terms of variation of the oceanographic, geological and atmospheric conditions. The Black Sea coast is a typical Pacific-type coast in terms of mountain ranges that run parallel to shorelines, which result in the formation of linear and high cliffs only cut by Sakarya, Kızılırmak and Yeşilırmak deltas. The Mediterranean coast also exhibits shoreline-parallel mountain ranges. However, contrary to the Black Sea coastline, the basement rocks are limestone-dominated and therefore karstic processes are decisive in the shaping of coastal morphology. The best example is the Antalya coast where underground rivers fed by the Taurides Mountains, formed travertine terraces. Several erosional and depositional coastal landscapes are represented by steep cliffs, marine terraces, beachrocks, wave-cut platforms and notches. Marine terraces uplifted to several 10s of metres also record relative sea-level changes that occurred since the mid-late Pleistocene. The pattern of the Aegean coast of Turkey is mainly defined by E– W-oriented horsts and grabens as a result of ongoing extension in the region. This tectonic setting facilitated the formation of deltas along the Aegean coastline, where ancient cities and harbours were mainly built during Hellenistic and Roman times. As an inland sea, the Sea of Marmara is developed along the middle and northern strands of the North Anatolian Fault Zone, where uplifted marine terraces are observed.

Deltas Beaches Beachrocks Wave-cut platforms Notches Holocene Coastline

A. Çiner (&) Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences, Istanbul Technical University, Maslak 34469 Istanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

9.1




Introduction

Coastal landforms result from the action of several agents such as waves, longshore and rip currents, tides, climate and gravity that act on rocks and sediments along the coast. Depending on the geographic location of the coast, the combination of these forces can erode bedrock, mainly by abrasion, giving rise to the formation of multiple types of landforms, or result in the gain of sediment in the coastal zone. Although coastal landforms compose a large spectrum ranging from beaches to high cliffs, they are often classified as erosional and depositional. Erosional coasts typically show high relief with little or no sediment, while depositional coasts are characterized by abundant sediment. As Turkey is a peninsula with ca. 8000-km-long coasts, very different coastal morphologies have been formed by four seas (Mediterranean, Aegean, Marmara and Black seas). On the geological timescales, eustatic sea level rise, especially since the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; ca. 20,000 years ago) (e.g. Fouache et al. 1999; Kayan 1988, 1999; Lambeck and Purcell 2005; Brückner et al. 2010), and local tectonics (subsidence and/or uplift) (e.g. Pirazzoli et al. 1991; Pirazzoli 2005; Çiner et al. 2009) are the main controlling factors of the recent coastline evolution around Turkey. Changes implemented by the relative sea-level oscillations, especially since the beginning of the Holocene, resulted in the diversification of coastal landscapes, ecological zones and affected people. A recent synthesis by Benjamin et al. (2017) underlines well the connection between past sea-level changes and human migrations along the coasts. The purpose of this review is to present the different types of coastal landforms and landscapes encountered in Turkey.

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_9

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Due to the wealth of data, the review is not geographically all-inclusive but aims to give insight into the most typical landscapes. A geographical and process-oriented approach is used for the description of erosional and depositional landforms of each coastal region, from the Black Sea in the north to the Mediterranean Sea in the south. Turkey’s very rich archaeological past and ancient cities and harbours dating to several millennia ago are also selectively mentioned as part of the coastal landscapes. However, the readers are referred to other chapters of this book that present in detail the geomorphology of these archaeological sites.

9.2

Regional Characteristics

The Black Sea coast of Turkey stretches from east to west (Fig. 9.1). From the border with Georgia in the east, high mountains of the Kaçkar Range run parallel and very close to the coastline, with altitudes > 3000 m in places. Therefore, the coastal morphology is one of the high cliffs, with mountains covered with fields of tea, hazelnut and corn. Elevations decrease in direction of the central Black Sea region where two major deltas (Yeşilırmak and Kızılırmak) and one of the few natural harbours (Sinop) are present. Towards west, Sakarya Delta is another important coastal morphological feature. Contrary to the eastern part, well-developed beaches, mangroves and lagoons are abundant in the European (Thrace) part of the Black Sea coast, roughly from the north of Istanbul till the Bulgarian border.

The Sea of Marmara is an inland sea, ca. 280 km long and ca. 80 km wide. It is connected to the Black Sea via the Istanbul Strait (Bosphorus) and to the Aegean Sea via the Çanakkale Strait (Dardanelles). Its coasts are typical ria type. In other words, river valleys have been invaded by seawater as a result of Holocene transgression. The connections between the Aegean, Marmara and Black seas during the Late Glacial and the Holocene are recorded by well-established evidence, except in the case of the Bosphorus Strait where the subject is still debated (e.g. Ryan et al. 1997; Aksu et al. 1999; Eriş et al. 2007). Examples of coastal features associated with this transgression are Büyükçekmece and Küçükçekmece lagoons which are located to the west of Istanbul on the northern shores of the Marmara, and the Manyas and Arapçiftliği lakes and other lagoons west of Bandırma on the southern shores. The Aegean Sea coast of Turkey is geographically defined from the Greece border in the north, till the Datça Peninsula in the south. Because of the extensional tectonic regime of the hinterland, several E–W aligned horsts and grabens have developed. The result is the formation of a sinuous coastline with several large to small bays and beaches. Many rivers flow within these depressions, finally building deltas known to host well-known archaeological sites. In the south, the Mediterranean coast of Turkey reaches the Syrian border. The Taurus Mountain Range, mostly made up of carbonate rocks, runs parallel to the coastline, and this lithological dominance defines the coastal

Fig. 9.1 Map of Turkey showing major rivers, deltas and important lagoons (except in deltas) and beachrock locations (Map by Oğuzhan Köse). Modified from Avşarcan (1997) and Çiner et al. (2009)

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landscapes. Several large and kilometres long beaches and cliffs dominated by karstic processes are typical (Fig. 9.1). Contrary to the Aegean coast, the bays are relatively larger and several archaeological sites, some of them totally or partly under the sea, are also part of the Mediterranean coastal landscape.

9.3

Depositional Coastal Landforms

9.3.1 Deltas 9.3.1.1 Black Sea Coast Deltas develop at the mouth of rivers, provided that more sediment is deposited than eroded away by coastal processes. From east to west, three major deltas, Yeşilırmak, Kızılırmak and Sakarya, have developed along the Black Sea coast of Turkey. Yeşilırmak (also known as Çarşamba) is the largest delta along the Black Sea coast. The major part of the delta is today agricultural land thanks to the restless efforts of the local authorities to dry up the wetland areas. Samsun airport located in the west of the delta and several dams built on >500-km-long Yeşilırmak River indicate well the anthropogenic threat on its natural habitats. Kızılırmak (also known as Bafra) Delta is fed by the Kızılırmak, the longest river (1355 km) within the borders of Turkey. Almost the size of the neighbouring Yeşilırmak Delta, it is a wave-dominated delta showing a typical Δ form. Today, wetland landscapes with lagoons, sand ridges, coastal

Fig. 9.2 Kızılırmak River delta and lagoon. Photograph by A. Çiner

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dunes and palaeodunes are typical (Berndt et al. 2017) (Figs. 9.1 and 9.2). Kızılırmak Delta is also well known for its bird population and now is protected under Ramsar Convention. Sakarya Delta is the westernmost delta along the Black Sea coast. Its progradation is somewhat restricted because of the very narrow shelf, which is only a few kilometres wide, and the strong wave and current actions (Algan et al. 2002). Its landscapes are therefore different from those in the two other deltas, with the presence of several well-developed mangroves, a lake (Akgöl) and Turkey’s longest coastal dunes (>40 km) reaching 5 m heights in places. The dunes are home to several endangered flowering plant species such as Silene sangaria and Verbascum degenil. Additionally, the ecosystem is especially important for fish populations.

9.3.1.2 Aegean Coast As appropriately put by Brückner et al. (2005), nearly all Mediterranean deltas have a similar beginning: the sea-level fall of ca. 120 m during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; 20,000 years ago) and following sea level rise. Because the sea level almost reached its present position, apart from small fluctuations, in the middle Holocene (i.e. since ca. 6000 years), delta progradation and deposition of Late Holocene floodplain fine-grained sediments are characteristic features of the deltas along the gulfs developed within the grabens of the Aegean coast (Kayan 1999). During Hellenistic and Roman times, ancient cities and harbours were built on these deltas because of their convenient locations. Studies of numerous cores obtained from major Holocene

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delta plains, where these archaeological remains are present (e.g. Troia, Ephesos, Miletos), were attributed by Kayan (1997) to sedimentation resulting from normal geomorphological processes within the delta plain, depending on sea-level changes related to climatic–eustatic cycles. The effect of local or regional tectonics and sediment compactions were considered unimportant, at least during the time span of delta progradation. However, it should be noted that several indicators of local and regional tectonics such as drowned beachrocks, uplifted notches and wave-cut platforms are often present, especially towards the southern Aegean coast. The delta built by the >500-km-long River Meriç (Maritsa), which constitutes the border with Greece, is the only delta developed in the European side (Thrace) of Turkey. This river was flowing to the Sea of Marmara ca. 1.5 Ma ago and was diverted to the Aegean Sea after coseismic uplift along the northern margin of the Sea of Marmara (Okay and Okay 2002). Developed to the south of the Dardanelles Strait, the delta built by the Karamenderes (ancient Scamander) River is intimately associated with the epic city of Troia, listed in UNESCO World Heritage List since 1988. The site, which used to dominate the sea, is now 4 km south from the present coast (Kayan 1997). The Bakırçay (ancient Kaikos) River also forms a small delta (ancient Elaia Delta), where the harbour of the city of ancient Pergamum, ca. 30 km to the north, was located (Pint et al. 2015). Today, this small delta area and its bay are under considerable anthropogenic threat because one of the largest ports of Turkey is under construction along the shores. Gediz Delta is one of the largest of western Anatolia (ca. 400 km2) (Kayan and Öner 2015) (Fig. 9.3). It is located north of İzmir, the third largest city of the country with ca. 4 million inhabitants. It is now protected by the Ramsar Convention. The unicity of its situation is greatly challenged by anthropogenic pressure on its ecosystems, which host an important flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) population. To the south of İzmir, Küçük Menderes (Kaystros) Delta hosts Ephesos, the most important ancient Hellenic port city of Turkey, also included in UNESCO World Heritage List since 2015. Today, the seashore is 7 km far from its antic position, because of a fluvial infill which was emplaced only during a couple of millennia (Stock et al. 2013; Brückner et al. 2016). Less than 100 km to the south of Ephesos, another prominent ancient city, Miletos, was founded on the Büyük Menderes (Maiandros) Delta. Today, it is also several kilometres away from the seashore, also because of fluvial sedimentation, which occurred after 1500 BC (Brückner et al. 2016).

A. Çiner

9.3.1.3 Mediterranean Coast Along the Mediterranean coast, Eşen Delta to the west is home to Letoon shrine (Öner 1999; Écochard et al. 2009), another UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1988. Nearby Patara Beach is also a site of an ancient Hellenic settlement, famous for its fine sand and coastal dunes. In the Eşen Delta, sediments in a filled lagoon contain volcanic ash and sand traces of the tsunami related to the famous Santorini volcanic eruption of Late Bronze Age (Öner 1996; Écochard et al. 2009; Aydar et al. 2012). The Göksu River that cuts impressive gorges within the Taurus Mountains limestones feeds the Göksu Delta near Mersin. This Ramsar Convention site is an important wetland area with several lakes and dune systems and is a preferential meeting place of ornithologists. Built by the Şeyhan and Ceyhan rivers, the Çukurova Delta is the largest (>5000 km2) and most fertile delta of Turkey (and one of the largest in Europe). During the Quaternary, sediments brought by these rivers have constructed the plain and the delta, resulting in considerable coastal progradation in the mouth areas (Aksu et al. 2014). Because of the high precipitation in the respective drainage basins, fluvial, coastal and sediment dynamics are very high and subject to rapid as well as frequent geomorphological changes. This frequency is well illustrated by the faintness of the water divide between the Seyhan and Ceyhan rivers in the west of the plain (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1993; Erol 2003; Isola et al. 2017). The delta used to be very wild and mobile, until irrigation sustained the development of cultivation over most of it and until dams reduced considerably the amount of sediments delivered by the rivers to the sea. Before this recent evolution, the delta area was crossed by unstable channels, possessed a high amount of wetlands and was very suitable for bird nesting and fish reproduction. Today, the citrus trees, tobacco and cotton productions are the leading agricultural occupations in Çukurova. Adana, a major city with a population of ca. 2 million, is the economic centre of the delta. Several lakes and lagoons (Tuz, Akyatan, Ağyatan and Yumurtalık) are developed along the coast, all classified as natural parks. Near the mouth of the Ceyhan River and especially along the eastern part of the delta, the number of migratory and permanent birds attains several hundreds of thousands, while the sandy beaches and coastal dunes seaside are famed as nesting grounds for three species of endangered sea turtles (Caretta caretta, Chelonia mydas and Trionyx triunguis) (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1993; Çetinkaya 2004). Asi (Orontes) River that crosses Antakya (ancient Antioch) and forms Asi Delta near the Syrian border is the last delta along the Mediterranean coast of Turkey. The delta plain is mainly used for agriculture. The coastline is ca. 14 km long and made up of sandy and pebbly beach,

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Fig. 9.3 Gediz Delta. Photograph by Cüneyt Oğuztüzün (Atlas Magazine)

100–150 m wide (Erol 1963; Öner 2008). Approximately, 500 archaeological settlements have been documented in the region (Braidwood 1937; Yener 2005), among which excavations at sites like Tell Judaidah, Tell Tayinat, Tell Atçana (ancient Alala) and Al Mina yielded significant material evidence covering Bronze and Iron Ages. During Roman occupation of the area, Vespasianus Titus Tunnel was dug through the hilly boundaries of the ancient city of Samandağ (ancient Seleuceia in Pieria) in order to divert a stream that was depositing sediments in the antic harbour basin, a former lagoon (Erol and Pirazzoli 1992).

9.3.1.4 Lake Van Lake Van is the largest lake (3713 km2) of Turkey. Located in eastern Anatolia, its waters are alkaline (pH 10). This lake too is bordered by three small deltas: the Engil Delta (300 km2) near Edremit town, the Erciş Delta (the largest one) and the Muradiye Delta (at the easternmost extremity of the lake). All these deltas are still in their natural state and subject to rapid changes in sediment dynamics. An endemic fish Chalcalburnus tarichi is the only living species in the high pH water of the lake. The endangered duck Oxyura

leucocephala is also one of the most well-known animals in the deltas of the Van Lake.

9.3.2 Marine Terraces A marine terrace corresponds to a relatively flat, horizontal or gently inclined surface of marine origin, made up of sand and/or pebbles deposited by the sea. When occurring at several levels along a shoreline, marine terraces record sea-level changes that may have been caused either by an uplift of the continent or by a glacial/interglacial sea volume variation. Because Turkey is tectonically a very active country, numerous marine terraces exist along the Black Sea and Mediterranean coasts. For instance, on the Sinop Peninsula along the Black Sea, Yıldırım et al. (2013) identified two shorelines at 21 m and 67 m a.s.l., positioned below 2–10-m-thick marine terrace deposits. The OSL ages of these terrace deposits yielded 195 ka and 400 ka ages, respectively (Yıldırım et al. 2013), pointing to the MIS 7a and MIS 11 interglacial sea-level high stands (Fig. 9.4).

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Fig. 9.4 Marine terraces on the Sinop Peninsula along the Black Sea. Photograph by C. Yıldırım

Ages of coastal terraces on the southern margin of the Kızılırmak Delta record its pre-Holocene development (Akkan 1970; Berndt et al. 2018). Along the south-eastern Mediterranean coast, marine terraces are observed at different elevations, at 170 m a.s.l. high (electron spin resonance (ESR) dated to 398 ± 24 ka) and from 2 to 180 m a.s.l. (113 ± 12 ka to 67 ± 9 ka). Ages of these latter terraces point to deposition during warm periods of the last interglacial (MIS 5e), MIS 5a glacial transition and MIS 11 interglacial (Blackwell et al. 2011; Tarı et al. 2014). Doğan et al. (2012) also described several levels of marine terraces near Samandağ, as high as 50 m a. s.l. They attributed the highest one to MIS 5a (*72 ka). Compared to the altitudes of the terraces, these results imply differential uplift across the region during the Late Pleistocene. It should be mentioned that Lake Van terraces are also well documented and constitute an important climatic archive of the region. While the oldest lake terrace is dated prior to 105 ka, the youngest one dates back to 21–20 cal. ka BP (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). Available data also indicate that the long-term lake-level changes responded mainly to climate oscillations.

9.3.3 Mangroves and Lagoons Mangrove forests are an ecosystem of incredible biological diversity comprising algae and trees and animals such as mollusc, fish, insect, bird and mammals that live in the intersection of land and sea. Although not many, some mangrove forests, especially along the Black Sea (such as Sinop Sarıkum and Acarlar), are present in Turkey. However, the most famous mangrove forest, İğneada, located ca. 15 km to the Bulgarian border along the Black Sea coast of Turkey, is characterized by flooded forests and associated aquatic and coastal ecosystems, with freshwater and saline lakes, coastal dunes, marshes and mixed forests of deciduous

tall trees (Bozkaya et al. 2015) (Fig. 9.5). It is classified by Conservation International as one of the world’s top 25 biodiversity hotspots and named by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) as a Global 200 Ecoregion (Bozkaya et al. 2015). Dalyan (fishing weir in Turkish) is a small town and a lagoon on the south-western Mediterranean coast. The lagoon is declared by Turkish Law as a Special Environmental Protection Area since 1988 (Fig. 9.6a). Like other Mediterranean beaches in Turkey, it is also a breeding ground for the endangered loggerhead sea turtle species, Caretta caretta. Life in Dalyan revolves around the Dalyan River, which flows past the town with several small boats navigating and carrying tourists to the seaside. Above the river’s cliffs are the ancient Kaunos theatre and the weathered façades of Lycian tombs cut from rock, ca. 400 BC (Fig. 9.6b).

9.3.4 Beaches Turkey’s beaches and related sub-environments are world-famous, and it is an impossible task to list even the major ones in this review article. Fortunately, some of the most important ones are under the supervision of national and international environmental agencies. Especially, beaches along the Mediterranean coast (the so-called Turkish Riviera), accompanied by sun, ultra-luxury resorts, nature and historical heritage, are major attraction points for tourists, with some unfortunately negative consequences. In this context, Antalya is the largest city on the Mediterranean Sea shore with >1 million inhabitants. It still contains a charming harbour, and its beaches are kilometres long. To the east, the Lara Beach is home to the high-valued beach of Antalya, known for its golden sand. To the west, the more than 10-km-long pebble beach of Konyaaltı is also very popular. Numerous small but beautiful beaches, often controlled by faults within the limestones in the backshores, are also very popular recreational sites. One of them,

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Fig. 9.5 İğneada mangrove forest. Photograph by A. Çiner

Kaputaş, is probably the best example and the most visited beach to the west of Antalya (Fig. 9.7). Another point of interest is the coastal lagoon near Fethiye, protected by a continuous pebble bar from the open sea, the Ölüdeniz (Dead Sea in Turkish), also known as “Blue Lagoon”. Its Turkish name describes its calm waters, which remain still even during storms. This lagoon is one of the most photographed natural coastal landscapes on the Mediterranean coasts of Turkey, because of the shades of turquoise and aquamarine colours presented by its waters (Fig. 9.8). Despite their beauty, three main processes related to human intervention threaten these landscapes. The first one is erosion of beaches because of beach and river sand extraction for buildings and because of the construction of dams that retain sediments inland. The second one is the invasion of the landscape by plastic greenhouses for intensive cultivation and its correlative chemical and plastic pollution of soil and water. In addition, touristic, urban and agricultural pressures on the coast provoke at places

penetration of seawater into the coastal plains, thus increasing the salt content of water resources. Although the Turkish Law provides a good framework for the protection of the coastal areas, the application of these regulations remains heterogeneous.

9.3.5 Beachrocks Beachrocks are hard coastal sedimentary formations consisting of various beach sediments, lithified through the precipitation of carbonate cements (Vousdoukas et al. 2007). In fact, beachrocks are common features along the Mediterranean, Aegean and Marmara Sea coasts (Erol 1971; Ertek 2001; Desruelles et al. 2009; Erginal et al. 2008, 2010; Avcıoğlu et al. 2016) (Fig. 9.9). Although much less preserved, beachrocks are also described from the Black Sea and even from lakes (Erginal et al. 2012, 2013) (Fig. 9.1). While the south-eastern Mediterranean part of Turkey has been uplifting (up to 1–3 m) in the last 4000 years, several

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Fig. 9.7 Kaputaş Beach. A fault that runs perpendicular to the sea has created this small beach within the limestones

Fig. 9.6 a View of Dalyan lagoon and beach and b Boats carrying passengers towards the sea. Kaunos city Lycian tombs on the background. Photographs by M. Paşa

features (submerged beachrocks, Roman buildings and quarries; Fig. 9.10a, b) indicate that the south-western part of the Turkish Mediterranean Coast, on the contrary, is currently 3–4 m below sea level. This E–W peninsula-scaled slope underlines the importance of the E–W tectonic gradient through Anatolia, with the rising eastern part and the sinking western part (Çiner et al. 2009). Unfortunately, some of the Anatolian beachrocks are under great anthropogenic threats as some local hotel owners

often try to get rid of these natural wave breakers simply by destroying them to open space for the tourists. This unconsciousness destabilizes the sediment balance and results in narrowing, eventually destruction of the beach itself.

9.4

Erosional Coastal Landforms

Erosional coasts typically show high elevations and steep slopes close to the shore. The shoreline retreat rate often depends on the lithological characteristics of bedrock. Sea cliffs are the most observed erosional landforms in Turkey. However, wave-cut platforms and notches are also well developed, especially along the Mediterranean coast.

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Fig. 9.8 Aerial view of Ölüdeniz lagoon and the sandy spit

9.4.1 Sea Cliffs

9.4.2 Wave-Cut Platforms

Although there are sea cliffs along the Black Sea coast, Antalya travertines and tufas probably constitute the most well-known sea cliffs of Turkey. The tufa formation covers an area of 630 km2, is up to 280 m thick and is the substratum over which Antalya has been built. The tufa generation is composed of three major terrace systems (from ca 300 m a.s.l. to 100 m below sea level thickness) developed during the Quaternary (Glover and Robertson 2003; Koşun 2012). It is the middle terrace (reaching ca. 150 m a.s.l. height) that constitutes the sea cliff.

At the base of rocky coastlines, flat surfaces called wave-cut platforms can develop by wave action over the bedrock. As the Mediterranean coast of Turkey is mostly composed of limestones, wave-cut platforms form relatively fast. Their presence indicates that sea level did not fluctuate during the periods of formation. Consequently, several platforms that occur at different altitudes along the coast indicate various positions of sea level. Near İncekum to the east of Alanya, a wave-cut platform positioned today at +0.5 above sea level is spectacular (Kelletat and Kayan 1983) (Fig. 9.11).

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Fig. 9.9 Beachrocks to the east of Antalya that include important quartz grains from surrounding lithologies. The half circles (hammer for scale) cut into these extremely hard beachrocks are millstone extraction locations of unknown age. Photograph by A. Çiner

9.4.3 Marine Notches Sea cliffs that extend to the shoreline commonly present a notch cut into them. Notches develop because of the bio-erosion in the intertidal zone (Furlani et al. 2011; Furlani and Cucchi 2013). The Mediterranean Sea is bordered by rocky coasts along more than 60% of its total length (Furlani et al. 2014), and the Turkish part falls within this average. U-shaped tidal notches are common features along the Mediterranean limestone cliffs and are widely used as sea-level markers (e.g. Pirazzoli et al. 1996; Antonioli et al. 2015). As expected, their study suggests that tidal notches in

Mediterranean Anatolia also formed because of bio-erosional processes (e.g. Pirazzoli 1986). Because notches are almost exclusively developed in limestones, it is proposed that wave abrasion plays little or no part in notch cutting (e.g. Higgins 1980). Near the border between Turkey and Syria, at least two levels of emerged shorelines (erosional notches and in situ rims bio-constructed by the vermetid Dendropoma) are present a few metres above the present sea level. They are interpreted as recording two rapid uplift phases during the Late Holocene (Pirazzoli et al. 1991) (Fig. 9.12). The upper shoreline (+2.90 m a.s.l.) is dated to 2500 ± 100 years BP,

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Fig. 9.10 a Submerged beachrock (−4.0 m) in Finike (photograph by Attila Çiner) and b submerged Roman quarry in Andriake. Photographs by Attila Çiner (a) and Eric Fouache (b)

and the lower shoreline (+0.8 m a.s.l) is attributed to historical times because of the importance of a major earthquake in July 551 AD (Pirazzoli et al. 1991). Near Alanya at İncekum, 100 km to the east of Antalya, a corrosion bench emerges at +0.5 m above the present mean sea level. The 14C uncalibrated dates of fossil vermetid tubes have permitted the attribution of this ancient sea level to the 19 BC–200 AD period. Kelletat and Kayan (1983) also reported similar vermetids (Dendropoma petraeum) that developed at +0.5 m over bio-erosional benches 1 km to the east of Incekum. They delivered several 14C uncalibrated dates obtained from stromatolitic algae (Neogoniolithon

notarisii), ranging between 1815 ± 35 years BP and 1545 ± 45 years BP.

9.5

Conclusion

The Turkish Peninsula is surrounded by several seas (Mediterranean, Aegean, Marmara and Black seas), presenting very different coastal morphologies. Among them, depositional landforms include worldwide known beaches and mid-Holocene beachrocks at or below the current sea level. Several deltas, especially along the E–W aligned

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Fig. 9.11 Wave-cut platform (surf bench) in (Antalya Province). Photograph by A. Çiner

horsts and grabens of the Aegean coast, have also developed during the postglacial sea level rise. Ancient cities and harbours were built on these deltas during Hellenistic and Roman times because of their convenient locations. The Çukurova Delta built by the Seyhan and Ceyhan rivers south of Adana city is the widest delta of Turkey. On the other

hand, erosional landforms are also well developed and wave-cut platforms and sea cliffs with notches are especially typical in the limestone-dominated Mediterranean coast. Overall, the observed morphologies indicate well the popularity of the Turkish coastline not only among contemporary visitors but also since the antiquity.

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Fig. 9.12 Several uplifted erosional notches can be observed near the border between Turkey and Syria. Photograph by A. Çiner

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A. Çiner transgression across the Sea of Marmara shelf south of İstanbul. Mar Geol 243:57–76 Erol O (1963) Geomorphology of the Asi river delta and Pleistocene marine and river terraces. Ankara Dil ve Tarih-Coğrafya Fakültesi Yayınları, 148, 110 pp (in Turkish, with German summary) Erol O (1971) Gelibolu Yarımadasında Yalıtaşı Teşekkülleri. Ankara Üniversitesi Coğrafya Araştırma Dergisi 3–4:1–12 Erol O (2003) Geomorphological evolution of the Ceyhan River delta: Eastern Mediterranean coast of Turkey. Aegean Geogr J 12:59–81 In Turkish Erol O, Pirazzoli PA (1992) Seleucia Pieria: an ancient harbour submitted to two successive uplifts. Int J Naut Archaeol 21(4): 317–327 Ertek TA (2001) Sahilköy-Şile Arasındaki Kıyılarda Genç Tektonik Hareketler ve Yalıtaşı Oluşumu. Türkiye Kuvaterneri Çalıştayı, ITÜ Avrasya Yerbilimleri Enstitüsü, Istanbul, pp 24–31 Fouache É, Sibella P, Dalongeville R (1999) Holocene variations of the shoreline between Antalya and Andriake (Turkey). Int J Naut Archaeol 28(4):305–318 Furlani S, Cucchi F (2013) Downwearing rates of vertical limestone surfaces in the intertidal zone (Gulf of Trieste, Italy). Mar Geol 343:92–98 Furlani S, Cucchi F, Biolchi S, Odorico R (2011) Notches in the Adriatic sea: genesis and development. Quatern Int 232:158–168 Furlani S, Pappalardo M, Gomez-Pujol L, Chelli A (2014) The rock coast of the Mediterranean and Black seas. In: Kennedy DM, Stephenson WJ, Naylor L (eds) Rock coast geomorphology: a global synthesis, vol. 40. Geological Society London Memoirs, London, pp 89–123. https://doi.org/10.1144/M40.7 Glover C, Robertson AH (2003) Origin of tufas (cool-water carbonate) and related terraces in the Antalya areas, SW Turkey. Geol J 38:1– 30 Higgins CG (1980) Nips, notches, and the solution of coastal limestone: an overview of the problem with examples from Greece. Estuarine and Coastal Science 10:15–30 Isola I, Bini M, Ribolini A, Zanchetta A, d’Agata AL (2017) Geomorphology of the Ceyhan river lower plain (Adana region, Turkey). J Maps 13(2):133–141. https://doi.org/10.1080/17445647. 2016.1274684 Kayan İ (1988) Late Holocene sea-level changes on the Western Anatolian coast. In: Pirazzoli PA, Scott DB (eds) Quaternary coastal changes. Palaeogeography, palaeoclimatology, palaeoecology, vol 68, issues 2–4. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp 205–218 Kayan İ (1997) Bronze age regression and change of sedimentation on the Aegean coastal plains of Anatolia (Turkey). In: Dalfes N, Kukla G, Weiss H (eds) Third millennium BC climate change and old world collapse. NATO ASI Series, vol. I, 49. Springer, Berlin, pp 431–450 Kayan İ (1999) Holocene stratigraphy and geomorphological evolution of the Aegean coastal plains of Anatolia. Quatern Sci Rev 18:541– 548 Kayan İ, Öner E (2015) Research on the alluvial geomorphology of the Gediz delta plain (İzmir) based on sedimentological and paleontological evidence. Aegean Geogr J 24(2):1–27 Kelletat D, Kayan İ (1983) Alanya batısındaki kıyılarda ilk 14C tarihlendirmelerinin ışığında Geç Holosen tektonik hareketleri. Türkiye Jeoloji Bülteni 26:83–87 Koşun E (2012) Facies characteristics and depositional environments of Quaternary tufa deposits, Antalya, SW Turkey. Carbonates Evaporites 27:269–289. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13146-012-0089-2 Kuzucuoğlu C, Ozaner S, Uslu T (1993) L’érosion des plages sur la côte méditerranéenne de la Turquie: amplitude du problème, enjeux et contraintes, propositions pour en arrêter les effets. Report to the French Ministry of Environment, LGP, Meudon, 236 pp

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Kuzucuoğlu C, Christol A, Mouralis D, Dogu A-F, Akköprü E, Fort M, Brunstein D, Zorer H, Fontugne M, Karabiyikoglu M, Scaillet S, Reyss J-L, Guillou H (2010) Formation of the Upper Pleistocene terraces of Lake Van (Turkey). J. Quaternary Sci. 25:1124–1137 Lambeck K, Purcell A (2005) Sea level change in the Mediterranean Sea since the LGM: model predictions for tectonically stable areas. Quatern Sci Rev 24:1969–1988 Okay N, Okay AI (2002) Tectonically induced Quaternary drainage diversion in the northeastern Aegean. J Geol Soc, Lond 159:393–399 Öner E (1996) The Geomorphology of the Eşen River flood plain and ancient Patara Port. Aegean Geogr J 9:89–130 In Turkish Öner E (1999) Letoon ve çevresinde (Eşen çayı deltası) paleo-jeomorfolojik araştırmalar. Aegean Geogr J 10:51–82 Öner E (2008) Alluvial geomorphology and paleogeographical studies on the Asi (Orontes) delta plain (Antakya/Hatay). Aegean Geogr J 17(1–2):1–25 In Turkish Pint A, Seeliger M, Freznel P, Feuser S, Erkul E, Berndt C, Klein C, Pirson F, Brückner H (2015) The environs of Elaia’s ancient open harbour e a reconstruction based on microfaunal evidence. J Archaeol Sci 54:340–355 Pirazzoli PA (1986) Marine notches. In: van de Plassche O (ed) Sea-level Research: a Manual for the Collection and Evaluation of Data. Geo Books, Norwich, pp 361–400 Pirazzoli PA (2005) A review of possible eustatic, isostatic and tectonic contributions in eight late-Holocene relative sea level histories from the Mediterranean area. Quatern Sci Rev 24(18–19):1989–2001 Pirazzoli PA, Laborel J, Saliège JF, Erol O, Kayan İ, Person A (1991) Holocene raised shorelines on the Hatay coasts (Turkey): palaeoecological and tectonic implications. Mar Geol 96:295–311

247 Pirazzoli PA, Laborel J, Stiros SC (1996) Coastal indicators of rapid uplift and subsidence: examples from Crete and other eastern Mediterranean sites. Zeitschrift fur Geomorphologie N.F. Supplement 102:21–35 Ryan WBF, Pitman WC III, Major CO, Shimkus K, Moskalenko V, Jones G, Dimitrov P, Görür N, Sakınc M, Yüce H (1997) An abrupt drowning of the Black Sea shelf. Mar Geol 138:119–126 Stock F, Pint A, Horeis B, Ladstätter S, Brückner H (2013) In search of the harbours: New evidence of Late Roman and Byzantine harbours of Ephesus. Quatern Int 312:57–69 Tarı U, Tüysüz O, Genç ŞC, İmren C, Blackwell BAB, Lom N, Tekeşin Ö, Üsküplü S, Erel L, Altıok S, Beyhan M (2014) The geology and morphology of the Antakya Graben between the Amik Triple Junction and the Cyprus Arc. Geodin Acta 26(1–2):27–55. https:// doi.org/10.1080/09853111.2013.858962 Vousdoukas MI, Velegrakis AF, Plomaritis TA (2007) Beachrock occurrence, characteristics, formation mechanisms and impacts. Earth-Sci Rev 85:23–46 Yener KA (2005) The Amuq Valley regional projects, vol. 1: surveys in the plain of Antioch and Orontes Delta, Turkey, 1995–2002. University of Chicago Oriental Institute Publications, Chicago, p 131 Yıldırım C, Schildgen T, Echtler H, Melnick D, Strecker M, Bookhagen B, Çiner A, Niederman S, Merchel S, Martschini M, Steier P, Strecker MR (2013) Tectonic implications of fluvial incision and pediment deformation at the northern margin of the Central Anatolian Plateau based on multiple cosmogenic nuclides. Tectonics 32:1–14. https://doi.org/10.1002/tect.20066

The Geology and Geomorphology of İstanbul

10

A. M. Celâl Şengör and Tayfun Kındap

Abstract

The city of İstanbul is one of the most ancient sites of human dwelling in the world that has been continuously inhabited until today. It may indeed be the oldest. It enjoys a temperate climate characterised by wet winters and dry summers, although summer showers are not necessarily absent. Its geomorphology has been shaped by the movements of the level of the sea around it and the surface waters sculpting its multifarious rock types creating dominantly fluvial and karstic forms with a rich assortment of drowned coastal features. The Strait of İstanbul, the Bosphorus thracicus of antiquity, formed as a result of the marine invasion during the Flandrian transgression. The sea invaded through a structurally low-positioned watershed located between the oppositely tilted peninsulas of Thrace and Kocaeli (Bithynia). The seawater may have invaded the watershed of the Bosphorus some 8000 years ago, although whether the sea overtopped the Bosphorian watershed 8500 years ago or 7150 years ago is immaterial for the success of the model here proposed. The tilting of the two peninsulas created a fracture network that has controlled ever since the pattern of the fluvial drainage.





Keywords




İstanbul Bosphorus Thracian and Kocaeli (Bithynian) peninsulas Geomorphology Flandrian transgression




A. M. C. Şengör (&) İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Maden Fakültesi, Jeoloji Bölümü, Ayazağa, 34469 İstanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] A. M. C. Şengör
T. Kındap İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Avrasya Yerbilimleri Enstitüsü, Ayazağa, 34469 İstanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

10.1

Introduction

It is said that İstanbul (Fig. 10.1) has 49 different names distributed in numerous and most diverse cultures of the entire world. It is one of the oldest, continuously inhabited cities in the world and possibly the oldest. Human remains have been found at its western outskirts in the Yarımburgaz Cave that date back to 400,000 years (Howell et al. 2010). Its origin is traditionally dated to a Greek colony, however, founded according to a legend sometime around 650 BC. But by that time, there were numerous human settlements in the present area of the city, most famously in Üsküdar, the ancient Scoutarion (from which the historical Scutari is derived), where King Byzas, the legendary founder of the Greek colony Byzantion, decided to find a new colony out from Megara. Before setting out for looking for the place to choose, he had consulted Apollo in Delphi. The god told him to go where the blind people lived. When he came and saw that the historic peninsula with its incomparable beauty and unique strategic location was uninhabited, he decided that the people living on the other side of the Bosphorus, in Scoutarion, had to be blind! İstanbul is a transcontinental city and has three main sectors determined by the Bosphorus that separates Europe from Asia and the Golden Horn, an estuary providing a magnificent natural harbour, separating Byzantion (i.e. the so-called historic peninsula) to its south from Pera to the north. Byzantion became, successively, Constantinople in AD 326 and officially İstanbul in 1923, although the Ottomans had used the name İstanbul for a much longer time before that (derived from the Byzantine Greek ‘eἰ1 sὴm Pόkim’, i.e. ‘to the city’). It was first the capital city of the Greek colony (till AD 326), then the capital of the Roman Empire (AD 326–476), then the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire (AD 476–1204; known somewhat inappropriately as the Byzantine Empire since the German humanist Hieronymus Wolf called it so in 1557), then of the infamous Latin Empire for fifty-seven years (1204–1261), then again the Eastern Roman Empire (1261– 1453) and finally of the Ottoman Empire (1453–1923).

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_10

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Fig. 10.1 A view of the city of İstanbul from the south. In the foreground, south of the estuary of the Golden Horn is the historic peninsula. North of it is Pera and the new city quarters that have been added to it along the Bosphorus. Across the Bosphorus to the east is the

district of Üsküdar with the Kız Kulesi (Leander’s Tower) near the promontory. Three high buildings just above the large tourist ship that is moored along the Karaköy dock are where the Taksim Square is. Photograph is by Mr. H. C. Asım Şengör

Today, the İstanbul Province, of which the city is the capital, occupies 5343 km2 housing a population close to some 20 million inhabitants. The city has come to occupy almost the entire province. It is the cultural and economic centre of the Republic of Turkey. It is one of the most important cultural heritage sites of mankind and one of the most attractive and multifarious cultural centres in the world.

influence of the two seas bordering it although the cyclones mostly move in from the west. The winter temperatures are colder than in most Mediterranean cities (winter months average 3–4 °C), but they are getting warmer because of the heat island effect of the growing city and possibly because of global warming. Snow is seen not infrequently because of the proximity of the cold south Russian plains and the lake effect of the Black Sea; temperatures as low as −16 °C have been measured in the city. By contrast, the highest summer temperatures may soar above 40 °C (Fig. 10.3a). The city has high humidity and a mixed Central European and Mediterranean flora. The winters and autumns have frequent precipitation with decreasing precipitation through the spring, but even heavy summer showers are no exception (Fig. 10.3b). İstanbul has long been wholly dependent on atmospheric precipitation for its water supply, which is risky especially because of possible droughts caused by the oscillation of cyclone paths. Some 2060 million m3 of average amount of precipitation normally falls on İstanbul annually. Assuming that only 1/3 of this amount flows on the surface to fill reservoirs, atmospheric precipitation contributes only 620 million m3 of water for the city’s needs, which now uses 730 million m3 annually. It had been pointed out already in 1864 by Prince Tchihacheff that this would be a problem for the city. Only in 1996, the Melen River project to bring some 20 thousand m3 additional daily water from far away was initiated, as already recommended by Tchihacheff a century-and-a-half ago (Tchihacheff actually had recommended the Meriç=Maritza=Evros or the Sakarya=ancient Sangarios rivers).

10.2

Geographical Setting

İstanbul sits astride the Bosphorus (Boğaziçi or simply Boğaz) on the two peninsulas of Thracia (Çatalca) and Kocaeli (Bithynia). It has an average elevation of some 110 m, with its highest point at the hill of Aydos (537 m) consisting of resistant Ordovician quartzites (Fig. 10.2). The Kocaeli Peninsula is underlain mainly by deformed Palaeozoic sedimentary rocks, except along the Black Sea coast where they are covered with latest Cretaceous andesitic volcanic rocks. The Çatalca Peninsula has a similar geology, except west of the city walls, where flat-lying Cainozoic limestones and marls characterise the southern one-third of the peninsula. To the north are the westernmost remnants of the Strandja (Yıldız Dağları) made up of metamorphic and igneous rocks forming low hills. The Black Sea shore of the Çatalca Peninsula has extensive beaches that in places contain active sand dunes. İstanbul has a modified Mediterranean climate (Csa in the Köppen–Geiger climate classification) that is both wetter (humid subtropical: Cfa) and stormier (oceanic: Cfb) because of its distance to the Mediterranean and the

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The Geology and Geomorphology of İstanbul

Fig. 10.2 A digital terrain picture of the Province of İstanbul. The foot-shaped Çınarcık Basin is to the south of the city and its abrupt and straight northern escarpment corresponds to the active northern strand of the North Anatolian Fault. The dashed yellow line is the water divide. Note how it goes fairly abruptly from north in the Çatalca

10.3

Geology of İstanbul

In spite of the relatively small size of the geological province it occupies, İstanbul has a very varied geology. It is in reality a part of a somewhat larger piece, called the İstanbul Zone that extends from İstanbul to Zonguldak in the east. The zone consists of the marginal zone of a Late Palaeozoic orogenic belt unconformably covered by Permian and Mesozoic deposits. The zone also corresponds to a Late Cretaceous continental margin arc that turned extensional almost as soon as it formed in the medial Cretaceous. This arc became inactive by the medial Maastrichtian some 68 million years ago, and parts of the present-day İstanbul became covered with medial Eocene shallow-water reefal carbonates. Continental Oligocene sandstones and shales were deposited to its north and contain lignite. Finally, medial to Late Miocene Paratethyan deposits were deposited to its south. The youngest rocks are Plio-Quaternary gravels. The geology of İstanbul has been recently reviewed by Şengör and Özgül (2010) and Özgül (2012), and the following summary is based mostly on these recent publications. In addition, a symposium volume edited by Örgün and Yılmaz-Şahin (2010) contains papers dealing with all the topics treated in this chapter. We will not individually refer to those papers, but refer the reader to that useful compendium. Şengör (in

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Peninsula to the south in the Kocaeli Peninsula. The yellow arrows show the drainage direction on the two peninsulas, which is visibly parallel to the topographic grain. The red arrows and handles represent the tilting directions of the two peninsulas

Örgün and Yılmaz-Şahin (2010): 2–22) provides a review of all the geological studies in İstanbul undertaken until 1933, when Turkish universities became more active in studying the geology and geomorphology of İstanbul as a consequence of the sweeping university reform of M. K. Atatürk in the same year. Figure 10.4 shows the position of the İstanbul Zone within the palaeotectonic scheme of Turkey. Figure 10.5 is a simplified geological map, and Fig. 10.6 is a summary of its stratigraphy. The crystalline basement is not seen within the province of İstanbul, although a latest Precambrian amphibolite facies metamorphic basement is visible farther east within the İstanbul Zone. Sedimentation began with undated, finely laminated sandstones and claystones of possibly deep limnic origin (Kocatöngel Formation). It is succeeded by the thick, pinkish-violet Kurtköy arkose, starting as turbidites but later becoming alluvial fans and on fluvial floodplains possibly indicative of a terrestrial rift environment. The Middle to Upper Ordovician Aydos orthoquartzites are the first definite marine deposits signifying the presence of a beach. The depositional environment deepened with the Yayalar shales (top Ordovician? to Lower Silurian) and Pelitli shales and limestones (Upper Silurian to Lower Devonian). Following a terminal reefal carbonate deposit (Pelitli Formation), black shales of the Kartal Member of the Pendik Formation with a Rhenic fauna show that the environment became poorer in

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Fig. 10.4 A simplified map of the Alpide palaeotectonic provinces of Turkey showing the setting of the city of İstanbul

Fig. 10.5 A simplified geological map of İstanbul taken from Şengör and Özgül (2010). The large yellow arrows show the Neogene anticlines with plunge directions indicated by arrows at their ends. The position of cross sections A-B and C-D (Fig. 10.7) is indicated

oxygen. The Middle to Upper Devonian Denizli Köyü consists of thinly bedded pelagic shales and limestones giving way to a 20-m-thick radiolarite succession bearing, at its top, phosphate nodules (lowermost Carboniferous). In the

Upper Devonian rocks, there is no evidence of anoxia, which is thought to be so widespread in the whole world at this time. Up to the top of Denizli Köyü, we see the development of a probably east-facing (present geographical orientation)

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Fig. 10.6 Simplified stratigraphic columns for the city of İstanbul showing the main geological events responsible for governing the stratigraphic development (from Şengör and Özgül 2010)

Atlantic-type continental margin that skirted the Rheic Ocean. The sudden onset of the deposition of the thick Lower Carboniferous Trakya flysch signals orogeny which ended with shortening, developing a marginal fold and thrust belt (Fig. 10.7). It is, however, still unclear whether we have here a foreland marginal belt or a hinterland marginal belt. Very sparse evidence indicates that the latter is a greater possibility. Whether the orogenic events of Late Palaeozoic era in İstanbul were parts of the Hercynian orogeny or of the Scythide orogeny has not yet been determined (Fig. 10.6). After the Late Palaeozoic orogeny, two Permian granodiorites (Sancaktepe and a small stock in Çatalca named alternately as Kırklareli and Tepecik; that latter may be earliest Triassic in age; Yılmaz-Şahin et al. 2015) intruded just to the east and west of İstanbul and Permian red bed sedimentation occurred on the previously deformed areas and continued into the Triassic. The Permian red beds have quadruped ichnofossils of the genus Hyloidichnus with some plant fossils (Gand et al. 2011), and the Triassic sedimentary rocks, which are intercalated with basalt flows of early Triassic age, contain clasts of the İstanbul Palaeozoic rocks including granites. It seems as if a new rifting phase accompanied the Triassic deposition concurrently with a new subduction phase that generated the granodiorite just mentioned.

A. M. C. Şengör and T. Kındap

The Triassic contains, above the red beds, a thick succession of limestones (‘Alpine-type Triassic’) reaching up into the Middle Triassic (the Gebze Group). Towards the top, the clastic input increases and the Carnian deposits are entirely turbiditic with sporadic limestone intercalations. Then, a new phase of deformation, probably related to the closure of the Palaeo-Tethys, folded the Triassic succession and the entire Jurassic and much of the Early Cretaceous are missing in İstanbul. Cretaceous in İstanbul is represented by medial Turonian to Maastrichtian andesites and basaltic andesites of the Kavaklar Group along the Black Sea coast, where north-dipping lava flows and agglomerates alternate, cut by dykes and stocks of various attitudes (Fig. 10.8a). The dykes display beautiful columnar jointing, which Count Andreossy compared with those in the Fingal Cave on the Island of Staffa already in 1818, thereby initiating widespread international interest in the geology of İstanbul (Fig. 10.8b). The famous clashing rocks of the Bosphorus (the Symplegades or Cyaneae) are carved out of the Late Cretaceous agglomerates (Fig. 10.8b). All these volcanic rocks and numerous dykes in the area of the city are the products of a single volcano called the Bosphorus Volcano, the main chimney of which is today represented by the 68 million-year-old Çavuşbaşı granodiorite on the Asian side of İstanbul (Figs. 10.8c and 10.9; Yılmaz-Şahin et al. 2012). Both the final lavas and the Çavuşbaşı granodiorite have alkalic/adakitic tendencies and may imply an extensional arc above a melting slab. The orientation of the dykes supports this interpretation (Penck 1919; Özgörüş and Okay 2005), although more recent studies indicate the presence of a more complex dyke geometry. The volcanism turned off by the latest Maastrichtian, although this dating cannot be done stratigraphically in İstanbul, but farther east, near Zonguldak, where latest Maastrichtian carbonate rocks unconformably cover the volcanics, a stratigraphy which is compatible with the isotopic dating in İstanbul itself. Along the Black Sea coast, there was north-vergent thrusting during the Early Eocene (Baykal 1942; Baykal and Önalan 1979). Later, medial Eocene (Bartonian) rocks everywhere cover the intra-Pontide suture south of İstanbul, marking the end of the Neo-Tethys here and the latest orogenic evolution in İstanbul (Özcan et al. 2012). During the Oligocene, sandstones, shales and lignites were laid down in the Thrace Basin, which extends into the northern part of İstanbul. Already in 1840, Ami Boué had identified these deposits as ‘molasse’. They are succeeded by Miocene coquina limestones and shales that were deposited by a Black Sea very much larger than today’s feature, called the Paratethys. Many of the monumental buildings of İstanbul (including the magnificent Theodosian walls) were constructed using these rocks as building stones.

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Fig. 10.7 a A simplified east– west structural cross section across İstanbul (from Şengör and Özgül 2010). The location is shown in Fig. 10.5. The lower figure is a 3X vertical exaggeration. b A simplified north–south structural cross section across the Strandja Massif and the Thrace Basin. The location is shown in Fig. 10.5

Farther west, the geology of the province is very different, characterised by the Strandja Massif in the north and the westernmost part of the Thracian Basin in the south. The Strandja Massif is a metamorphic complex with a pan-African basement and Palaeozoic cover. Of this basement, İstanbul has a separate slice near Çatalca in which a metagranite (Çatalca metagranite) has been dated at 534.5 ± 4.7 to 546.0 ± 3.9 million years (SHRIMP-II U–Pb zircon age) by Yılmaz-Şahin et al. (2014). Another granite at the south-eastern tip of the Strandja Massif (İhsaniye metagranite) gave an age of 535.5 ± 3.6 million years. Yılmaz-Şahin et al. (2014) rightly attributed these alkalic granites to the waning phases of the pan-African events along the former northern Gondwanaland margin.

The Kızılağaç metagranite and gneisses form the ‘basement complex’ of the Strandja Massif which was probably a part first of the Skythides and then of the Cimmerian Continent including dated Ordovician, Carboniferous and Permian rocks (Natal’in et al. 2012). Unpublished gravity data by the Turkish Petroleum Company indicate that along the southern margin of the Strandja Massif, heavier rocks underlie it. These are probably ophiolites forming a backstop to the subduction–accretion complex underlying the Thracian Basin. This complex outcrops only along the Gallipoli Peninsula from where Şentürk and Okay (1984) reported blueschists in a mélange cropping out from beneath Eocene turbidites. Figure 10.7b shows a schematic north–south cross section across the westernmost part of the province.

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Fig. 10.9 Locations of the Çavuşbaşı Granodiorite and its associated andesite–diorite dykes. The red dykes are from Penck (1919), and the green ones are from Özgörüş and Okay (2005). Penck mapped at a time when the city was much less populated and less built upon, so his map naturally has many more observation points. The map also shows the distribution of the coeval volcanics to the north (v’s). All of these rocks are the products of the Late Cretaceous Bosphorus Volcano whose chimney is represented by the Çavuşbaşı Granodiorite, whose radial dykes are the dykes shown on the map, and the volcanic products correspond to the v’s

10.4

Fig. 10.8 a An andesite dyke cutting across the Late Cretaceous agglomerates in the Bay of Kabakos on the Asian side of the northern entrance to the Bosphorus. Note the columnar jointing. Photograph by A. M. C. Şengör. b Count Andreossy’s drawing of the same locality as the one shown in Fig. 10.8a published in 1818. The lower drawings show, from left to right a hand specimen of an agglomerate cut by veins of chalcedony, a fragment of a vein of chalcedony, a basalt (really basaltic andesite) hexagonal prism from Büyük Liman and the view of the European Symplegades (clashing rock: its Turkish name is Öreke Taşı) from the east (all are from Andreossy 1818, Atlas). c Mafic dyke with columnar jointing cutting across the latest Cretaceous andesitic volcanics along the Asian shore of the northernmost part of the Bosphorus, İstanbul

Neotectonics of İstanbul

The geological development of İstanbul entered an entirely new phase with the development of the North Anatolian Shear System and, following it, the North Anatolian Fault (Şengör et al. 2005). As the fault reached İstanbul only during the later Pleistocene, the main influence on the tectonics of the province since the Late Miocene has been that of the North Anatolian Shear Zone. There are in fact a few active faults within the province limits of İstanbul. One of the only two faults known to have created an earthquake big enough to yield a meaningful fault plane solution, the Tuzla Fault (Karabulut et al. 2011), is in an X shear orientation. The orientation of the other one is unknown. However, İstanbul has been hit by catastrophic earthquakes many times in its history, and, because of the

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10.5

Geomorphology of İstanbul

The formation of the landforms of İstanbul has been mainly dominated by two factors: its neotectonics and the drastic sea-level changes during the ice ages. Processes related to these factors have sculpted the rocks of the province, creating a rich variety of geomorphological features depending on rock type. Ertek (in Örgün and Yılmaz-Şahin 2010, p. 25) published the most recent geomorphological map of the Province of İstanbul, but regrettably in a totally illegible format. He corroborated the presence of an erosion surface common to both the Çatalca and the Kocaeli peninsulas, which was called by the Serbian geographer Jovan Cvijić (1908) the Thracian–Bithynian Erosion Surface. This term will be used in this chapter. Ertek stated that the age of that surface is Pliocene, but Özşahin (2013) thought that the high plateau, i.e. the Thracian–Bithynian surface, had probably formed during the Late Miocene. Only the lower plateau he thought could be of Late Pliocene age. Considering the presumed age of some of the alluvial fills seen in İstanbul, I would not be surprised if the Thracian–Bithynian surface turns out to be only Pleistocene in age as it truncates the oldest of these deposits. The only OSL dates from fluvial terraces in İstanbul that I know about are those measured by Özşahin (2013), and the oldest date he could get is 33.08 ± 7.26 thousand years.

10.5.1 Fluvial Geomorphology

Fig. 10.10 Major historical earthquakes along a W–E line across the Anatolian peninsula, assuming that they have taken place along the North Anatolian Fault. Grey zones stand for concentrations in time along the NAF (from Şengör et al. 2005)

presence of an important capital here, good records have been kept in the region since the Roman times. Figure 10.10 shows the earthquake record of İstanbul. Historically, it seems that the North Anatolian Fault has mostly broken from east to west in successive earthquakes that are bundled into ‘earthquake cycles’. It was these earthquakes occurring on faults south of the city within the Sea of Marmara that have shaken and damaged the buildings in the city. However, the geomorphology of the province of İstanbul suggests that the North Anatolian Shear Zone contributed to the formation of its landforms, especially of its drainage to which we now turn.

Figure 10.11 is a map showing the main drainage of İstanbul (also see Fig. 10.2). A remarkable feature is the orientation of the valleys: almost without exception, the main trunks are parallel with one another and trend north-west. They seem to be consequent valleys receiving a large number of subsequent tributaries. The three important lagoons along the shores of İstanbul are nothing but former estuaries of the Karasu and the Sazlı rivers plus the streams emptying now into Terkos River. These estuaries are drowned river valleys. As we shall see below, all fluvial valleys emptying into the Marmara or the Black Sea have drowned mouths. Even the tributary consequent streams show a tendency to flow in north-west– south-east-orientated valleys and join the main trunks along north-east–south-west-orientated valleys creating a trellis pattern (see especially Özşahin (2013); Fig. 70). On face value, these streams are in an anti-Riedel (P’) orientation of the North Anatolian Shear Zone. The only active fault known here is the Tuzla Fault, and it is in an X shear orientation. But this is not the whole story, because, as seen in Fig. 10.2, the Çatalca and the Kocaeli peninsulas have opposite surface slopes. In both peninsulas, the valleys have

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Fig. 10.11 Drainage pattern in the Province of İstanbul. The inset shows the location and elevations (in metres) of the two presumed Bosphorus fluvial terraces. Black shows the higher and red the lower terrace. Ç is Çamlıca (268 m above sea level), and A is Aydos (537 m above sea level), two monadnocks on the Bithynian erosion surface

Fig. 10.12 Theoretical fracture lines on the Çatalca–Kocaeli isthmus resulting from torsion. Some of the streams are shown to indicate the degree of control of the emplacement of their valleys by these fractures (from Şengör 2011)

the same orientations, but their flow directions are the opposite of each other! Şengör (2011) pointed out, and Özşahin (2013) careful geomorphological study corroborated this at least for the Kocaeli Peninsula that this is because the two peninsulas have been tilted in opposite directions (Fig. 10.2). It is expected that this torsion would have created fractures like the ones seen in Fig. 10.12. It looks as if the consequent streams have largely followed these fractures in places diverted by other fractures related to the North Anatolian Shear Zone (see Şengör 2011). The fluvial geomorphology of İstanbul thus seems governed by the influence of the North Anatolian Shear Zone. Gravelly alluvial deposits of orange-reddish colour once covered almost the whole of İstanbul. Although there is no direct evidence, these deposits have always been considered

A. M. C. Şengör and T. Kındap

Plio-Pleistocene in age (the only dated ones have proved to be top Pleistocene; Özşahin (2013)). They are now preserved only on terrain elevations and that is why there has long been a talk of a topographic inversion and it was claimed that the so-called Belgrad Gravels of fluvial origin could not be associated with the present drainage. We think this view is mistaken. We do not think there ever was such an inversion. The drainage in İstanbul has not changed in any significant way since these ‘Plio-Pleistocene’ deposits have been laid down. What we see in İstanbul is a progressive tilting of the two constituent peninsulas and the sinking of the valleys nucleated along the fractures caused by the activity of the North Anatolian Shear Zone into their own deposits. This sinking of the valleys was greatly accelerated when the levels of the Black Sea and the Marmara dropped by almost 150 m during the last ice age (Ryan 2007). This brings us to the question of origin of the Bosphorus. It has long been maintained that the Bosphorus used to be a river valley (for older references, see Şengör 2011), although disagreement existed as to the direction in which the ancestral river flowed. Arguments have been advanced that the southern part contained indications of a southward flow (but Walther Penck pointed out that the northerly curvature of the Golden Horn indicates the opposite), whereas northern parts showed the opposite. Five terraces have been claimed to exist along the Bosphorus (Akyol 1930), although only the two cited by Pamir (1959, 234–235) may possibly exist. These are shown, together with their elevation above the present sea level in Fig. 10.11, inset. These presumed terraces have no deposits on them and remain undated. That they extend only up to the water divide speaks in favour of their reality. From this point to the south, the ancestral Bosphorean River must have flowed south. North of the water divide, it must have flowed north and a channel in the bathymetry of the Black Sea connecting with the northern entrance to the Bosphorus strongly supports this interpretation. The sediment fill of the Bosphorus is another problem critical for the discussion of its origin. The floor of the strait consists mainly of 5300-year-old sediments (Algan et al. 2001) overlain in places by younger turbidites disgorged during times of heavy rain by its tributaries. Right at the mouth of the Golden Horn, there is a large accumulation of clastics forming the submarine delta of this major tributary to the Bosphorus. The Palaeozoic basement underlying the Bosphorus nowhere presents a profile reminiscent of a regular fluvial valley as can be seen in seismic reflection profiles. Figure 10.13 shows such a profile taken from Şengör (2011). In this profile, the ‘sediment fill’ represents deposits covering the time interval from 26,000 to 5300 years (Algan et al. 2001). It was originally assumed that the Bosphorus had no Neogene sedimentary fill (e.g. Algan et al. 2001). But this is contradicted by Chaput’s old observations from the Büyükdere Valley, where he found and dated Neogene

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overall rising trend) and finally invaded the Sea of Marmara. Figure 10.14 shows a theoretical sketch showing the evolution of river valleys on both sides of the Bosphorus. This evolution gradually lowered the topography, and the point that became lowered the most (because it had started lower than everywhere else owing to the torsion) was the point where Bosphorus finally broke through.

10.5.2 Coastal Geomorphology Fig. 10.13 A longitudinal profile along the Bosphorus showing its present sediment fill and the hypothetical thalweg depth during the LGM (the lowest sea level) (from Şengör 2011)

sedimentary rocks (Chaput 1936). As Büyükdere is but a tributary of the Bosphorus, it is impossible for the Bosphorus not to have any Neogene fill. Figure 10.13 shows this hypothetical fill and the hypothetical Neogene surface. The tracing of this surface also corrects an interpretation by Gökaşan et al. (1997), in which they ignored some strong reflectors in seismic reflection profiles below what they identified as top Cretaceous. If we follow Şengör (2011) in taking the bottommost reflector as the top of the Cretaceous volcanics, then we get a Neogene surface some 20 m below that claimed by Algan et al. (2001). This gives us a Neogene threshold of some −90 m, which is the same as that of the Dardanelles. This reasoning might lead us to think that once the Flandrian transgression passed through the Dardanelles, it would have quickly also passed through the Bosphorus and flooded the Black Sea owing to the small size of the Marmara Basin. But this was not the case. The Black Sea was flooded only some 3000–5000 years later than the Dardanelles (Dardanelles flooding is now dated at 12.55 ± 0.35 cal ka BP; Çağatay et al. 2015), after a −85 m shoreline had formed around the Sea of Marmara. Chaput (1936) reported Neogene fills at 100 m elevation on the western sides of the Bosphorus valley. It is clear that these deposits must have extended eastwards across the Bosphorus. This fill indicates that the sill broken during the flooding of the Bosphorus most likely consisted of these sediments and that the sill they formed was broken only after the −85 m shoreline around the Marmara had formed. The final question we need to answer concerning the fluvial geomorphology of İstanbul is why the Bosphorus opened where it did. Şengör (2011) devoted a lengthy paper to this question and showed that the strait had opened right at the inflexion point of the two oppositely tilting directions of the Çorlu and the Kocaeli peninsulas. Consequently, the inflexion point was the lowest topographic position and when the sea level rose during the Flandrian transgression (beginning about 18,000 years ago and continued since with a complex pattern of advances and small retreats with an

The coastal geomorphology of İstanbul is dominated by the extreme lowering of the sea level in the Marmara and the Black Seas during the last ice age and the following rapid sea level rise during the Flandrian transgression (Ryan 2007; Çağatay et al. 2015). During the low sea level, the rivers in İstanbul deeply entrenched their valleys. The subsequent rapid rise of the sea level led to the drowning of the valleys. In the Küçükçekmece, Büyükçekmece and Terkos lagoons, the fillings of the valleys by alluvium could not keep up with the rapid sea level rise and therefore the sea invaded these valleys, forming ria coasts. Later, spits formed and developed into sand barriers cutting off these lagoons from the sea. Both Büyükçekmece and Küçükçekmece lagoons are in communication with the sea through natural channels, but the Terkos Lagoon is completely cut off. This has turned it into a freshwater coastal lake, and it has contributed to the water supply of İstanbul since 1857. Terkos represents about 1/4 of the freshwater reserves of the city of İstanbul. Now, the Büyükçekmece Lagoon is also cut off from the sea by means of an artificial dam to augment the freshwater reserve of İstanbul. Along the Black Sea coast, all of the valleys cut deeply into the Thracian–Bithynian erosion surface of İstanbul when the sea level was low and then became drowned, but rapidly filled subsequently. These rivers present the anomalous appearance of having upward convex side slopes, characteristic of young valleys, rising from a broad flat valley floor, a profile characteristic of old valleys (Fig. 10.15).

10.5.3 Karst Features The carbonate rocks of Eocene and Miocene ages lying to the west of the city of İstanbul are the main venues of karstic development in the Province of İstanbul. With the exception of some local lapiez (karren) development, there are no karstic features that developed on the Devonian limestones. The most detailed study of karst of the western tracts of İstanbul was published by Ekmekçi (2005). He concluded that the main driving factor of karstic development is the eustatic sea-level changes. He pointed out that the most widespread karstic surface forms are the dolinas and uvalas,

A. M. C. Şengör and T. Kındap

260 Fig. 10.14 Theoretical cross sections showing stream evolution on the Çatalca–Kocaeli isthmus; a is the evolution across the Çatalca Peninsula, b is along the Bosphorus, and c is across the Kocaeli Peninsula. Blue arrowheads show the position of the water divides; light blue arrowheads show the position of the water divide immediately after the completion of the torsion; dark blue ones show its position now. The profiles were constructed assuming a climate similar to the present one. Sea-level change during the evolution of the streams has been ignored (from Şengör 2011)

narrow vertical tunnels are not entirely absent owing to the jointing in the carbonates (Şengör 1975). The Yarımburgaz Cave just west of İstanbul, home of 400,000-year-old human fossils (Howell et al. 2010), is İstanbul’s longest cave with a length of some 600 m along its main gallery (Ketin 1970; Şengör 1975). Below, it is probably another cave system as can be felt by thumping on the ground and indicated by a karstic spring that emanates from below it very close to the now dry mouth of the cave. Erosional cuts made by flowing water are seen in the main gallery indicating that the karstic stream now flowing below the cave once flowed through it (Şengör 1975). Fig. 10.15 Stream dissection of the Bithynian erosion surface by a young valley later flooded by the Black Sea level rise and filled by alluvium afterwards. The alluvial thickness is estimated simply by extrapolating the convex-up valley sides and later corroborated by drilling in neighbouring streams (from Şengör 2011)

but these do not commonly communicate with each other and are often flooded because of the paucity of underground drainage. This state points out, Ekmekçi maintains, that the karst regime in İstanbul is at its dying stage. I would like to express this rather by saying that the karst west of İstanbul never had a chance of great development, because the limestone cover suitable for karstification is not thick. The sequence is also not much deformed, which accounts for the predominance of horizontal caves following bedding planes. However, within these caves, vertical galleries and

10.5.4 Soils The soils of İstanbul display variations caused by a climate with summers having some precipitation and regularly, but gently, snowy winters, acting on a terrain with only gentle slopes and over a great variety of rock types (Oakes 1954). The most widespread soils within the province are the carbonate-poor brown soils that formed on rugged terrain (Fig. 10.16). Where slopes become gentler, one sees the grumusols of the regions with gentle slopes and also the brown soils without carbonate component developing on areas with gentle slopes. The next widespread soil type in İstanbul is the brown forest soils distributed in the more rugged areas (Fig. 10.16). They resemble the brown soils

10

The Geology and Geomorphology of İstanbul

Fig. 10.16 Soil map of İstanbul redrawn after Oakes (1954)

without carbonates, but their soil horizons are thinner. The only soils in İstanbul that developed almost entirely depending on the bedrock are the rendzina soils that evolved in the driest places on the carbonates and marls of Eocene and Miocene ages. These are humus- and carbonate-rich soils with a dark surface colour. According to Şengör (2011), the distribution of soils as drawn on the soil map of İstanbul (Fig. 10.16) reflects an amazing symmetry about a point somewhere close to the middle of the Bosphorus providing an independent support for the torsion interpretation of the two peninsulas.

10.6

Natural Hazards in İstanbul

10.6.1 Earthquakes The most serious type of natural hazard that has always inflicted suffering on the inhabitants of İstanbul is catastrophic earthquakes. The most devastating ones result from the strike-slip faulting along the northern branch of the North Anatolian Fault. The damage resulting from this type of earthquakes is mostly distributed along the strike of their causative faults, and in this regard, İstanbul is doubly unfortunate in sitting at the apex of a flat triangle formed by a change in the strike of the main displacement zone of the northern branch of the North Anatolian Fault (Fig. 10.5). When an earthquake breaks the west–south-west striking western segment, the eastern part of the city, lying east of the Bosphorus, is hit most seriously. When the west–north-west striking segment north of the Çınarcık Basin breaks, the

261

European side suffers the most damage. Sometimes, however, the fault breaks in its entirety along the entire Sea of Marmara. When a very large earthquake breaks the entire fault, as it probably happened during the 10th September 1509 earthquake, called the ‘Lesser Judgement Day’ (Kıyamet-i Suğra), it wreaks havoc in a vast area from beyond Adapazarı almost to Thessaloniki. Even during such major earthquakes, parts of İstanbul lying along the Black Sea coast and as far south as where the deepest part of the Bosphorus is located (cf. Fig. 10.11) do not suffer major damage because of the characteristics of the radiation of the energy owing to the shape of the fault and the direction of slip on it. However, even a medium-size earthquake around Mw (moment magnitude) = 6 is capable of extending its area of serious damage well into the city when it happens along one of the normal faults south of the Çınarcık Basin, because there the motion is not east–west, but north–south. The 10th July 1894 İstanbul earthquake was a medium-size earthquake, but it did much damage in the entire ‘historic peninsula’ probably because of that reason.

10.6.2 Landslides Yüzer et al. (in Örgün and Yılmaz-Şahin 2010, 181–203) recently reviewed the landslide hazard in İstanbul. They are classified according to their depth of penetration and whether they are active or inactive. The most active landslide areas of the province are located on the Avcılar Peninsula, where landslides occur along the seaward-dipping shaley layers of Oligocene and Lower Miocene age (Danişment Formation; see Fig. 10.6). It was here also that the greatest damage in İstanbul occurred during the 17th August 1999 earthquake because of the presence of these weak shales. The other area abundant in deep-seated landslides is along the Black Sea coast where the same Danişment Formation builds steep deforested slopes. The entire northern part of the European part of İstanbul is in fact a true environmental disaster area because of essentially uncontrolled sand pit activity, deforestation for new settlements and sporadic lignite mining since 1900. For example, around the village of Çiftalan, lignite mining has led to landslide activity that is now threatening settlements just to their south (Bayrakdar and Döker 2011). There is widespread concern that the ongoing construction of the third Bosphorus Bridge and its associated road system will only exacerbate the situation because of rampant corruption related to the use of public land around the roads. It is interesting to note that there are a very few and very small landslides in the area underlain by Palaeozoic and

A. M. C. Şengör and T. Kındap

262

Cretaceous rocks. An exception is Sarıyer, but there the topography is abrupt and there are both Devonian and Carboniferous shales in thrust contact with the Cretaceous volcanics.

beauty of that idyllic landscape in places beyond recognition and certainly beyond resurrection.

References 10.6.3 Floods Floods in İstanbul are essentially confined to the valley floors, i.e. to the floodplains of the major streams such as the Golden Horn. The problem in these areas is illegal construction of shanties and even apartment buildings that are regularly flooded during heavy rains. Such floods are almost a yearly occurrence, and the damage they cause grows every year not because they get any more numerous or more voluminous and widespread, but because more and more is being built in hazardous areas stemming from ignorance and corruption.

10.7

Conclusions

Despite its small size as a geological province, the administrative province of İstanbul has a most diverse geology and geomorphology, exhibiting an amazing variety of landforms. This is a result of its tumultuous geological history. When one thinks that the greatest geomorphological showpiece of the province, the Bosphorus Strait, became a strait only some 8500 years ago, one can appreciate the magnitude of the events that shaped it. The North Anatolian Fault that skirts the province to the south is no less of a major player: it not only devastates the present inhabitants of the province, but it was probably crucial in establishing the drainage pattern on its surface. The stratigraphic history was determined by three major orogenies: either the Hercynian or the Scythide orogenies deformed part of an Atlantic-type continental margin, here creating a solid massif. Then, the closure of the Palaeo-Tethys during the Cimmeride orogeny determined the presence of a major stratigraphic gap between the Early–Late Triassic (Carnian) and the Aptian– Albian. The details of the structures belonging to the Cimmerides have not yet been studied. Finally, the Alpide collisions ended the reign of the Neo-Tethys here and in the Miocene the province was largely covered by the salty waters of the Paratethys. It seems that the emergence of the province out of the waters of the Paratethys was a function both of the eustatic retreat of this landlocked sea and of the rise of land as a consequence of the beginning of the neotectonic episode, inaugurated by the Aegean extension and the development of the North Anatolian Shear Zone. It was this last episode that mainly has shaped the landscapes of İstanbul until the arrival of humans and particularly the rural Anatolian population since the 1950s that marred the natural

Akyol İH (1930) Coğrafî Hareketler — Yugoslavya Darülfünunu coğrafya talebesinin İstanbul’da tetkik seyahatı. Darülfünun Edebiyat Fakültesi Mecmuası 7(14):303–320 Algan O, Çağatay N, Chepalyga A, Ongan D, Eastoe C, Gökaşan E (2001) Stratigraphy of the sediment infill in the Bosphorus Strait: water exchange between the Black Sea and Marmara Sea: stable isotopic, foraminiferal and coccolith evidence. Geo Mar Lett 20:209–218 Andreossy A-F (Count) (1818) Voyage a l’Embouchure de la Mer Noire ou Essai sur le Bosphore et la Partie du Delta de Thrace Comprenant le Système des Eaux qui Abreuvent Constantinople; Précédé de Considérations Générales sur la Géographie Physique: Plancher, Paris, Atlas Baykal F (1942) La Géologie de la Région de Şile (Kocaeli, Anatolie): Revue de la Faculté des Sciences de l’Université d’İstanbul, Série B, 7, fascicule 3, 166–234 + 12 folded plates, 17 photos Baykal F, Önalan M (1979) Şile sedimenter karmaşığı (Şile olistostromu): Altınlı Simpozyumu, Türkiye Jeoloji Kurumu, Ankara, 15–25 Bayrakdar C, Döker F (2011) İstanbul Kuzeyindeki Madencilik Faaliyetlerinden Kaynaklanan Mekânsal Sorunlara Bir Örnek: Çiftalan Köyü Heyelanları, Fiziki Coğrafya Araştırmaları: Sistematik ve Bölgesel (ed. D. Ekinci): 507–526 Çağatay N, Wulf S, Sancar Ü, Özmaral A, Vidal L, Henry P, Appelt O, Gasperini L (2015) The tephra record from the Sea of Marmara for the last ca. 70 ka and its palaeoceanographic implications. Mar Geol 361:96–110 Chaput E (1936) Voyages d’Études Géologiques et Géomorphogeniques en Turquie: Mémoires de l’Institut d’Archéologie de Stamboul, II: E. De Boccard, Paris, VIII+312 pp.+XXVII photographic plates Cvijić J (1908) Grundlinien der Geographie und Geologie von Mazedonien und Altserbien nebst Beobachtungen in Thrazien, Thessaliee, Epirus und Nordalbanien, I.Teil., Ergenzungsheft Nr. 162 zu Petermanns Geographische Mitteilungen, VIII+392 + 16 plates + 3 maps de Tchihatchef P (Prince) (1864) Le Bosphore et Constantinople avec Perspectives des Pays Limitrophes: Th. Morgand, Paris, XII +589 pp.+9 plates+2 foldout maps Ekmekçi M (2005) Karst in Turkish Thrace: compatibility between geologic history and karst type. Turk J Earth Sci 14:73–90 Gand G, Tüysüz O, Steyer JS, Allain R, Sakınç M, Sanchez M, Şengör AMC, Şen Ş (2011) New Permian tetrapod footprints and macroflora from Turkey (Çakraz Formation, northwestern Anatolia): biostratigraphic and palaeoenvironmental implications: Comp Rend Palevol 10(8):617–625. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crpv.2011. 09.002 Gokasan E, Demirbag E, Oktay FY, Ecevitoglu B, Simsek M, Yüce H (1997) On the origin of the Bosphorus. Mar Geol 140:183–199 Howell FC, Arsebük G, Kuhn SL, Özbaşaran M, Stiner MC (eds) (2010) Culture and biology at crossroads: the Middle Pleistocene record of Yarımburgaz cave (Thrace, Turkey): Ege Yayınları, İstanbul, xvi+329 pp.+14 of plates Karabulut H, Schmittbuhl J, Özalaybey S, Lengliné O, Kömeç-Mutlu A, Durand V, Bouchon M, Daniel G, Bouin MP (2011) Evolution of the seismicity in the eastern Marmara Sea a decade before and after the 17 August 1999 Izmit earthquake. Tectonophysics 510:17–27

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Ketin İ (1970) Türkiye’de önemli jeolojik aflörmanların korunması. Türkiye Jeoloji Kurumu Bülteni 13(2):90–93 Natal’in BA, Sunal G, Satır M, Toraman E (2012) Tectonics of the Strandja Massif, NW Turkey: history of a long-lived arc at the northern margin of Paleo-Tethys. Turk J Earth Sci 21:755–798 Oakes H (1954) Türkiye Toprakları: Türk Yüksek Ziraat Mühendisleri Birliği Neşriyatı Sayı 18, Ege Üniversitesi Matbaası, VIII+224 pp. +8 folded maps (in back pocket) Örgün Y, Yılmaz Şahin S (eds) (2010) İstanbul’un Jeolojisi Sempozyumu III 07–09 Aralık 2007: TMMOB Jeoloji Mühendiisleri Odası İstanbul Şubesi, İstanbul, [iv]+371 pp.+1 folded map Özcan Z, Okay Aİ, Özcan E, Hakyemez A, Özkan-Altiner S (2012) Late Cretaceous- Eocene geological evolution of the Pontides based on the new stratigraphic and palaeontologic data between the Black Sea coast and Bursa (NW Turkey). Turk J Earth Sci 21:933–960 Özgörüş Z, Okay A (2005) İstanbul bölgesindeki andezitik daykların konumları: Kretasede gerilme dağılımına bir yaklaşım. Maden Tetkik ve Arama Dergisi 130:17–27 Özgül N (2012) Stratigraphy and some structural features of the İstanbul Paleozoic. Turk J Earth Sci 21:817–866 Özşahin E (2013) İstanbul İlinin Anadolu Yakasının Jeomorfolojik Özellikleri, Basılmamış Doktora Tezi, İstanbulÜniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Coğrafya Anabilim Dalı, İstanbul Pamir HN (1959) Dinamik Jeoloji I Dış Olaylar: Şirketi Mürettibiye Basımevi, İstanbul, VII+453 pp Penck W (1919) Grudzüge der Geologie des Bosporus: Veröffentlichungen des Instituts für Meereskunde an der Universität Berlin, neue Folge A. Geographisch-naturwissenschaftliche Reihe Heft 4, 71 pp.+1 plate

263 Ryan WBF (2007) Status of the Black Sea flood hypothesis. In: Yanko-Hombach V, Gilbert AS, Panin N, Dolukhanov P (eds) The Black Sea flood question—changes in coastline, climate and human settlement. Springer, Dordrecht, pp 63–88 Şengör AMC (1975) Outlines of the Turkish Karst: Boğaziçi Univ. Speleol. Soc. Pub., No.1, İstanbul, 25 pp Şengör AMC (2011) İstanbul Boğazı niçin Boğaziçi’nde açılmıştır?: in Ekinci, D., editor, Fiziki Coğrafya Araştırmaları Sistematik ve Bölgesel (Profesör Doktor Mehmet Yıldız Hoşgören’e Armağan). Türk Coğrafya Kurumu yayınları 6:57–102 Şengör AMC, Özgül N (2010) İstanbul’un iklim ve jeolojisi: in İstanbul Ansiklopedisi, NTV Yayınları, İstanbul, 1–23 Şengör AMC, Tüysüz O, İmren C, Sakınç M, Eyidoğan H, Görür N, Le Pichon X, Rangin C (2005) The North Anatolian fault: a new look. Annu Rev Earth Planet Sci 33:37–112 Şentürk K, Okay AI (1984) Blueschists discovered east of Saros Bay in Thrace. Bull Miner Res Explor Inst Turk 97(98):72–75 Yılmaz-Şahin S, Aysal N, Güngör Y (2012) Petrogenesis of Late Cretaceous Adakitic Magmatism in the İstanbul Zone (Çavuşbaşı Granodiorite, NW Turkey). Turk J Earth Sci 21:1029–1045 Yılmaz-Şahin S, Aysal N, Güngör Y, Peytcheva I, Neubauer F (2014) Geochemistry and U-Pb zircon geochronology of metagranites in Istranca (Strandja) Zone, NW Pontides, Turkey: implications for the geodynamic evolution of Cadomian orogeny. Gondwana Res 26:755–771 Yılmaz-Şahin S, Aysal N, Güngör Y, Peytcheva I (2015) Geochemical, geochronological and isotopic data from Permo-Triassic Plutons in Western Pontides. In: NW Turkey Goldschmidt abstracts, vol 3527

The Sinop Peninsula: The Northernmost Part of Asia Minor

11

Cengiz Yıldırım, Okan Tüysüz, and Tolga Görüm

Abstract

The Sinop Peninsula is located at the northernmost part of the Asia Minor (Anatolia). Its geographic position between the Central Pontide Mountains and the Black Sea together with the presence of young geological units and landforms provides favorable conditions for understanding onshore and offshore geological and geomorphic processes acting along the northern Anatolian coasts. Here, we focus on some landscapes that constitute one of the best examples along the Turkish Black Sea coast. These are inundated fluvial valleys, uplifted isthmus and marine terraces, and paleo- and active dunes.




Keywords

Sinop Northern Anatolia Relative sea level




Marine terraces

Plateau and the Black Sea oceanic basin (Fig. 11.1a). The Sinop Peninsula in the north of the Central Pontide Mountains is the northernmost part of Anatolia penetrating the Black Sea (Fig. 11.1b). The top surface of the Central Pontides is around 1200 m above sea level (a.s.l.), and the bathymetry of the Black Sea abyssal plain is around 2000 m below sea level (Fig. 11.2a). At the edge of this >3000 m relief, the peninsula forms a transition zone between highlands and the bottom of the Black Sea. Within this frame, the presence of Neogene and younger geological units in the Sinop Peninsula provides favorable conditions for understanding both onshore and offshore geological and geomorphological processes that acted on the southern Black Sea coasts. The Sinop Peninsula constitutes one of the best examples along the Turkish Black Sea coasts where fluvial, coastal, and Aeolian processes are preserved.

11.2 11.1

General Setting

Introduction

Turkey is the country that has the longest shoreline of the Black Sea. Despite this fact, our knowledge about young geological and geomorphic features along the Turkish Black Sea coasts is very limited due to (i) the scarcity of geological formations younger than Miocene, in contrast to the other parts of Anatolia, (ii) the lack of datable materials in the Pontide Mountains which form the southern passive margin of the Black Sea, and (iii) the dynamic and erosive character of the Black Sea. The Pontide Mountains (Ketin 1966) define the topographic boundary between Central Anatolian C. Yıldırım (&)
O. Tüysüz
T. Görüm Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences, Istanbul Technical University, Maslak, 34469 Istanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] O. Tüysüz e-mail: [email protected] T. Görüm e-mail: [email protected]

The Sinop Peninsula (Fig. 11.1a) is geological part of the Sinop Basin in the Central Pontides (Fig. 11.1b). The Pontides are divided into three tectonic units, consisting of, from west to east, the Strandja, the Istanbul, and the Sakarya zones (Okay and Tüysüz 1999). These tectonic units amalgamated as the result of closing of the İzmir–Ankara–Erzincan and the Intra-Pontide branches of the Tethys Ocean during the Late Cretaceous to Early Tertiary period. The Sinop Basin sits on the Sakarya zone where it is filled mainly by Lower Cretaceous syn-rift, Upper Cretaceous arc and Upper Cretaceous to Mid-Eocene post-magmatic units. The oldest units outcropping in the Sinop Peninsula are Upper Cretaceous volcanic and volcanoclastic deposits overlying Campanian to Middle Eocene clastics and carbonates (Fig. 11.2; Tüysüz 1999; Gedik and Korkmaz 1984). These units were deformed and uplifted mainly before the Miocene (Yılmaz et al. 1997; Tüysüz 1999). Sunal and Tüysüz (2002) concluded that post-collisional north–south compression caused development of a fold and thrust belt affecting all

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_11

265

266

Fig. 11.1 a Topography and simplified tectonic map of Turkey. b Topography of the Central Pontides and bathymetry of the Black Sea (BF: Balıfakı Fault, EF: Erikli Fault, EkF: Ekinveren Fault, NAF: North

Fig. 11.2 Simplified geological map of the Sinop Peninsula (modified from Şenel 2002)

units along the Pontides after the Middle Eocene. It is still a matter of debate whether this compressional tectonic regime remained active after the development of the Pontide fold and thrust belt, or was replaced by a new and possibly extensional tectonic regime since the beginning of the neotectonic period during the Late Miocene in Anatolia (see Şengör and Kidd 1979). The Sinop Peninsula is one of the few places along the southern Black Sea coast where Neogene and Quaternary marine deposits emerge (Fig. 11.2; Erinç and İnandık 1955;

C. Yıldırım et al.

Anatolian Fault, EAF: East Anatolian Fault, BSCZ: Bitlis–Zagros Collision Zone, WAEP: Western Anatolian Extensional Province)

Akkan 1975; Karabıyıkoğlu 1984; Barka et al. 1985; Yıldırım et al. 2011, 2013; Ilgar 2014). The emergence of these marine deposits implies the occurrence of uplift and deformation movements along the coasts during the neotectonic period (Yıldırım et al. 2011, 2013; Ilgar 2014). Belonging to these dynamics, the Balıfakı and Erikli Faults are known onshore active structures (Figs. 11.2 and 11.3; Yıldırım et al. 2013). The northernmost coasts of the peninsula are cut into Upper Cretaceous volcanics (Fig. 11.2) which form bluffs and steep cliffs separated by indentations corresponding to fractures and dykes within the volcanics and volcanoclastics. In contrast, eastern and western coasts are quite linear (Fig. 11.3). The soft sediments of Miocene and Pliocene age outcrop at western and eastern parts of the peninsula (Fig. 11.2). Ilgar (2014) found syndepositional deformations within these units which indicate seismic activity in mid-Miocene. They are generally subhorizontal and characterized by steep cliffs and landslides. East–west trending coasts of the peninsula are mainly formed by highly deformed Eocene clastics and carbonates (Fig. 11.2). These units are strongly folded forming steep and high cliffs on top of which marine terraces are best preserved. An extensive erosional surface truncates all these units, forming a low-elevated coastal plateau between the mountain front of the Erikli Fault and the steep cliffs of the shoreline. This surface is dissected and incised by a drainage network flowing from the Pontides highlands (Fig. 11.3), i.e., from south to north. Contrasting with this general orientation, the drainage network at the northernmost part of the peninsula displays east–west-oriented flow direction (Fig. 11.3). The floodplains of these rivers and streams are generally not very large. The Karasu River has the largest drainage basin (Fig. 11.3), the floodplain of which mixes with the coastal

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The Sinop Peninsula: The Northernmost Part of Asia Minor

267

Fig. 11.3 Digital elevation model of the study area. White boxes indicate location of sites cited in the text. Offshore faults are from Özhan (1989)

plain in the central part of the peninsula. The other coastal plains are Sarımsaklı, Kabanlı, and Sarıkum (Fig. 11.3). Besides the erosional processes, landslides are one of the other major processes shaping the actual coastal morphology. The areas of the landslides that concentrate on the east and west parts of the Sinop Peninsula changes between 0.01 and 3.0 km2. Most of these landslides are shallow (12 m, its salinity has more than doubled and this is threatening the lake’s migratory bird populations. Burdur is a Ramsar site, and it houses over two-thirds of the winter population of the globally threatened white-headed duck (Oxyura leucocephala). It is sad that there has so far been no positive answer from the local community or from central government to warnings by scientists on the declining conditions of lakes Burdur and Akşehir. The Aral Sea is a similar non-outlet amplifier lake, which has greatly shrunk in extent due to over-irrigation from the inflowing rivers. Based on the Aral Sea experience, unless there is a big change in water management in the near future, further shrinkage will occur in lakes Burdur and Akşehir with potential similar risks to the natural environment and to human health.

15.7

Conclusions

South-western Anatolia is one of the most geologically and geomorphologically fascinating parts of Turkey. It includes the western Taurus range, which emerged as a result of the collision of the African and Eurasian continents in the Late Tertiary. Following the emergence, the mountain chain was tectonically bended, forming the so-called Isparta Angle, mainly composed of Palaeozoic and Mesozoic limestones (Figs. 15.1 and 15.2). The tectonic depressions associated with karstic features within the mountain range provided a suitable basis for the creation of several important lacustrine basins since the Late Miocene. Today, there are many lakes and marshes emplaced, for the most part unconformably, on Neogene lacustrine deposits; in consequence, this region is called Turkey’s “Lakes District”. In general, the smaller lakes are karstic in origin while larger ones are formed in graben, although some lakes are influenced by both tectonic and karstic processes, such as Beyşehir. The existence of numerous sedimentary basins in the south-west Anatolian Lakes District has also led to more Holocene pollen records being obtained from here than from any other region of Turkey, including the recognition of a well-defined period of cultural land use known as the Beyşehir Occupation Phase, which overlaps in time with the Hellenistic–Roman–early Byzantine period. There is also clear evidence of human impact on the region’s lakes in

modern times. Lakes such as Acıgöl are among the most saline wetlands of Anatolia and they offer a negative model for what other non-outlet lakes like Burdur may become in the future if the current water-level decrease continues. Lakes have been one of principal sources of south-west Anatolia’s great biodiversity. It is vital that conservation of fresh water and other natural resources is matched against the needs of economic development if this region’s many ecosystem services are to be sustained for future generations. Acknowledgements One of the authors (NK) is grateful to Yaşar Suludere, Zeynep Ataselim, Alper Gürbüz, Sonay Boyraz-Arslan, Özden İleri, Esra Gürbüz, Onur T. Yücel, Özgür Yedek, Ediz Kırman and Ezgi Güllü for cooperation on lake studies for years and for helps on the preparation of some figures of the manuscript.

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Güleç E, Howell EC, White T (1999) Dursunlu—A new Lower Pleistocene artifact-bearing locality in southern Anatolia. In: Ullrich H (ed) Hominid evolution: lifestyles and survival strategies: Gelsenkirchen, Archaea, pp 349–364 Helvacı C, Mordoğan H, Çolak M, Gündoğan I (2004) Presence and distribution of lithium in borate deposits and some recent lake waters of west-central Turkey. Int Geol Rev 46:177–190 Kazancı N (1988) Repetitive deposition of alluvial fan and fan-delta wedges at a fault-controlled margin of the Pleistocene-Holocene Burdur Lake graben, SW Anatolia, Turkey. In: Nemec W, Steel RJ (eds) Fan deltas: sedimentology and tectonic setting. Blackie and Son, Glasgow, pp 186–196 Kazancı N (1990) Fan-delta sequences in the Pleistocene-Holocene Burdur Basin, Turkey; the role of the basin-margin configuration in the sediment entrapment and differential facies development. In: Colella A, Prior DB (eds) Coarse grained deltas. International Association of Sedimentologists Special Publication 10, pp 185– 198 Kazancı N, Nemec W, İleri Ö, Kavuşan G, Karadenizli L, Solak Aİ, Briseid HC, Hilde D, Postma G, Karakaş Z, Uçar M (1994) Sedimentological investigation of lakes Akşehir and Eber for protection and restoration purposes. A report for Turkish Scientific and Research Council TUBITAK, Project no YBAG-019, Ankara, 195 pp (in Turkish) Kazancı N, Girgin S, Dügel M, Oğuzkurt D, Mutlu B, Dere Ş, Barlas M, ve Özçelik M (1999) Limnology, environmental quality and biodiversity of lakes Köyceğiz, Beyşehir, Eğirdir, Akşehir, Eber, Çorak, Kovada, Yarışlı, Bafa, Salda, Karataş, Çavuşçu, deltas of Küçük and Büyük Menderes, marshes of Güllük and Karamuk. Research Series for İnland Water of Turkey, no 4, Form Ofset, 372 pp, Ankara (in Turkish) Kazancı Nil, Girgin S, Dugel M (2004) On the limnology of Salda Lake; a large and deep soda lake in southwestern Turkey: future management proposals. Aquat Conserv: Marine Freshw Ecosyst 14:151–162 Kazancı N, Nemec W, İleri Ö, Karadenizli L, Christian BH, Briseit H (1997) Palaeoclimatic significance of the late pleistocene deposits of Akflehir Lake, west-central Anatolia. In: An International symposium on the late quaternary in the eastern mediterranean, programme and abstracts. General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA) Publications, 58–59 Kış M, Erol O, Şenel S, Ergin M (1989) Preliminary results of radiocarbon dating of coastal deposits of the Pleistocene pluvial lake of Burdur, Turkey. J Islam Acad Sci 2:37–40 Koçyiğit A, Ünay E, Saraç G (2000) Episodic graben formation and extensional neotectonic regime in West Central Anatolia and the Isparta Angle: A key study in the Akşehir-Afyon graben, Turkey. Geological Society of London, Special Publication 173:405–421 Lahn E (1948) Study of the geology and geomorphology of Turkish lakes. A publication of Institut (MTA), B 12, 87 pp, Ankara (in Turkish and French) Lahn E (1953) Contribution â l’etude géomorphologique des lacs du Toros Occidental. Bulletin of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTAE, Ankara) 34:387–393 Loewe F (1935) Beobachtungen während einer Durchquerung Zentralanatoliens im Jahre 1927. Geogr Ann 17:89–109 Lüttig G, Steffens P (1976) Explanatory notes for the paleogeographic atlas of Turkey from the oligocene to the pleistocene. Bundesanst. für Geowiss und Rohstoffe, 64 pp, Berlin Mutlu H, Kadir S, Akbulut A (1999) Mineralogy and water chemistry of the Lake Acıgöl (Denizli), Turkey. Carbonates Evaporites 14:91–99

337 Nemec W, Kazancı N (1999) Quaternary colluvium in west central Anatolia; sedimentary facies and palaeoclimatic significance. Sedimentology 46:139–170 Poisson A, Yağmurlu F, Bozcu M, Şentürk M (2003) New insights on the tectonic setting and evolution around the apex of the Isparta Angle (SW Turkey). Geol J 38:257–282 Price SP, Scott B (1991) Pliocene Burdur basin, SW Turkey: tectonics, seismicity and sedimentation. J Geol Soc London 148:345–354 Roberts N (1990) Human-induced landscape change in south and south-west Turkey during the later Holocene. In: Bottema S, Entjes-Nieborg G, van Zeist W (eds) Man’s role in the shaping of the Eastern Mediterranean landscape. A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, pp 53–67 Roberts N, Wright Jr HE (1993) Vegetational, lake-level and climatic history of the Near East and Southwest Asia. In: Wright Jr HE, Kutzbach JE, Webb III T, Ruddiman WF, Street-Perrott FA, Bartlein PJ (eds) Global climates since the last glacial maximum. Minneapolis, University of Minnesota, pp 194–220 Roberts N, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Jones M, Mather A, Jones G, Rodenberg I, Eastwood WJ, Kapan-Yeşilyurt S, Yiğitbaşıoğlu H, Watkinson M (2004) Late Quaternary lake-level changes in the Burdur basin, southwest Turkey: climate, tectonics and human impact. In: Proceedings of the ISES conference, Istanbul, Turkey, pp 17–18 Robertson AHF, Poisson P, Akıncı Ö (2003) Developments in research concerning Mesozoic-Tertiary Tethys and neotectonics in the Isparta Angle, SW Turkey. Geol J 38:195–234 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2017) The late Quaternary glaciation in the Eastern Mediterranean. In: Hughes P, Woodward J (eds) Quaternary glaciation in the mediterranean mountains, vol 433. Geological Society of London Special Publication, pp 289–305. http://doi.org/ 10.1144/SP433.4 Sarıkaya MA, Zreda M, Çiner A, Zweck C (2008) Cold and wet last glacial maximum on Mount Sandıras, SW Turkey, inferred from cosmogenic dating and glacier modelling. Quatern Sci Rev 27: 769–780 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Haybat H, Zreda M (2014) An early advance of glaciers on Mount Akdağ, SW Turkey, before the global Last Glacial Maximum; insights from cosmogenic nuclides and glacier modeling. Quatern Sci Rev 88:96–109 Schildgen TF, Cosentino D, Bookhagen B, Niedermann S, Yıldırım C, Echtler HP, Wittmann H, Strecker MR (2012) Multi-phase uplift of the southern margin of the Central Anatolian plateau: a record of tectonic and upper mantle processes. Earth Planet Sci Lett 317– 318:85–95 Şengör AMC (1992) The mountain and the Bullİ the origin of the word “Taurus” as part of the earliest tectonic hypothesis, vol 1. Zafer Taşlıklıoğlu Armağanı, Arkeoloji ve Sanat Yayınları, İstanbul, pp 1–48 Tudryn A, Tucholka P, Özgür N, Gibert E, Elitok O, Kamacı Z, Massault M, Poisson A, Platevoet B (2013) A 2300-year record of environmental change from SW Anatolia, Lake Burdur, Turkey. J Paleolimnol 49:647–662 Van Zeist W, Woldring H, Stapert D (1975) Late Quaternary vegetation and climate of southwestern Turkey. Palaeohistoria 17:53–143 Vermoere M (2004) Holocene vegetation history in the territory of Sagalassos. Studies in Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology—SEMA 6 Zahno C, Akçar N, Yavuz V, Kubik PW, Schlüchter C (2009) Surface exposure dating of Late Pleistocene glaciations at the Dedegöl Mountains (Lake Beyşehir, SW Turkey). J Quat Sci 24:1016–1028

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Salted Landscapes in the Tuz Gölü (Central Anatolia): The End Stage of a Tertiary Basin Erman Özsayın, Alper Gürbüz, Catherine Kuzucuoğlu, and Burçin Erdoğu

In memoriam Prof. Dr. Oğuz EROL (1926–2014).










Abstract

Keywords

Tuz Gölü (Salt Lake) is a large salt lake located in the heart of Anatolia. Long-term morphological development of the lake is controlled by the Tuz Gölü Fault Zone and the İnönü-Eskişehir Fault System. The Central Black Sea Mountains in the north and the Taurus Mountain Belt in the south are major climatic barriers generating a precipitation shadow effect on the Anatolian Plateau that worsens the continental climatic conditions characterized here by cold winter, hot summer and relative dryness. Climate, together with active tectonics, let Tuz Gölü to preserve a water depth of maximum 1.5 m. Besides the natural beauty of the outstanding landscapes provided by this shining white lake, numerous salt farms are spread over the lake and neighbouring small lakes. Archaeological data evidence that salt exploitation and trade centres around Tuz Gölü were established since prehistoric and during ancient historic times. This natural and cultural heritage is now threatened by anthropogenic and climatic factors that might lead to its disappearance in a foreseeable future.

Central Anatolia Tuz Gölü Salt lake Evaporite Salt dome Ancient salt trade

E. Özsayın (&) Department of Geological Engineering, Hacettepe University, 06800 Cankaya, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] A. Gürbüz Department of Geological Engineering, Niğde University, 51240 Niğde, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] C. Kuzucuoğlu Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, Meudon, France e-mail: [email protected] B. Erdoğu Department of Archaeology, Trakya University, 22030 Edirne, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

16.1

Introduction

Central Anatolian Plateau is located in the middle part of Turkey. This plateau is bounded by the Küre Mountains to the north and the Taurus Mountains to the south, which constitute the orographic barriers for the central part. These barriers establish a conservative, semi-arid climate with low precipitation and high evaporation values, partly explaining the sheepherding specialized steppe landscapes widely seen in the area. In the central part of this steppe landscape, the Tuz Gölü plain (the old name was “Tuz Çölü”—“The Salt Desert”) serves as one of the most important transportation routes. Between Şereflikoçhisar and Aksaray (Fig. 16.1), the road follows straight NW-SE-oriented cliffs dominating a wide and flat plain where salt shines wide into the horizon. This is the Tuz Gölü plain, much wider than the traveller can apprehend from the road, and with much more varied landscapes than he/she can see. In the plain, three fault-controlled lakes come into prominence—namely Tuz Gölü, Tersakan and Bolluk (Fig. 16.1). The Tuz Gölü is the second largest lake of Turkey (1665 km2). Standing at 905 m altitude, it is the lowest one of the numerous lake basins dispatched in the endorheic plateaus of Central Anatolia. This low altitude makes the Tuz Gölü plain the receptacle centre of groundwater flow of the central plateaus. Two saline water bodies neighbouring the Tuz Gölü, the Tersakan and Bolluk lakes, also contain significant concentrations of sodium sulphate.

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_16

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Fig. 16.1 Geological map of the Tuz Gölü area showing main structural elements controlling the Tuz Gölü depression. Modified from Özsayın et al. 2013

Tectonic and climatic controls conceive magnificent structures around the Tuz Gölü. Several travertine cones related to faulting, and chimney formations developed within volcanic rocks due to erosion related mainly to climate and vegetation cover conditions are some outstanding natural landforms. Besides, glaring white crystals attract salt walk tourism in the northern part of the Tuz Gölü. With a low superficial as well as groundwater input, the Tuz Gölü is now threatened with disappearance. Severe measures including control of groundwater usage, limitations in water withdrawal for agriculture and improving sewerage systems have been taken not only to allow continuity of production of evaporites but also to preserve the natural life around the lake.

16.2

Geological and Geographical Setting

16.2.1 Geological Framework and Long-Term Morphological Development The Tuz Gölü basin is one of the largest closed depressions in the central part of Anatolia. Basin formation was initiated

as a continental rifting depression due to NE-SW extension during the late Cretaceous (Çemen et al. 1999; Dirik and Erol 2003). The basement of the basin is composed of Palaeozoic metamorphic rocks and Upper Cretaceous ophiolitic units, which are unconformably overlain by Palaeocene red fluvial clastics at the margins, intercalated with an Upper Palaeocene-Middle Eocene shallow marine sequence in the central part. By the end of the Eocene, ca. N–S-oriented compressional regime occurred and marine conditions gave place to terrestrial environment. At the end of this marine phase, an important climatic and environmental change was recorded by extensive amounts of evaporites and thick clastic sequences sealing the marine sequence. During the Tortonian fluvial systems developed. NE-SW extension, which started during the Messinian, is the last but still ongoing tectonic regime in the Tuz Gölü area (Özsayın and Dirik 2011). Pleistocene deposition started with clastic units often intercalated with volcanic materials derived from the volcanoes located in the eastern and southeastern parts of the Tuz Gölü basin. These units are conformably overlain by thick freshwater lacustrine limestone–claystone alternations. During the Pleistocene, the continuing uplift (Schildgen et al. 2012; Yıldırım et al. 2013)

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of the Central Anatolian Plateau led to the increasing input of erosion material by the rivers (Doğan 2011; Özsayın et al. 2013; Çiner et al. 2015). During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), ca. 20,000 years ago, climatic conditions still favoured a ca. 35–40-m deep brackish lake to expand in the plain. Today, two major fault systems control and shape the Tuz Gölü depression. The İnönü-Eskişehir Fault System delimits the western margin of the lake. It is a mega-shear zone located between the Tuz Gölü in the southeast and the Marmara Sea in the northwest (Özsayın and Dirik 2011). NW-SE trending Ilıca, Yeniceoba, Cihanbeyli and Sultanhanı Fault Zones (e.g., Melnick et al. 2017) of this system control the topography and linear drainage pattern of the western part of the lake basin (Fig. 16.1). Between Şereflikoçhisar and Aksaray, NW-trending Tuz Gölü Fault Zone limits the Tuz Gölü from the east. Both fault systems form as dextral strike-slip zone responding to collision between the African and Eurasian plates, which initiated the westward escape of the Anatolian plate. During the Quaternary, reactivated fault planes from these systems generated NE-SW extensional movements in the Tuz Gölü area (Özsayın and Dirik 2011). Morphological results of this extension are clearly visible in the local and regional landscapes where they are primarily characterized by normal faulting-related fault scarps, aligned alluvial fans, linear streams, triangular facets, stream captures and deep gorges incised through fault-line scarps (Fig. 16.1).

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Climate in the Tuz Gölü basin is continental, as it is located in the rain shadow of the mountain ranges surrounding central Anatolia, mainly the Küre Mountains to the north and the Taurus Mountains to the south, but also the rising hills and massifs of western Anatolia. Considerable seasonal fluctuations in air temperature occur in this semi-arid climate where the annual average precipitation is about 320 mm/year. At Aksaray, the minimum average January temperature is 0.2 °C (with a mean minimum at −4.2 °C), and the minimum average July temperature is 22.8 °C (mean maximum: 30.4 °C) (source: climate-data.org). Annual natural hydrological input to the Tuz Gölü is 1860  106 m3/year, of which 360  106 m3/year is from surface flow, 704  106 m3/year from precipitation and 741  106 m3/year through groundwater. As an output member, the evaporation rate is 1810  106 m3/year (ÖÇKKB 2001). Particularly in the last decades, the hydrological input to the lake has decreased markedly due to climatic change, water reservoir constructions on freshwater tributaries (e.g., Melendiz dam) and careless use of groundwater for agriculture (e.g., Örmeci and Ekercin 2007). The most important and controllable component of water input is the groundwater. According to official reports, the annual amount of groundwater input to the lake budget has decreased from 1000  106 m3 in 1974 to 741  106 m3 in 1995 (ÖÇKKB 2001; Örmeci and Ekercin 2007).

16.2.3 Morphological Interesting and Specific Features 16.2.2 Climate and Hydrological Input The Tuz Gölü is one of the largest hypersaline lakes in the world. Its geological, geomorphological and sedimentological features resemble those of Lake Urmia (Iran) and Great Salt Lake (USA). Hydrochemically it is also one of the saltiest lakes of the world, with 32.9% salinity (e.g., the Dead Sea—34.2%, Lake Vanda in Antarctica (35%) and Lake Assal in Djibouti—34.8%; Hammer 1986). Saline lakes are generally located in endorheic basins and are very sensitive to environmental changes. In addition, the absence of an outlet increases the impact of pollution (chemical or biologic) as non-evaporable products concentrate in the brine. The total catchment area of the lake is about 15,000 km2, which is 1.56% of Turkey’s surface. Depending on seasonal and yearly variations in evaporation and water input, the total lake surface ranges between 1500 and 1665 km2. Several ephemeral streams feed the lake. Surface water input is mainly brought in by three main streams: the İnsuyu, Melendiz and Peçeneközü. The Peçeneközü stream, which arrives in the Tuz Gölü at Şereflikoçhisar town (Fig. 16.1), is the largest with a total annual discharge of ca. 1.760 m3/s (EİE 2000).

16.2.3.1 Kuşça Chimneys The chimneys are one of the world’s most amazing architecture shaped by atmospheric conditions on suitable rock types. Usually, such structures are formed by erosional processes in rocks easily erodible and frost-sensitive, and under rapidly changing conditions related to climate (e.g., drastic changes in rain intensity and runoff discharges, contraction of vegetation land cover), tectonics (e.g., uplift-subsidence movements opposing connected terranes), or land use (e.g., deforestation, practices disturbing soil coherence) (Sarıkaya et al. 2015). In the Kuşça region located in the western part of the Tuz Gölü, Upper Miocene fluvial clastics cover older rock units with angular unconformity. The ignimbrite layer located in the uppermost part of this sequence is dated to 6.81 ± 0.24 Ma, and is in turn overlain by Pliocene lacustrine limestone (Fig. 16.2). These eroded units are bounded by the Yeniceoba Fault Zone, which forms the southern margin of the ancient Tuz Gölü plain (Özsayın et al. 2013). Kuşça chimneys are observed at the uppermost parts of the fluvial clastics composed of fine-grained conglomeratemudstone-sandstone alternation. The height of the chimneys

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Fig. 16.2 Chimneys located at the northeast of the Kuşça village. Note that the single chimney at the centre of the view is approximately 20 m high, the one in the inset picture is around 3 m

ranges between 3 and 25 m while their width differs from 2 to 10 m. In contrast with the ones located in the Cappadocia area, most of the chimneys are singular features representing the highest forms. Some of them situated near to the valley floor tend to cluster and have shorter height and wider base. The triggering factor generating this landscape in such alternatively hard/soft sediment layers is either climate because of lake level changes modifying longitudinal profiles of local rivers or, in addition with, local-to-regional uplift which would have caused runoff concentration and incision into the whole set of Miocene-to-Upper Pleistocene sediments. Once reached by the incision, the softest ones were rapidly eroded because of their mechanic sensitivity towards runoff processes.

16.2.3.2 Bolluk Lake Travertine Cones The Bolluk Lake is a saline and alkaline lake, like its neighbours the Tersakan and Tuz lakes (e.g., Gündoğan and Helvacı 1996). The lake depression is located to the south-west from the Tuz Gölü and created by the Altınekin Fault Zone (Fig. 16.1). Although no slip data is present from this fault zone, normal fault characteristics can be determined from E-W trending seismic profiles (Arıkan 1975). In the Bolluk Lake area, aligned travertine cones form an unusual landscape in this depression. Here, Erol (1969) identified and mapped 44 such cones in the lake, and 9 other cones outside the lake. These 53 cones are rowed along fault-line trends consistent with the direction of long axis of

the Bolluk Lake (Fig. 16.3). Their diameters are from 4 to 40 m while their heights range from 2 to 20 m. The thickness of the travertine varies between 1 and 20 m. There are also small-scaled travertine ridges between these cones, compatible with the alignment of the faults. Geochemical properties of the travertines are specific to the geological context of the area. The basement is formed by an ophiolitic complex cut by andesitic volcanism and overlain by Mio-Pliocene gypsum-bearing lacustrine deposits. The subterranean presence of these rocks explains the sulphate (SO4) deposits (i.e., mirabilite, thenardite and bloedite) forming the Bolluk travertine cones. In addition, sulphate-bearing water discharged from these cones contributes to the high sulphate content of the lake water allowing commercial exploitation of sulphate crystallizing in production pools (e.g., Gündoğan and Helvacı 1996) (Fig. 16.4).

16.2.3.3 Saltfarms of the Tuz Gölü The Tuz Gölü is an essential natural salt supply with a huge reserve. The whole lake has a maximum length and width of 85 and 50 km, respectively. It is surrounded by salty marshes where salt-adapted steppe vegetation grows. A natural sill barrier, possibly fault-controlled, separates the shallow and deeper parts of the Tuz Gölü. These two zones exhibit different chemical and mineralogical characteristics (Uygun and Şen 1978; Çamur and Mutlu 1996). For example, the Tuz Gölü water has salinity values

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Fig. 16.3 Alignment of travertine cones (indicated by arrows) located around the Bolluk Lake (photographs are taken from the northern part of the lake), compatible with the extension of the Altınekin Fault Zone (Black circle indicates car for scale)

Fig. 16.4 General view of the Bolluk Lake and sulphate farms located in the northern part of the lake

of *350 g/l in the main part and 80 g/l in the deeper part (Uygun and Şen 1978). In spring, the lake reaches its highest level (March/April), with an average of 70 cm depth in its main part and 1.5 m in the eastern part. Starting in May, most of the lake water evaporates because of rainfall drop, decreasing runoff input and increasing temperatures. In summer or early autumn, the shallow part of the lake dries out and a 30-cm-thick salt crust covers its desiccated floor (ÖÇKKB 2005). On the other hand, in the “deep part”, water remains throughout the year. In spring, the lake depth is still >1 m. Since the early 1990s, the lake is divided into the northern and southern part by an artificial impoundment which aims at ensuring adequate

water level for salt pools which are situated in the northern part (Fig. 16.5). During the dry season (summer), salt precipitates over an approximate 1200 km2 area. It then forms a permanent halite bed, or halite crust, up to 30 cm thick. This thickness is reduced to almost one-half during the rainy period (April– May) because of dissolution (Tekin et al. 2007). Halite crystals show an upward pointing, zoned, primary structure (chevron halite; Gündoğan and Helvacı 1996). In this environment, salt farms produce halite using solar evaporation in numerous saltpans. The overall salt production by this method is about 2,500,000 t/year (Uyanık 2004). In the northern part, besides halite, mineralogy of the salt crust also

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Fig. 16.5 Salt farms of Tuz Gölü located in the northern part of the lake

includes gypsum, aragonite and calcite (Çamur and Mutlu 1996). Below the crust, mineralogy of the unconsolidated muddy sediments (ca. 25 cm thick) is mainly composed of gypsum, huntite and magnesite (e.g., Irion and Müller 1968; Ergun 1988). In the centre of the main part, polyhalite also occurs. In contrast, in the deeper zone sediments are composed of a thin layer of halite, gypsum and aragonite. Below, thin halite layer overlies carbonate sediments composed of Mg-calcite and dolomite (Çamur and Mutlu 1996).

16.3

Geomorphological Landscapes as a Record of Quaternary Environments

The geomorphological landscapes in the Tuz Gölü plain result from the interactions between: (i) the central hypersaline–alkaline shallow lake (12-m-high barchans (Figs. 17.2f and 17.5) (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1998a). A sand sequence cored in the highest dunes delivered an OSL age of 5674 ± 988 yrs. The interval of uncertainty (6.7–4.7 ka ago) fits a dry period evidenced by marsh absence in the plain (6.5–5.5 cal ka BP). The late Holocene started after a dry period dated 4.5– 3.7 ka cal BP. Soils developed ca. 3.5 cal ka BP and

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marshes in the low areas from 3.4 to 3.16 ka cal BP. This latter date corresponds to the start of the 3.2 cal ka BP “event”, a drought occurring during the transition between the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages in the Near East (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2011; Roberts et al. 2011; Kuzucuoğlu 2012).

17.4

The Impact of Tectonic and Karstic Processes on the Landscapes

17.4.1 Morphological Imprint of Tectonic Activity The Konya Plain is a faulted subsidence basin, tilted towards its NW edge where the Quaternary sediments reach 400 m in thickness (De Meester 1970). Elsewhere in the plain, the mean thickness is 100 m, declining to 30–40 m near the northern extension of the Hotamış Plain (Doğan and Yılmaz 2011). The LGM coastal deposits on the NW edge of the lake reach an unusual thickness above the ground. According to Karabıyıkoğlu et al. (1999), they were uplifted while depositing. Nevertheless, active tectonic impact on the Konya Plain morphology is less evident than in some other lake depressions of Central Anatolia.

17.4.2 Karstic and Hydrothermal Features 17.4.2.1 Swallow Holes (“Ponor”) In Turkish, the common word for a swallow hole is “Düden”. The sole swallow hole in the Konya Plain is located south of the Akgöl Lake (Fig. 17.3). Lower than the base of the lake floor, it is today separated from it by the Kilbasan-Ereğli road. Positioned on a fault zone between the Quaternary lake deposits and the Palaeozoic limestone forming the southern highlands, it used to be filled by a lake fed by underground water emerging from a karstic network during high humidity periods (such as between the 1970s and the 1980s). The lake contracted strongly after the 1990s. It is now dry, as are also the Akgöl marshes and shallow lakes, which used to be connected. 17.4.2.2 Emergences (Resurgences) Several emergences of karst groundwater occur in the region of Ereğli, where they give birth to green spots (oasis) and streams ultimately feeding alluvial fans and wetlands on the piedmont. At İvriz, south of Ereğli, a very famous emergence reaches the surface and produces a pond at the foot of an important Hittite wall sculpture. From there, the flowing water becomes the Zanopa River, which builds an alluvial fan where the Hittite town of Hupišna (the Roman Heraclea Cybistra, today Ereğli) was founded.

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17.4.2.3 Travertines In the northern part of the Ereğli sub-basin at some distance from the foot of Karacadağ, the Akhöyük elongated travertine mound is formed by hydrothermal processes with sulphur- and carbonate-rich underground water outflowing along an open fissure (Figs. 17.1b and 17.3). 17.4.2.4 Sinkholes Obruk is the Turkish word applying to a “round-shaped hole in the ground”. In very rare cases, the term is misused when naming a “round-shaped hole” of volcanic origin, e.g. “Yılan Obruk”, a diatreme near Karapınar (Fig. 17.5), and “Obruk maar” east of the Karacadağ. Most commonly, obruks apply to dolines and collapse dolines. A doline deepens and widens with water accumulating on its bottom and its floor. It is filled with reddish gravelly clay remaining after carbonate dissolution. The collapse doline (sinkhole) results from collapse of a buried

Fig. 17.7 Obruk Plateau between the Konya Basin and the Tuz Gölü Basin. a Alignment of collapse dolines in the Obruk Plateau and Dikmen-Sekizi Uvala. Modified from Canik and Çörekçioğlu (1986).

C. Kuzucuoğlu

karstic cavity. The evolution of a sinkhole is determined by dissolution and suffusion processes deep at the bottom of the feature. In the Konya region, obruks are typical collapse dolines in the karstic Neogene carbonate environment. During the last two decades, occurrences of such collapses have increased, preferably in karstified limestone masked by old alluvium fill (caprock sinkholes).

17.4.3 The Obruk Plateau The Obruk Plateau is an exceptional area hosting today 67 obruks extending along a 50-km-long and ca. 8-km-wide rectilinear zone (Figs. 17.1, 17.7 and 17.8). This distribution follows a SE–NW fault line disrupting the Neogene limestone plateau at the SW margin of the Tuz Gölü Basin, in the threshold area between the Tuz Gölü and Konya plains.

b The Şeyithacı village where six sinkholes opened in 2007 and 2008. Modified from Doğan and Yılmaz (2011)

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Fig. 17.8 Photographs of sinkholes in the Konya Closed Basin. a Wet obruk, b–d Newly collapsed obruks in the sandy silts covering the Neogene limestones. West of Sultaniye depression (NW Karapınar). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

In the Konya Plain Basin, the total number of sinkholes is however much higher (182), with concentration in the vicinity of Karapınar. Their distribution in the basin indicates that favourable locations are (i) the edges of the plain and (ii) the Obruk Plateau. Their base levels are controlled by underground water circulation routes connecting the Taurus limestone range (recharge area) to the Tuz Gölü Plain at north (discharge area) (Fig. 17.4). In some of the largest and deepest ones, a lake occupies the sinkhole when it intersects the local water table (Bayarı et al. 2009) (Fig. 17.8a). Outside the plateau, other spectacular obruks are located at Kızören in the Tuz Gölü Basin, at the northern edge (e.g. Atçukuru) as well as the southern one (Timras, May ve Arpa obruks) of the Konya Plain (Figs. 17.1 and 17.8a). Studying air photographs, Erol (1986) mapped these features, characterizing their shapes and classifying them on the basis of the freshness, depth, width and bottom shapes (conical/flat). He identified two generations of obruks and interpreted their formation processes and their chronology. According to him, the oldest obruks are found in the limestones of Bozdağ (Permian) and Sarnıç (Mesozoic) residual relief. They originated during the Miocene and the Pliocene, below the level of an old denudational surface. Later covered by Neogene lacustrine limestone, this palaeokarstic system partly controlled later karstification processes in the Neogene carbonates. The Pliocene ended with a fluvial phase and erosion of the Neogene limestone surfaces. During the Quaternary, the uplift of the plateau and subsidence of its south and north plains forced the fluvial water network and the karst system to sink into the Neogene plateau.

The Quaternary climatic fluctuations led lake levels in the plains to rise and drop, forcing the second generation of obruks to appear, directed by edges of former valleys and uvalas (Fig. 17.7). These obruks sunk into the 1070–1080 m a.s.l. level (Figs. 17.8 and 17.9). Some of them intersect the local water table and are filled by a lake (Fig. 17.8a). Erol (1986) proposed an LGM age for the dissolution preceding their collapse, when deep lakes filled the Tuz and Konya plains, i.e. when the head of the aquifer was significantly higher than before the LGM. According to this interpretation, the collapse occurred after the lakes disappeared ca. 17 cal ka BP. Consequently, the formation of most obruks on the plateau has been controlled by both (i) climatic fluctuations and (ii) the continuous subsidence of the Konya and Tuz Gölü plains vs the uplift of the plateau. Canık and Çörekçioğlu (1986) and Bayarı et al. (2009) have shown that the regional magmatic activity at depth is the driving force in the evolution of hypogenic fluids causing the formation of obruks, through the influx of strong carbon dioxide-rich gas discharges. This underground magmatic activity produced the now-dormant volcanoes, cinder cones, maars, as well as hydrothermal springs scattered in the basin. Its activity produced CO2 discharges common in the plains of Konya (Karapınar), Tuz Gölü (SW of Aksaray) and Bor, which are connected to tectonic lineaments mirrored by the rectilinear distribution of obruks. In addition, the location of obruks on both sides of the Konya Plain (its SW flank and the northern plateau) suggests that the route of the CO2 flux into the atmosphere is constrained by the low permeability of Quaternary lake marls and the high-permeability zones formed by faults bordering the plain (Fig. 17.4).

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C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 17.9 Fall of the Çıralı Obruk Lake level between 1989 and 2014. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu, except for that of 2014 which is from internet

17.5

Archaeological Sites and Cultures

17.5.1 Is the Konya Plain One of the Source Areas of the Neolithic Spread ca. 9.5–9.0 cal ka BP? At the beginning of the Holocene, Epipalaeolithic cultures existed in the Konya Plain where a site dated 9100–7900 BC has been excavated at Pınarbaşı near Karaman (Baird 2012a). Later on, the Konya Plain hosted some of the earliest Neolithic populations of Turkey (Özdoğan et al. 2012), e.g. the Pre-Pottery Neolithic site of Boncuklu (8500–7500 BC: Baird et al. 2012b); Early to Middle Pottery Neolithic sites of Çatalhöyük (7400–5500 BC: Mellaart 1967; Hodder 2006) and Canhasan III (7500–6500 BC: French et al. 1972) (locations in

Fig. 17.3). Archaeological researches in the area are fundamental for understanding and reconstructing the history of plant and animal domestication (e.g. Asouti and Fairbairn 2002) and cultural development (technology, rituals, urbanization, etc.) in Central Anatolia (e.g. Özbaşaran 2011).

17.5.2 At the Heart of Several Empires During History All later cultures from Chalcolithic to the Middle Ages are present in the Konya Plain. Not only Hittite remains are numerous (especially around Ereğli), but the last 2000 years are particularly rich in remains from famous historical kingdoms and cultures such as the Roman Province of which Iconium (Konya) was the capital, Byzantine troglodyte

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villages, the Seldjuk, capital of Karaman (which still preserves some impressive Seldjuk buildings), Konya, the capital of the Soufis with Mevlâna’s mausoleum, remains (hans) of the Silk Road which used to go from Konya to Aksaray (north road) and from Konya to Ereğli and Bor (south road), famous Ottoman mosques (Konya, Karapınar, Karaman).

17.6

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1991 and 2000 reached 1 m/yr, with a maximum of 2 m/yr (Kuzucuoğlu and Gramond 2006). In parallel, seasonal differences in the groundwater levels have also increased (8 m between April and October) (Özdemir 2015). The lowering of the groundwater table parallels the occurrences and characteristics (locations, widths, depths) of the new obruks and fissures, an illustration of a direct relationship between the two.

Threats 17.6.3 Geomorphological Hazards

17.6.1 The Climate Change Recent climatic trends between 1975 and 2007 have been studied by Altın et al. (2012). In the whole Central Anatolian Region, the increase in mean annual temperatures is +0.4 °C (2.6%). Increases are higher in the south and southeastern parts of the region. In Konya, it reaches 1% and in Karaman 7%. Mean rainfall intensity (MRI) is a good indicator of vulnerability regarding desertification processes, because it affects the recharge of groundwater level in winter and spring, i.e. the sustainability of agricultural yields and, consequently, the needs for irrigation during summertime. MRI is decreasing everywhere in Central Anatolia since the late 1970s and the early 1980s, and the trend is stronger since 1990. Generally, it affects more strongly the southern and eastern parts of Central Anatolia. In Konya, MRI decreased by 14.7%, in Karaman by 5% and in Ereğli by 1.9%. In Konya, this decrease is recorded in all seasons, a result evidencing high risk for the economic, social and political situation of the agricultural future of the region. Differences in mean annual precipitation between 1975– 1990 and 1991–2007 periods confirm this worrying situation, as all stations of Central Anatolia recorded a decrease. In the Konya Plain, the decrease was -2.46% in Konya itself, –3.02% in Karaman, –1.95% in Karapınar, -1.88% in Çumra and -2.46% in Ereğli.

17.6.2 The Depletion of the Neogene Aquifer According to DSI (State Water Office), in the 1970s the head level of the Neogene aquifer was sloping from 1100 m at the flank of the Taurus Mountains to 905 m around Tuz Gölü. By 2008, the head level of the Neogene aquifer has declined about 25 m in the Konya Plain (DSI) (Fig. 17.7). When extending the period to 1970–2010, differences in depths are up to 64 m in certain places (Özdemir 2015) (Fig. 17.9). In DSI-controlled wells, the decrease rate at the Karapınar Plain border (DSI, stated by Doğan and Yılmaz 2011) accelerated in 1990 and 1996, finally reaching a total of 23.5 m in 2008 after a rapid 8 m decline between 2005 and 2008 (ie. 2 m/yr!). In the Hotamış area, the decline between

The recent increase of sudden occurrences of sinkhole collapses in the area has become one of the most challenging geological hazards in the area, as it is dangerous for engineering structures, settlements, agricultural areas and humans. Since the mid-1980s in the NW of Karapınar, the number and size of new collapse dolines have increased. They occur both along the faulted edges of the Sultaniye flats (Fig. 17.7b) and in the silty–sandy sediment of alluvial and lake origin over the Obruk Plateau. Between 1970 and 2012, approximately 20 large sinkholes (>10 m in diameter) formed in the Obruk Plateau, and between 2012 and 2014, twelve more sinkholes occurred (Fig. 17.8b–d). Sometimes, the collapse is preceded by the appearance of impressive cracks in the soil. Between March and June 2015, nine more sinkholes (some reaching 70 m depth) formed by collapse near the town of Karapınar (source: Turkish Daily news) (Fig. 17.7). These newly born obruks are caused by the recent water table decrease due to excess water pumping for irrigation (Fig. 17.9). Further foreseen decline in the water table increases the probability of new sinkholes in the area of Karapınar and Obruk plateaus.

17.6.4 Loss of Wetlands and Soils Another hazard, which does not seem to be an official priority, is the complete loss of all natural wetlands in the plain, with their wildlife and capacities to generate biodiversity and primary production (Gramond 2002). The conservation of the remaining ones cannot be efficient for the reason that no water is discharged anymore into them and that the underground water does not reach the plain floor anymore (Figs. 17.2, 17.9 and 17.10). This concerns particularly the Akgöl wetlands near Ereğli, which are still a natural protected area for birds and waterfowl, today absent (Fig. 17.10). The Meke Tuzlası (dry since the 2010s) and the Kızören Obruk are both Ramsar sites, but the quality of the sites is threatened by the lake level drop. Finally, an increasing surface of agricultural land in the Çumra area is being sterilized by salt concentration in the upper soil layers,

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C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 17.10 Contraction and desiccation of the Akgöl wetlands between 1945 and 2013. Modified from Gramond (2002) and completed by the author in 2015 with image extraction from Google Earth imagery dated 2013

because of agricultural practices not adapted to soil characteristics and evaporation pressure on irrigated land.

17.6.5 Environmental Degradation The closed nature of the basin (absence of surface outflow capable of renewing the water, a process favouring chemical concentrations in soil) has made the degradation of the environment extremely rapid.

17.6.5.1 Overuse of Groundwater for Irrigation The rapid depletion of the underground water is related to the development of irrigation in the plain. As much as 88% of water available in the Konya Closed Basin is used for agriculture, and of this amount 61% is provided by underground water pumping. This development is financed by State incentives for producing speculative crops (sugar beets, corn, sunflower, potatoes, alfalfa, etc.) which have very high water requirements in summer, when the deficit between rainfall (7.5–11.4 mm/month from June to September in Konya) and potential evapotranspiration (ca. 1200 mm/yr) is the highest (mean T = 20–23 °C; mean max T = 26–30 °C in Konya). Apart for wheat and pulses fields, agriculture in the Konya Plain during these warm and dry 4 months relies only on dammed reservoirs and pumping of underground water reserves. According to Göçmez et al. (2008), the aquifer in the Konya Closed Basin can provide only 77% of the water used for irrigation. The difference is the depletion causing the underground water level drop. There are three main reasons of this excessive use of water resource for irrigation (Topak and Acar 2010). The first one is related to the recent and spectacular increase of irrigation needs due to the addition of: (i) high water-demanding speculative (industrial) crops to the previous, more traditional ones; (ii) increase in irrigated surfaces; (iii) land surface devoted to high water-demanding crops has increased twofold

after the State incentive started to support industrial crop production. The second reason is linked to the technical aspects of irrigation: (i) the amount of sprinklers used (46,600) is insufficient; (ii) the number of deep wells is too high (ca. 90,000 authorized wells); there are also at least 50,000 unauthorized wells which are never taken into account in official development plans and production accounts; (iii) the lackof farmers’ taining induces evaporation losses that are still high, even when using sprinkler systems. Finally, the society does not seem much concerned about either the risks related to water resources depletion (whether due to climate or to resource overuse) or to water management priorities that would generate or reduce these risks.

17.6.5.2 The Implementation of Two Great Water Management Plans for Developing Irrigation The Capture of the Beyşehir Lake (1903–1908) Before the area between Lake Suğla polje and the Konya Plain was uplifted, the Suğla polje used to have an outflow (karstic? surficial? both?) heading towards Çumra/Hotamış. This outflow used to flow at the bottom of the gorges also used by the Çarşamba River which flows from the Taurus (Fig. 17.1b). North of Suğla Plain, gorges also continue from Lake Suğla to Lake Beyşehir. The whole set of gorges from Beyşehir to Konya plains are antecedent to the uplift, as shown by its meanders incising the erosional surface truncating the substratum between Konya and Suğla. At some time, the Suğla outlet stopped to carry water, probably because of lowering of karstic circulation in the Suğla Lake plain and, regionally, in the limestone bedrock. The Çarşamba River remained the sole headwater of the river running toward the Konya plain. Today the threshold of a few metres in alluvial material forms the natural “water divide” between the Konya Plain and the Suğla polje.

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Geomorphological Landscapes in the Konya Plain and Surroundings

Until a few years ago, in summertime and/or dry years, the Lake Suğla used to escape into swallow holes (Fig. 17.1b). During humid years, the lake water would flow back again into the Çarşamba River and to the Konya Plain where floodwaters generated drainage problems. Out-passing this small threshold was the initial step of the first modern irrigation project in Turkey (1903–1908). Open earth conveyance canals of a 217-km total length were associated with several regulators. The continuity of the flow was established by-passing Lake Suğla, from Beyşehir to Çumra in the Konya Plain where three main irrigation canals ensured the agricultural development of the area. The “Blue Project” (2010–2016) The Konya Plain Project (KOP) or “Blue Project” aims at transferring water from the Mediterranean Göksu River to the endoreic Konya Plain. It consists of: (1) the derivation of the Göksu River to (2) three dams (Bozkır, Afşar, Bağbaşı); (3) a 17-km-long “Blue Tunnel” directing the dammed water to a “Blue Regulator” in the Çarşamba basin; (4) a 127-km artificial channel discharging the water into (5) a huge open-air storage equipment to be yet built at the location of the now-dried Hotamış Lake. The latter will be Turkey’s biggest artificial lake. After launching the “Blue Project” in 2010, DSI announced that the completion of the project was expected at the end of 2015. According to DSI, the project will provide the Konya Plain with 414 mm3/yr of water “in order to maintain agriculture and save wildlife”, adding “with this project, the climate of Konya will be changed, the product range will be increased and 700 million cubic meters of water will feed Konya Plain instead of emptying into Mediterranean Sea” (Konya Anadolu Agency, 21 May 2015). In 2018, the Project is not yet implemented. The KOP is the second largest irrigation scheme in Turkey after the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP), sought to enable 235.000 ha of agricultural land to be irrigated for increasing production. The project does not say whether the present depletion of the aquifer will continue with the present irrigation networks and practices, and in the present drying of the climate. The Göksu River flows to the Mediterranean where it forms a delta used for intensive agricultural (greenhouses) production and touristic activities. The water flow redirection to the closed Central Anatolia will generate geomorphological, ecologic (land/marine biodiversity), human and economic problems in the Silifke area, e.g. interruption of water and sediment contribution to the delta. Acknowledgements Many results presented here have been obtained in the frame of a programme led by the author and M. Karabıyıkoğlu between 1993 and 1997, and financed mainly by the CNRS (France) and the MTA (Turkey). This programme was also supported by the

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CNES (France), the LSCE (France), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (France), as well as the TÜBITAK (Turkey), Services of Village Affairs, (Turkey), and the DSI (Turkey). The collaboration was essential with the ORSTOM (today IRD, France), and with many villages and “Yayla” families in the whole area of the Konya Plain and surrounding highlands. Thanks are also addressed to Naim Aydınbelge and his family in Karapınar, and to Prof. Dr. E. Bıçakçı for logistic support.

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368 symposium on Karst water resources Ankara-Antalya July 1985. IAHS Publications, no 161, pp 207–213 Fontugne M, Kuzucuoğlu C, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Hatté C, Pastre J-F (1999) From Pleniglacial to Holocene. A 14C chronostratigraphy of environmental changes in the Konya Plain, Turkey. Quat Sci Rev 18, 4/5:573–592 French D, Hillman GD, Payne S, Payne RJ (1972) Excavations at can Hasan III, 1969–1970. In: Higgs ES (ed) Papers in economic prehistory. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 181–190 Gramond D (2002) Dynamique de l’occupation du sol et variation des usages de l’eau en Anatolie centrale (Turquie) au cours du XXe siècle: recherches méthodologiques basées sur l’analyse diachronique de données satellitaires et statistiques (Land use dynamics and water usages variations in central Anatolia (Turkey) through the 20th century: methodological researches based on diachronic analyses of satellite imagery and statistics). PhD, Univ. Paris 4, French Göçmez G, Dıvrak BB, Galena İ (2008) Determination of the groundwater level changes in the Konya closed basin. Summary Report, WWF, Istanbul, Turkish Hodder I (2006) The Leopard’s Tale: revealing the Mysteries of Catalhöyük. Thames and Hudson, London Inoue K, Saito M (1997) Climatic changes in the Konya Basin, Turkey, estimated from physicochemical, mineralogical and geochemical characteristics of its lacustrine sediments. J Rev 8:147–164 Karabıyıkoğlu M, Kuzucuoğlu C, Fontugne M, Kaiser B, Mouralis D (1999) Facies and Depositional sequences of the Late Pleistocene Göçü shoreline system, Konya basin, Central Anatolia: Implications for reconstructing lake level changes. Quat Sci Rev 18:593–609 Kasapoğlu E, Temel A, Yürür T, Aydar E, Lyberis N, Gourgaud A, Chorowicz J, Froger JL, Daniel C, Vidal P, Aksoy H, Gillot PY, Olanca K (1997) Orta Anadolu’da volkanizma tektonik ilişkileri (Toros Kenet Kuşağı Kuzeyi). Tübitak Project “YBAG-0078/DPT”, TÜBITAK, Ankara, 314 pp. Unpublished Kuzucuoğlu C (2007) Le dernier glaciaire et l’Holocène en Anatolie centrale: apports de la géomorphologie et de la sédimentologie (The Last Glacial and the Holocene in central Anatolia: geomorphological and sedimentological records). In: André MF, Etienne S, Lageat Y, Le Coeur C, Mercier D (eds) Du continent au bassin versant. Théories et pratiques en géographie physique (Hommage au Professeur Alain Godard), PU Blaise-Pascal, Clermont-Ferrand, French, pp 495–505 Kuzucuoğlu C (2012) Le rôle du climat dans les changements culturels, du Vè au 1er millénaire av. notre ère, en Méditerranée orientale. In: Berger J-F (ed) Des climats et des hommes, La Découverte, Paris, pp 239–256 Kuzucuoğlu C, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Fontugne M, Pastre J-F, Ercan T (1997) Environmental changes in Holocene Lacustrine Sequences from Karapınar in the Konya Plain (Turkey). In: Dalfes N, Kukla G, Weiss H (eds) Third millenium BC climate change and old world collapse, NATO ASI series 1, vol 49, pp 451–464 Kuzucuoğlu C, Parish R, Karabıyıkoğlu M (1998a) The dune systems of the Konya Plain (Turkey). Their relation to the environmental changes in central Anatolia during the late Pleistocene and Holocene. Geomorphology 23:257–271 Kuzucuoğlu Pastre, Black J-F, Ercan T, Fontugne M, Guillou H, Hatté C, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Orth P, Türkecan A (1998b) Identifi cation and dating of tephra layers from quaternary sedimentary sequences of Inner Anatolia, Turkey. JVGR 85:153–172

C. Kuzucuoğlu Kuzucuoğlu C, Bertaux J, Black S, Denèfle M, Fontugne M, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Kashima K, Limondin-Lozouet N, Mouralis D, Orth P (1999) Reconstruction of climatic changes during the Late Pleistocene, based on sediment records from the Konya Basin (Central Anatolia, Turkey). Geol J 34:175–198 Kuzucuoğlu C, Gramond D (2006) Sécheresse et crise de l’eau dans la plaine de Konya (plateaux intérieurs anatoliens, Turquie): indicateurs et contexte. In: Beck C, Luginbühl Y, Muxart T (eds) Temps et Espaces des crises de l’Environnement, Ed Quae, Coll Indisciplines, Paris, 83–98 Kuzucuoğlu C, Dörfler W, Kunesch S, Goupille F (2011) Mid-Holocene climate change in central Turkey: the Tecer lake record. The Holocene 21(1):173–188 Mellaart J (1967) Çatal Höyük: a Neolithic town in Anatolia. Thames and Hudson, London Melnick D, Yıldırım C, Hillemann C, Garcin Y, Çiner A, Pérez-Gussinyé M, Strecker MA (2017) Slip along the Sultanhanı Fault in Central Anatolia from deformed Pleistocene shorelines of palaeo-lake Konya and implications for seismic hazards in low-strain regions. Geophys J Int 209(3):1431–1454. https://doi. org/10.1093/gji/ggx074 Naruse T, Kitagawa H, Hisashi M (1997) Lake level changes and development of alluvial fans in lake Tuz and the Konya basin during the last 24000 years on the Anatolian plateau, Turkey. Jpn Rev 8:65–84 Olanca K (1994) Géochimie des laves quaternaires de Cappadoce (Turquie): Les appareils monogéniques. Unpublished PhD thesis, Blaise Pascal University, Clermont-Ferrand, France, 156 p Özbaşaran M (2011) The Neolithic on the Plateau. In: Steadman S, McMahon G (eds) The Oxford handbok of ancient Anatolia 10.000–323 BCE. Oxford University Press, pp 99–124 Özdemir A (2015) Investigation of sinkholes spatial distribution using the weights of evidence method and GIS in the vicinity of Karapinar (Konya, Turkey). Geomorphology 245:40–50 Özdoğan M, Başgelen N, Kuniholm P (2012). The Neolithic in Turkey, vol 3 (Central Anatolia). Archaeology and Art Publications, Istanbul Roberts N (1983) Age, paleoenvironments, and climatic significance of late Pleistocene Konya Lake, Turkey. Quat Res 19:154–171 Roberts N, Erol O, de Meester T, Uerpmann HP (1979) Radiocarbon chronology of Late Pleistocene Konya Lake, Turkey. Nature 281:662–664 Roberts N, Black S, Boyer P, Eastwood WJ, Griffiths HI, Lamb HF, Leng MJ, Paris R, Reed JM, Twigg D, Yiğitbaşoğlu H (1999) Chronology and stratigraphy of late quaternary sediments in the Konya Basin, Turkey: Results from the KOPAL Project. Quat Sci Rev 18:611–630 Roberts N, Eastwood W, Kuzucuoğlu C, Fiorentino G, Caracuta V (2011) Climatic, vegetation and cultural change in the eastern Mediterranean during the mid-Holocene environmental transition. The Holocene 21(1):147–162 Steiner et al (2013) IntCal13 and Marine13 radiocarbon age calibration curves 0-50000 years cal BP. Radiocarbon 55:4. https://doi.org/10. 2458/azu_js_rc.55.16947 Topak R, Acar B (2010) Konya Basin agriculture-environment relationships and sustainability. In: 2nd International Symposium on Sustainable Development, pp 204–213

18

Lake Van Ebru Akköprü and Aurélien Christol

Abstract

Lake Van is the largest soda lake in the world. It is a terminal lake, surrounded by mountains rising to 3500 m a.s.l. The Lake Van Basin is divided into three geological and morphological units: (1) the mostly metamorphic Bitlis Massif pertaining to the Bitlis suture zone to the south-west; (2) Mesozoic and Tertiary rocks (carbonates and volcanics) between the lake and the Turkish–Iranian border, and (3) volcanoes and volcanic products extending from the west to the north-east of the lake. The variety of the geomorphological landscapes around the lake is exceptionally high, with (i) some of the most impressive dormant volcanoes of Turkey; (ii) young (Late Pleistocene to recent) volcanic features such as a lake-filled caldera on top of the beheaded Nemrut Volcano, the solitary Süphan Volcano (the “Tushpa” God of the Urartians which dominates the lake by >1000 m), the fresh basaltic lava flows of the Tendürek Volcano, etc.; (iii) extensive lake terraces filling large valleys where they record impressive variations in lake level at least since the last 200 ka; (iv) travertine mounds associated with fault lines and river valleys; (v) karstic landscapes in the Bitlis Range and in the Tertiary limestones to the north-west, where they are covered by Nemrut ignimbrites and Süphan basalt and obsidian flows; (vi) glacial imprints on the summits of the Bitlis Range and of the Süphan; (vii) active landslides in marine sediments forming the slopes in the south-eastern basin; (viii) strong influences of tectonics on the relief, etc. Like in all Eastern Anatolia, high altitude pastures attract since millennia long-distance migrations of sheep herds E. Akköprü (&) Department of Geography, Van Yüzüncü Yıl University, Kampüs, 65040 Van, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] A. Christol Université de Lyon (Jean Moulin-Lyon3, Faculté des Lettres and Civilisations), 7 rue Chevreul, 69007 Lyon, France e-mail: [email protected]

seasonally switching between the southern plateaus in Syria and Iraq in winter, and Eastern Anatolia and the Caucasus in summer. Keywords





Geomorphology Eastern Anatolia Volcanoes Palaeogeography

18.1




Lake Van




Introduction

Lake Van is located in the Eastern Anatolian region of Turkey. Its altitude is 1648 m above the sea level, and it collects water from a very large basin (12520 km2). Its surface extends over an area of 3602 km2, while its maximum depth is 451 m (Fig. 18.1). There are four islands in Lake Van: Akdamar, Çarpanak, Adır and Kuş. These are not open to habitation. With its volume of 614 km3 water, Lake Van is both the fourth largest closed lake of the world and the largest soda lake (salinity 21.4%; pH 9.8) (Reimer et al. 2009; Kaden et al. 2010; Tomonaga et al. 2012). Its geochemical characteristics make no life possible in the lake waters, except near the mouth of tributaries or in high-discharged springs pouring into the lake. At the brackish mouth water of the rivers live a diverse flora and fauna (e.g. Dreissena). Elsewhere in the lake, an endemic fish (the pearl mullet: Chalcalburnus tarichi) has adapted to the soda water and high pH, with a life and reproduction similar to those of salmon. This fish is caught and farmed, having high local value. Various assumptions have been made about how and when the lake enclosure occurred (İzbırak 1951; Erinç 1953; Yılmaz et al. 1998). Today, agreement among scientists is that it was due to damming by an ignimbrite flow emitted by the Nemrut Volcano (Fig. 18.1). After this event, the lake level fluctuated considerably under the influence of (i) climatic changes and (ii) pyroclastic flows creating new

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_18

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Fig. 18.1 Location and watershed area of Lake Van (Eastern Anatolia) (Akköprü, 2015)

threshold(s) to the lake at various altitudes (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Mouralis et al. 2010; Çağatay et al. 2014). The lake has four main tributaries: the Engil, Karasu, Bendimahi and Zilan rivers. A smaller tributary, the Kotum– Küçüksu, drains a narrow area at the south-eastern end of the lake. These rivers are major contributors to the lake water budget. Eighty per cent of their contribution occurs in spring when snow melts and precipitation is the highest. According to Degens and Kurtmann (1978), the lake annual budget consists of (i) the input of 1.1.7 km3 per year of precipitation/yr, (ii) the input of 2.5 km3 per year of run-off and river discharges, and (iii) the annual withdrawal by evaporation at the lake surface, of 4.2 km3 per year. The lake level varies both seasonally and inter-annually. From winter to the end of spring, the lake level rises by ca. 50 cm, in two phases. The first phase in January and February is one of a gentle rise, responding to water input by run-off from the south-west (where annual precipitation reaches 900 mm/yr). This early spring increase underlines the significant role of the Bitlis highlands in the lake water budget. From March to June, a more pronounced lake-level rise corresponds to the addition of snow thaw and spring precipitation in the whole basin (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). Karstic

freshwater sources also exist in and around the lake, but their impact on the lake budget is considered as minor. Since the 1990s, Lake Van has become rapidly polluted like many other lakes in Turkey, with the high evaporation rate in summer highly concentrating the chemical content of the lake water at sensitive places (Huguet et al. 2012). This environmental problem arises especially in relation to intense population migration from rural to urban areas, increasing agricultural use of chemicals, lack of infrastructures in coastal cities, and multiplication of summer homes and villa-type residences. Water pollution is most evident today in the coastal vicinity of Tatvan, Van, Erciş, Adilcevaz and Gevaş. This evolution causes serious threats to the environmental quality in the basin.

18.2

Lake Van Basin: Presentation

18.2.1 Geological Context Structurally and morphologically, Lake Van Basin consists of three units: (i) the Bitlis Massif along the southern shores

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Fig. 18.2 a Structural and morphological units of Lake Van Basin (Akköprü, 2015). b Morphological map of Lake Van Basin (Akköprü, 2015)

of the lake, formed of metamorphic rocks, with an average elevation of 3000 m a.s.l.; (ii) the area between Lake Van and the Turkish–Iranian border to the east, with Mesozoic and Tertiary rocks at the surface; (iii) Quaternary volcanoes and their products (Fig. 18.2a). The basin corresponds to an accommodation area opened during regional uplift. North and south, it is limited by active faults resulting from movements of the Arabian and Eurasian plates since the Middle Miocene. The southern edge of the basin corresponds to the south-sloping thrust fault limiting the Bitlis–Zagros belt (Şengör et al. 2008). Within this tectonically complex structure, earthquakes are frequent. On 23 October 2011, an earthquake of 7.2 magnitude occurred between the cities of Van and Erciş, followed by another 5.6 magnitude one on 9 November 2011 in the vicinity of Van-Edremit. Along the northern shores of the lake, several stratovolcanoes are aligned (Chap. 30). From SSW to NNE, these are: Mts. Nemrut (2935 m), Süphan (4434 m), Meydan (3290 m), Etrüsk (3100 m) and Tendürek (3538 m). In addition, Mt. Aladağ (3255 m) is a relatively old volcano located in the north of the basin, between Mts. Meydan and Tendürek (Fig. 18.2b).

18.2.2 Climate Monthly average temperatures are below 0 °C between December and February and approximately 20 °C during summer months. Winter is long, with cold temperatures lasting from October to late April. With 120 clear, 200 partially cloudy and 45 overcast days (average 1954– 2013), the region is one of Turkey’s sunniest provinces. Annual precipitation exhibits very high contrasts between the SW and NE parts of the Basin (e.g. Tatvan: 907 mm/yr; Van: 396 mm/yr; Erçis: 487 mm/yr). The high humidity in the SW is due to mobile low-pressure systems bringing humid air masses along the Taurus Range and entering the head valleys of the Tigris Basin towards Lake Van. When approaching the lake (lake level: 1648 m), these humid air masses meet the high Bitlis Range (>3000 m a.s.l.) and abundant rainfall/snowfall occurs over the range, i.e. in the SW part of the lake basin (Tatvan). Towards NE, humidity-depleted air masses generate increasingly drier climatic conditions (Doğu et al. 2008). Other climatic contrasts occur such as (i) continuous and intense snowfall in the mountains, and (ii) more humid

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conditions along the lakeshores where a high variety of temperate plants grows.

18.2.3 Vegetation and Fauna Precipitation variability impacts vegetation. While oro-Mediterranean-type oaks and birches grow on the upper slopes of the rainier mountains (SW and S of the lake), pines, oaks and junipers accompany large steppe formations in the N and NE (Zohary 1973). Lake Van Basin has many endemic and relict plant species as well. For example, inside the caldera of Mt. Nemrut, a genuine vegetation association consists of endemic birch, poplar, wild fruit trees and Astragalus, while oak prevails on the southern slopes. Near Van city, Mt. Çadır is the habitat for 48 rare plant species including ten rare Astragalus species (Koyuncu 2005). Numerous lakes in the basin, as well as the floodplains of the major tributaries of Lake Van, are located on bird migration routes. They are thus among the major wetlands of Turkey. Owing to the adverse climate conditions of recent years, most wetlands in the basin are shrinking, and some already dried completely.

E. Akköprü and A. Christol

Yedi Church-Varak Monastery (Mt. Erek skirts—eleventh century), Lim Monastery (on Adır Island—fourteenth century), Çarpanak-St Jean Monastery (on Çarpanak Island— eighteenth century), and Altınsaç-Saint Thomas Monastery (on Deve Boynu peninsula—eleventh century). During the Turk ruling, many architectural features were founded by the Seldjuks (twelfth to fourteenth centuries AD) who constructed mosques, cemeteries and domes in the vicinities of Erciş, Gevaş, Ahlat. Invaded by the Russians during World War I, the region was reclaimed by the newly born Turkish Republic in 1923.

18.3

The Geomorphology of the Basin

The average altitude of Lake Van Basin is 2200–2500 m a.s. l. The topography rises quickly from the lakeshores (1647 m) towards mountain ranges culminating above 3000 m a.s.l. River valleys occupying tectonically controlled depressions mark the limits between the three units forming the Basin (Fig. 18.2a).

18.3.1 The South of the Basin and Bitlis Massif 18.2.4 History The presence of humans in the region is attested by obsidian mining since the Early Palaeolithic. Archaeological excavations of sites dating back to 5000 BC, as well as the results of archaeological surveys, indicate that the highest density of settlements occurred during the Early Bronze Age (Hurri cultures) and the Middle Iron Age (Urartian Kingdom). During the Early Iron Age ca. 900 BC, Sardur I combined several local States to found the Urartian State, naming its capital “Tuşba” (today’s Van city) (Erzen 1992). From 800 until 600 BC, the Urartian Kingdom was one of the greatest States of the Near East. This civilization left an original legacy in architecture, metal crafts, irrigation engineering and management, waterworks construction. Their castles were built on top of cliffs where their ruins are still visible (Van Castle, Toprakkale, Çavuştepe, Ayanış, Yukarı and Aşağı Anzaf). Of Urartian canals and dams, many are still in use today, e.g. the Şamran Canal (Menua) and the Keşiş Dam (Rusa I). After the Medes and the Persians defeated Urartian and dominated the region, Alexander the Great invaded Van region in 331 BC. Afterwards, the region was ruled by the Romans and the Parthians, followed by the Sassanid Empire and Byzantine Empire (Erdoğan 2017). In the meantime and for a long time, the region hosted an important Armenian population who constructed many churches and monasteries. The most notable ones are Akdamar-Surp Church (on Akdamar Island—tenth century),

South of Lake Van Basin, steep mountains form the Bitlis Massif (İhtiyar Şahap Mts. and Mt. Çadır), with an average height of 2500–3000 m. This massif belongs to the south-eastern Taurus Range. The area is rich in fluvial, karstic, coastal, volcanic and glacial geomorphological landscapes. South of the lake, the water divide separating Lake Van from the Tigris headwaters crosses dry valleys and gets very close to the lakeshores (often less than 1 km), especially near the Göllü Polje (Fig. 18.2b), where it is formed by a 70 m high cliff. All along the SW coast, such cliffs are interrupted at places by small coastal indents with lagoons and wetlands. On this coast, there are two peninsulas, Deve Boynu and Reşadiye (the latter being often wrongly interpreted as a tombolo), alternate with shallow bays (Fig. 18.3). Both peninsulas are remnants of an old hilly topography partly covered by old lake deposits at their base. Finally, a basaltic tuff cone (İncekaya: 2033 m) presents a crater partly invaded by Lake Van (Fig. 18.4). Above the lake inside the crater, old lake sediments with Dreissena shells outcrop at 50 m above the mean lake level. Large amounts of basaltic fallout deposits and flows covering the flanks of the volcano are overlain by thin pumice fallouts emitted by the Nemrut Volcano (Mouralis et al. 2010). Close to Incekaya, two basaltic scoria cones and lava flows descending lakewards and dated 70 ka K/Ar (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010) are associated with hidden maar structures (Akköprü 2011).

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Fig. 18.3 Deve Boynu Peninsula (photograph by E. Akköprü, 2007)

In the Bitlis Massif, dissolution and re-precipitation processes in limestone series have generated a high variety of karstic landscapes: poljes, dolines, caves, travertine deposits, karstic springs, most of which also related to fault lines. Near Reşadiye, sediments filling the Göllü Polje (Fig. 18.5) record the inundation of the polje by the lake during the Last Glacial Maximum (Akköprü 2011). This inundation may have given to the lake a surface access to the Tigris headwaters (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). Up in the mountains, an impressive polje south-west of Mt. Çadır (Uzuntekne plain: 2240 m) drains an underground karstic watershed, which outflows both towards Lake Van and the River Tigris. At the summit of İhtiyar Şahap Mountains, Pleistocene and Holocene moraines and rock glaciers occur in glacial valleys and cirques. At the western extremity of the lake, the Bitlis metamorphics are covered by a high variety of volcanics emitted by Mt. Nemrut. Mainly composed of ignimbrite flows and pumice fallouts, these pyroclastic rocks played an important role in the geomorphological evolution of Lake Van as they are responsible for its enclosure(s) (Mouralis et al. 2010).

18.3.2 The Eastern Part of the Basin The hilly landscapes in the eastern part of the basin are formed by ophiolite, marine to continental limestone and basalt. This Mesozoic to Tertiary substratum has been strongly deformed and faulted (Erinç 1953; Şengör et al. 2008), with uplift exceeding 3000 m (e.g. Mt. Erek, 3250 m; Mt. Kazan, 2890 m). Between the highest peaks, a few plains occur at altitudes above 2000 m (Hoşap, Özalp, etc.) (Fig. 18.2b). On the regional scale, the altitude of the highest landforms (summits and uppermost erosional features) rises

from Lake Van eastwards. This slope suggests a constant and slow uplift deforming the eastern watershed of the Lake. Consequently, all rivers in this area flow parallel to each other towards the west (İzbırak 1951).

18.3.3 Volcanic Landscapes in the Western and Northern Parts of the Basin West and north of Lake Van, Quaternary volcanic activity generated a contrasted relief. Between Mt. Nemrut and its eastern neighbour, the Süphan Volcano, Miocene limestone outcrops from below the accumulation of pyroclastic rocks. Around Adilcevaz (Fig. 18.1), these limestones support various karstic landscapes (İzbırak 1951; Erinç 1953), including caves occupied during the Neolithic (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). Approximately 30 ka ago, a 6-km-wide caldera collapsed on top of Mt. Nemrut (Sumita and Schmincke 2013a, b) (Fig. 18.6). The lake in the caldera is now reduced because of post-caldera magmatic emissions of various chemical compositions (Schmincke and Sumita 2014). Today, hot water springs and gas outlets still occur in the caldera (Aydar et al. 2003). Reported by eyewitnesses in AD 1441 and AD 1597, two Middle Age eruptions produced basaltic cones and flows on the northern flank of the volcano (Ulusoy 2008). East of Mt. Nemrut, the Süphan Volcano (4058 m) emitted ca. 33–30 ka ago high amounts of volcanic products (avalanches, fallouts, etc.) which partly filled the Patnos plain, covered the topography around the city of Van and blanketed older volcanoes to the east (Kuzucuoğlu, et al. 2010; Mouralis et al. 2010). At the summit, a glacier is decaying quickly (Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015). At the southern

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Fig. 18.4 İncekaya Basaltic Tuff cone (photograph by E. Akköprü, 2007)

foot of the volcano, a 70-m-deep rhyolitic maar crater is occupied by Lake Aygır (Fig. 18.7). On the western flanks, obsidian occurs as a thick flow and as domes in the upper reaches. East of Mt. Süphan, a corridor joining Lake Van to the Patnos plain is covered by thick pumice fallouts. Mt. Süphan may have emitted some of these, but the main volume is related to the activity of domes (and caldera) forming the Meydan volcanic massif (3290 m), located east. This massif is also remarkable for its obsidian outcrops mined during Prehistory (Marro and Özfırat 2004). Further to the east, Mt. Etrüsk also comprises a large caldera at its top (Fig. 18.2b). At the eastern end of the Lake Van volcanic alignment, Mt. Tendürek (3538 m) is a basaltic shield volcano, which dominates the round-shaped Çaldıran Plain (Fig. 18.2b). Fresh lavas from the Tendürek have flown towards Çaldıran, as well as towards the Iranian border nearby.

18.3.4 Lakes and Rivers Lake Erçek (1803 m, i.e. +156 m above Lake Van level) is the second largest lake in the basin. Located 30 km east of Lake Van, it covers an area of 106 km2 (Fig. 18.1). Its maximum depth is only 18.45 m. It is a soda lake similar to Lake Van (Duman 2012). Its main feeding river flows from the east, within an E-W fault-controlled, rectilinear valley. Prolonging this tributary valley on the western side of the lake, a +50 m hanged dry valley joins the Karasu valley, one of the main tributaries to Lake Van. This landscape is the geomorphologic heritage of a time when today’s Lake Erçek Basin was part of Lake Van drainage area (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). The third largest lake in the basin is Lake Nazik (+170 m above Lake Van level). It is a freshwater, partly karstic lake located 25 km to the north of Lake Van, to which it is

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Fig. 18.5 Göllü polje (photograph by E. Akköprü, 2007)

connected by an outflow. At the SE foot of Mt. Süphan, the shallow Lake Arin is partly fed by underground water from Lake Van. It occupies the lowest part of a tephra-covered depression. There are several other lakes in the basin, among which lakes Keşiş, Sıhke and Meydan are still dammed by Urartian walls. Four main rivers flow into Lake Van, mainly in its eastern part: the Güzelsu (Engil), Karasu, Muradiye (Bendimahi) and Zilan. Below today’s lake level, they are prolonged by large sub-lacustrine deltas, which merge in the middle of the lake, just above the deep Tatvan sub-basin (Degens and Kurtmann 1978). These deltas are accompanied by submerged terraces, a system evoking a former low stand of the lake level (Çağatay et al. 2014). Besides, the geomorphological characteristics of the lake coasts record a transgression, which must be younger than the submerged landforms.

In the south-western part of Lake Van Basin, the small Kotum–Küçüksu stream drains a narrow watershed oriented E-W, before turning sharply towards north at Küçüksu village (Fig. 18.2). Geomorphological studies in this valley have identified several series of volcanic and volcano-sedimentary deposits related to Mts. Nemrut and Incekaya. These pyroclastic series are interstratified or morphologically connected with several high-level stages of Lake Van (Mouralis et al. 2010; Akköprü 2011; Sumita and Schmincke 2013a, b). For example, the upper reach of the Küçüksu Stream used to be part of the Tigris headwaters through the upper reach of the Güzelsu Valley (which is today filled by an ignimbrite flow emitted by Mt. Nemrut). The upstream part of the Küçüksu Valley was captured by Kotum Valley after the ignimbrite flow invaded the Güzelsu Valley, ultimately forming today’s threshold of the lake (Mouralis et al. 2010; Akköprü 2011).

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Fig. 18.6 Nemrut Volcano caldera lake (photograph by E. Akköprü, 2007)

Fig. 18.7 Aygır Gölü at the southern foot of the Süphan Volcano. The 70-m-deep lake fills the crater of a maar, the ring surges of which outcrop on the sides of the road entering the crater (photograph by E. Akköprü, 2007)

18

Lake Van

18.4

Palaeogeography and Lake-Level Reconstruction

18.4.1 Present Landscapes as Evidence of Past Geomorphological Changes 18.4.1.1 Terraces Around the Lake Many landforms around the lake are the legacy of ancient geomorphological dynamics, suggesting that geographical settings in the past were different from the contemporary one (Schweizer 1975; Degens and Kurtman 1978; Kempe et al. 2002; Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Christol 2011). Around Lake Van, sub-horizontal surfaces capping or truncating sedimentary packages testify to past lake extensions wider than today. These landforms are mainly located in the lower parts of the main tributary valleys to the lake, where they look like classic fluvial terraces. Their surface is more or less tilted. Connections are abrupt (cliff lines, scarps), whether between one another, with floodplains (Fig. 18.8), or with beaches (Fig. 18.9). Sections along roads, streams and lake coasts deliver detailed insights into complex sets of lake and river deposits. At some places, the surface of the lowest terraces truncates both old lake deposits and the Tertiary bedrock. They are then typical erosion surfaces (Fig. 18.9).

377

18.4.1.2 Morphogenesis of the Terraces Most of Lake Van terraces are polygenic since their surfaces truncate deposits of different ages and facies record several stages of successive erosion processes (Christol 2011). • The initial process was accumulation of lacustrine sediments in a lake transgression context. Sometimes, intermediate alluvial aggradation phases interrupted the process, producing a stratigraphy with alternations of river and lake sediments. • The second stage ends in the shaping of the terrace surface itself. These shapes record changes that occurred in the lake dynamics during and after the end of the formation of the terrace. These are: – Surfaces with a gentle slope, corresponding to an ancient lake bottom, well preserved because the rapidity of river incision restricted valley widening. Examples of such surfaces can be seen in the lower parts of the Karasu and Engil valleys, where they correspond to varved lake bottom sediments (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Christol 2011). – Steeper surface slopes signal “regradation” surfaces, formed during gradual retreat of the lake (slow lake-level drop). In some of these terraces, shore-bar

Fig. 18.8 Lake terraces incised by the lower course of the Karasu River upstream its outflowing to the Lake Van (photograph by A. Christol, 2007)

Fig. 18.9 Erosion terraces in a shoreline context (NE coast). The lower surface (with vegetation) corresponds to the later lake stand (photograph by A. Christol, 2007)

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deposits mark lake-level stabilization periods during the regression phase (e.g. Mollakasım site: Christol 2011). This second type of terrace surfaces occurs above all kinds of sediment facies such as bottom sets and prograding deltaic sets deposited after the lake level stabilized temporarily (e.g. main terrace of the Bendimahi River). The highest terraces occur mainly in the remote upstream parts of the formerly inundated valleys. Topped by slope sediments, they often correspond to the oldest sediments of the lake (e.g. the 14 C dated uppermost sediments at Yumrutepe site). • The third stage generated the scarp limiting the terraces. Different processes were involved in its formation (Christol 2011): – The descending lake incised the abandoned lake sediments, forming a cliff (the scarp) regressing inland during a later stable lake-level phase (e.g. the Bendimahi Valley); – A rapid lake retreat forced the hydrographic network to adapt continuously to the descending base level. This process is recorded in the longitudinal profiles of the rivers. • The last stage corresponds to the recent lake sediments, which fill the river valleys. This fill forms the flat floors of the downstream sections of the Karasu, Engil and Bendimahi valleys. It fossilizes the valley floors that were connected to a lake level lower than today. Invasion of lower valleys by the Holocene lake caused both the fossilization of older valley fills and the accumulation of sediments up in the valleys where they form the lowest terrace.

18.4.1.3 Terrace Systems and Lake-Level Reconstruction On the valley scale, and all the more so on the Lake Basin scale, the Lake Van terrace system combines different “single terrace” models. In addition to climate and other triggering factors, neotectonics interferes in the incision modes, as in asymmetric terrace systems well visible on some cross-valley profiles (e.g. Engil Valley). Field observation, facies and stratigraphy records, coupled with differential GPS measurements and preliminary dating, point to different types of terrace and terrace level along the longitudinal valley profiles. The number of terraces (whatever is their extension or scarp height) varies from two (Bendimahi) to five or six (Karasu and Engil). The material forming these terraces records three main lake transgressions dated between 30 and 11 ka ago (i.e. during the MIS 3, MIS 2 and Younger Dryas) (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Christol 2011; Çağatay et al. 2014) (Fig. 18.11). Transgressions older than

the LGM have been evidenced in very high scarps (Karasu) and in lake sediments interfingered with alluvial deposits in the Zilan Valley some 10–20 km inland. Figure 18.10 proposes two theoretical models for the formation of the terraced landscape around Lake Van. These models are based on lake-level changes recorded by the geometry of the deposits, with the addition of stratigraphy studies of these very deposits. According to these data, terrace-shaping processes differ along the longitudinal profiles of the rivers incising former long-penetrating inland bays (Fig. 18.10a, b). In valleys, which have been inundated by a high-magnitude lake transgression followed by a large-scale regression, some stepped terrace systems may record several successive lowering stands interrupting the regression (Fig. 18.10a: T1 and T2). On the contrary, in the Engil and Karasu valleys, Late Glacial transgression deposits are embedded in (=incise) LGM transgression series (cut-and-fill stratigraphy) (Fig. 18.10b: T1b and T2). Here, the terracing was caused in the upstream part of the valley by wave action (Fig. 18.10b: T1a), whilst in the lower part, the stepping was caused by river incision into the lacustrine sedimentary series (Fig. 18.10b: T1b and T2) as well as, at places, into the Tertiary bedrock (mouth of the Karasu). This latter observation points to the impact of local tectonic uplift (note that in 2011, the Van-Erciş earthquake occurred in this area).

18.4.2 Palaeoclimatic and Palaeogeographic Implications of the Late Quaternary Lake-Level Fluctuations 18.4.2.1 First Models and Palaeoclimatic Evidences Terraces have been first studied by Schweizer (1975) who interpreted them in terms of lake variations during successive glacial periods, with +80 m, +55 m, +30 m and +12 m terraces associated to Riss, Würm I, Würm II and Late Glacial, respectively. This first model was lacking absolute chronology. On the basis of a 24 ka BP (29–28 ka cal. BP) radiocarbon dating of a lake deposit at 1670 m (i.e. +28 m: Valeton 1978), Degens and Kurtman (1978) suggested an LGM age for the highest lake level recorded in the +80 m terrace. According to these authors, a continuous descent occurred during the Late Glacial, with interruptions explaining the terrace staircase. According to these authors, an aridity crisis during the Younger Dryas caused a drastic drop in the lake level. Later during the Holocene, the lake level would have reached back today’s altitude, with a higher transgression during the post-Atlantic period explaining the river valley infill. Kempe et al. (2002) dated a lake transgression for 20.5–21 ka cal BP in the top layers of a +36 m terrace in the

18

Lake Van

379

Fig. 18.10 Typology of the terraces in the landscapes around Lake Van (Christol 2011)

Engil Valley. These ages supported the initial model (Schweizer 1975), which interpreted each terrace as formed during distinct glacial maxima, the +40 to 30 m high terrace recording the LGM. Pollen from 1978 cores (Bottema 1995) and 1994 cores (Wick et al. 2003) delivered vegetation records, while Lemcke and Sturm (1997) provided geochemical records of climate evolution over the last 15 ka. According to these records, Lake Van water budget responds to climate conditions, and Lake Van bottom sediments are good archives of these climate conditions. New long cores (ICDP Project) retrieved in 2006 delivered a high quantity of data, including a pollen diagram that reaches the LGM (Litt et al. 2009) and an arboreal pollen/non-arboreal pollen ratio curves for the last 500 ka (Litt et al. 2014).

18.4.2.2 Recent Curves of the Late Quaternary Lake-Level Fluctuation and Palaeogeographic Implications Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2010), Christol (2011) and Christol et al. (2013) proposed lake-level curves based on geomorphological records coupled with facies analyses and preliminary

OSL dating of emerged terraces. Çağatay et al. (2014) calculated lake-level variations on the basis of sediments facies from the ICDP core. Figure 18.11 combines these recent results. The 14C and preliminary OSL chronologies of the lake-level variations reconstructed from facies and stratigraphy analyses in the terraces suggest that the highest lake levels (i.e. positive lake budget) responded to wet climate conditions together with phases favouring snow and ice melt phases during (i) the early and late Last Glacial period (MIS 3 or 4) and (ii) both lower and upper phases of the LGM, as well as the Late Glacial warming (MIS 2) (Christol et al. 2013). Two transgressions dated as late Last Glacial and Early MIS5 or MIS6 reached levels at least 100 m above today’s lake level, and two transgressions dated ca. 40– 37 ka (MIS 3) and 24–17 ka (LGM) reached levels 50 m above that of today (OSL dates: M. Lamothe, in Christol et al. 2013). Some lake remains are even higher (1735– 1750 m) than today’s threshold of the lake (1731 m), a result that tectonic uplift can explain (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). Today, a lake level positioned at 1731 m would correspond to a ca. 950 km3 lake water volume, i.e. a volume higher by 350 km3 when compared to today’s volume

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Fig. 18.11 Compilation of lake-level curves reconstructed on the basis of analysis of underwater sediments (Çağatay et al. 2014) and of emerged sediments and terraces (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Christol 2011)

(607 km3). Such a humidity increase in the basin can be explained by precipitation increase, and/or an evaporation decrease, and/or the capture of river(s) or of underground water, and/or melting of glaciers. Altitudes of lake sediments >1730 m (higher than today’s threshold) point most probably to a tectonic uplift of the lake series. If not, lake levels higher than today’s threshold (also signifying a lake water volume twice that of today) would record (i) a basin morphology different from today’s, with a higher threshold and another water divide (later destroyed by volcanic eruptions), (ii) a drainage area larger than today’s (e.g. including today’s Lake Erçek: Fig. 18.2b). Such a scenario may have happened at the beginning of MIS 5 (Last Interglacial), when glaciers melt at the end of MIS 6, a scenario that happened also during MIS 2 (Fig. 18.11) (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Christol et al. 2013).

18.5

Conclusion

Lake Van is the terminal lake of a closed basin corresponding to the eastern part of a large tectonic depression extending from Erciş/Van to Muş areas (Fig. 18.1). The separation between both parts (Lake Van in the east and the Muş plain in the west) was caused by the development of the Nemrut Volcano and magmatic extrusions that occurred during the last 500 ka. Several high-magnitude lake-level changes occurred during the Quaternary since 500 ka, in relation to climatic conditions and impacts of volcanotectonic and tectonic activities. As a result, many high levels are recorded in terraces around the lake. Morphosedimentary evidence in the tributary valleys of Lake Van allows for the reconstruction of lake-level changes

since the Last Glacial period at least. Their study, together with that of eruption deposits preserved in the terraces, valleys and slopes around the lake, points to modifications in the catchment area, which have been caused by volcanic activity and tectonics. Besides, long cores retrieved from the north-western part of Lake Van have shown that underwater sediments provide a good record of the climate since the Middle Pleistocene (Litt and the PaleoVan team 2009; Litt et al. 2014). Lake Van Basin provides a suitable area for the development of urbanism, especially in the coastal areas where warming effect is noticeable. The north-eastern shores along the Nemrut and Süphan volcanoes offer low areas (protected bays, expanding deltas) where three cities are located: Ahlat, Adilcevaz and Erciş. In the south of the lake basin, Tatvan and Van are old cities founded by the Urartian Kingdom (first mill. BC). With the Gevaş city and several other Bronze Age and Iron Age sites on the southern shores, a settlement network corresponds to trade routes (i) along the lakeshores in the E-W direction, (ii) through southern passes towards the Tigris headwaters and Upper Mesopotamia, (iii) towards the Caucasus to the east and north-east through the Tendürek and Ağrı (Ararat) passes, as well as through the Erçek Lake Basin and the Zagros. Today, a railway follows one of these routes to Tabriz in Iran, with a ferryboat travel on Lake Van from Tatvan to Van. Due to different causes, population in cities grows rapidly. In parallel, leisure activities have developed on a great scale on the lake, while irrigation has been heavily developed. These recent changes exacerbate resource management problems related to land use and urban waste utilization, water protection and sewage treatment. As a result, serious health and environmental problems are now rising from the increasing pollution of the lake waters and shores.

18

Lake Van

Acknowledgements The authors thank the “ANOVAN” Project (2006–2009), TUBITAK (ÇAYDAG 105Y125; SOBAG 105Y127), CNRS (ECLIPSE II and PICS), Bosphorus programme of French MAE and TUBITAK, University of Van, CNRS-LGP UMR 8591 and LSCE UMR. Ile-de-France Region, the Universities of Paris 1 and Paris-Diderot have contributed to the financing of the PhD Thesis of both authors.

References Akköprü E (2011) Etudes géomorphologiques dans la partie sud-ouest du lac de Van (Tatvan- Göllü). PhD thesis (Unpublished), Paris 1 Panthéon- Sorbonne University, 187 p (in French and Turkish) Aydar E, Gourgaud A, Ulusoy I, Digonnet F, Labazuy P, Şen E, Bayhan H, Kurttaş T, Tolluoğlu AÜ (2003) Morphological analysis of active Mount Nemrut stratovolcano, eastern Turkey: evidences and possible impact areas of future eruption. J Volcanol Geotherm Res 123:301–312 Bottema S (1995) Holocene vegetation of the Van area: palynological and chronological evidence from Söğütlü. Veg Hist Archeobotany 4:187–193 Çağatay MN, Öğretmen N, Damcı E, Stockhecke M, Sancar Ü, Eriş KK, Özeren S (2014) Lake level and climate records of the last 90 ka from the Northern Basin of Lake Van, Eastern Turkey. Quat Sci Rev 104:97–116 Christol A (2011) Les variations de niveau du lac de Van (Turquie): Indicateurs morphosédimentaires, implications paléoclimatiques et paléohydrologiques. PhD thesis (Unpublished), Paris-Diderot Univ., 350 p (in French) Christol A, Kuzucuoğlu C, Fort M, Lamothe M (2013) Première chronologie OSL des formations fluvio-lacustres de la vallée de la Karasu: implications sur la paléogéographie du bassin du lac de Van (Turkey) (First OSL chronology of the fluvio-lacustrine deposits of the Karasu valley: implications on the palaeogeography of the Lake Van basin (Turkey)). Géomorphologie: relief, processus, environnement 4:393–406 Degens ET, Kurtmann F (1978) Geology of Lake Van. MTA Press, Ankara Doğu A-F, Kuzucuoğlu C, Mouralis D, Akköprü E, Christol A, Brunstein D, Fontugne M, Fort M, Guillou H, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Kıyak N, Lamothe M, Scaillet S, Reyss J, Zorer H (2008) Late Pleistocene and Holocene evolution of the Lake Van Basin, Eastern Anatolia: volcanism, environmental and climatic variations, and human societies. Tubitak Project No: 105Y125 report, Unpublished (in English), TUBITAK, Ankara Duman N (2012) The geomorphology of Lake Erçek Basin and the formation of the lake. J Intern Soc Res 5:246–260 Erdoğan S (2017) Doğu Anadolu Bölgesi Tek Odalı Kaya Mezarları: Kökeni, Gelişimi ve Mimari Tipolojisi. Yüzüncü Yıl Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Esnt. Arkeoloji Anabilim Dalı. Unpublished PhD Thesis, Van, pp 1–687 Erinç S (1953) Doğu Anadolu Coğrafyası (The geography of Eastern Anatolia). İstanbul Üniv. Publ. 572, İstanbul (in Turkish). Erzen A (1992) Doğu Anadolu ve Urartular (Urartians and Eastern Anatolia). Türk Tarih Kurumu (Pub. of the Turkish History Institute), Ankara Huguet C, Fietz S, Moraleda N, Litt T, Heumann G, Stockhecke M, Anselmetti FS, Sturm M (2012) A seasonal cycle of terrestrial inputs in Lake Van, Turkey. Environ Sci Poll Res 19:3628–3635 İzbırak R (1951) Cilo Dağı ve Hakkari ile Van Gölü Çevresinde Coğrafya Araştırmaları (Geography researches in the region of Lake Van, Hakkari and Cilo range). Anıl Pub, İstanbul

381 Kaden H, Peters F, Lorke A, Kipfer R, Tomonaga Y, Karabıyıkoğlu M (2010) The impact of lake level changes on deep-water renewal and oxic conditions in deep saline Lake Van, Turkey. Water Resour Res 64:1–14 Kempe S, Landmann G, Müller G (2002) A floating varve chronology from the last glacial maximum terrace of Lake Van/Turkey. Zeitschrift Geomorphologie N.F. (Suppl. Bd) 126:97–114 Koyuncu M (2005) Artos Dağı, Türkiye’nin 122 Önemli Bitki Alanı (Mnt Artos, the land of 122 important endemic plants of Turkey). In: Özhatay PN, Byfield A, Atay S (eds) Doğal Hayatı Koruma Vakfı (WWF Turkey), İstanbul, pp 345–347 Kuzucuoğlu C, Christol A, Doğu A-F, Mouralis D, Akköprü E, Fort M, Fontugne M, Brunstein D, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Reyss J-L, Zorer H (2010) Formation of the upper pleistocene terraces of Lake Van (Turkey). Quat Sci Rev 25(7):1124–1137 Lemcke G, Sturm M (1997) Delta 18O and trace element measurements as proxy for the reconstruction of climate changes at Lake Van (Turkey). Preliminary results. In: Dalfes HN, Kukla G, Weiss H (eds) Third millennium BC climate change and old world collapse, NATO ASI Series I, pp 653–678 Litt T, Krastel S, Sturm M, Kipfer R, Örçen S, Heumann G, Franz SO, Ülgen UB, Niessen F (2009) ‘PALEOVAN’, international continental scientific drilling program (ICDP): site survey results and perspectives. Quat Sci Rev 28:1555–1567 Litt T, Pickarski N, Heumann G, Stockhecke M, Tzedakis PC (2014) A 600.000 year long continental pollen record from Lake Van, eastern Anatolia (Turkey). Quat Sci Rev 104:30–41 Marro C, Özfırat A (2004) Pre-classical survey in eastern Turkey. Second preliminary report: the Erciş region. Anatolia Antiqua XII:227–266 Mouralis D, Kuzucuoğlu C, Akköprü E, Doğu A-F, Christol A, Zorer H, Fontugne M, Guillou H (2010) Les pyroclastites du sud-ouest du lac de Van (Anatolie orientale, Turquie): implications dans la paléo-hydrographie régionale. Quaternaire 21(4):425–442 Reimer A, Landmann G, Kempe S (2009) Lake Van, Eastern Anatolia, hydrochemistry and history. Aquat Geochem 15:195–222 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2015) Late Pleistocene glaciations and paleoclimate of Turkey. Bull Miner Res Explor (MTA) 151:107– 127 Schmincke H-U, Sumita M (2014) Impact of volcanism on the evolution of Lake Van (eastern Anatolia) III: Periodic (Nemrut) vs. episodic (Süphan) explosive eruptions and climate forcing reflected in a tephra gap between ca. 14 ka and ca. 30 ka. J Volcanol Geotherm Res 285:195–213 Schweizer G (1975) Untersuchungen zur Physiogeographie von Ostanatolien und Nordwestiran, geomorphologische, klima- und hydrogeographische Studien im Vansee- und Rezaiyehsee-Gebiet. Tübinger Geogr. Studien 60, Univ. Tübingen Şengör AMC, Özeren MS, Keskin M, Sakınç M, Özbakır AD, Kayan İ (2008) Eastern Turkish high plateau as a small Turkic-type orogen: Implications of post-collisional crust-forming processes in Turkic-type orogen. Earth Sci Rev 90(1–2):1–48 Sumita M, Schmincke H-U (2013a) Impact of volcanism on the evolution of Lake Van II: temporal evolution of explosive volcanism of Nemrut Volcano (eastern Anatolia) during past ca. 0.4 Ma. J Volcanol Geotherm. Res 253:15–34 Sumita M, Schmincke H-U (2013b) Impact of volcanism on the evolution of Lake Van I: evolution of explosive volcanism of Nemrut volcano (eastern Anatolia) during the past >400.000 years. Bull Volc 275(5):1–32 Tomonaga Y, Blättler R, Brennwald MS, Kipfer R (2012) Interpreting noble-gas concentrations as proxies for salinity and temperature in the world’s largest soda lake (Lake Van, Turkey). J Asian Earth Sci 59:99–107

382 Ulusoy İ (2008) Etude volcano-structurale du volcan Nemrut (Anatolie de l’Est, Turquie) et risques naturels associés. Unpublished PhD thesis, Univ. Blaise Pascal, Clermont- Ferrand (in French). NNT: 2008CLF21855 Valeton I (1978) A morphological and petrological study of the terraces around Lake Van, Turkey. In: Degens ET, Kurtmann F (eds) Geology of Lake Van, vol 169. MTA Press, Ankara, pp 64–80 Wick L, Lemcke G, Strum M (2003) Evidence of Late-glacial and Holocene climate change and human impact in eastern Anatolia:

E. Akköprü and A. Christol high resolution pollen, charcoal, isotopic and geochemical records from the laminates sediments of Lake Van. The Holocene 13 (5):665–675 Yılmaz Y, Güner Y, Şaroğlu F (1998) Geology of the quaternary volcanic centers of the east Anatolia. J Volcanol Geotherm Res 85:173–210 Zohary M (1973) Geobotanical foundations of the Middle East. Gustav Fischer, Stuttgart

Part V Highlands

A Fossil Morphology: The Miocene Fluvial Network of the Western Taurus (Turkey)

19

Olivier Monod and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu

Abstract

In Southern Turkey, east of Antalya, the Taurus chain contains traces of several fossil valleys incised into the most karstic areas of a high surface (1500–2200 m). These streamless valleys exhibit meanders and dry tributaries that are fragments of a former network directed NE-SW, at right angles to the structures of the Taurus chain. All these disconnected landforms are older than the Quaternary tectonic uplift of the chain. This older age is pointed out not only by a difference in orientation between the fossil network and the present drainage (which is not yet fully organised), but also by morphological contrasts between the fossil (wide valleys remnants) and recent (deeply incised rivers in narrow gorges) networks. At lower altitudes in the same area, Miocene conglomerates in the Manavgat Basin contain pebbles that can be confidently traced back to their source areas, owing to their distinctive lithologies. The study of the distribution and content of these conglomerates indicate a detrital origin located inland towards Central Anatolia where specific outcrops are located. While the fossil river network evidenced on the uppermost surfaces of the chain answers the question of how this detrital material could have travelled about eighty kilometres through the Taurus calcareous units, the age of the conglomerates allows dating the uplifted fossil valleys back to the Early Miocene.






Keywords




Fluvial network Tracer pebbles Karst Taurus Turkey




Miocene morphology

O. Monod (&) CNRS, 128 Rue du Parc 45000-Orléans, Orléans, France e-mail: [email protected] C. Kuzucuoğlu Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, Meudon, France e-mail: [email protected]

19.1

Introduction

Prior to the Miocene, an irregular topography was predominant in the Taurus Range, as suggested by the thick fluvial to deltaic polymict conglomerates, which are usually present at the base of the Miocene formations, 70 km east of Antalya, in the Manavgat Basin (Karabıyıkoğlu et al. 2000; Şenel 2002) (Fig. 19.1). The clast composition of the conglomerates shows that most of the pebbles come from the surrounding mountains, mostly made of Mesozoic and Tertiary carbonates, or from the overlying allochthonous units where ophiolitic rocks are frequently present (Gutnic et al. 1979). The exact source area of the Miocene detrital deposits cannot generally be precisely determined, owing to the widespread expanses of the Mesozoic limestones in the Taurus Range, as well as the abundance of ophiolitic rocks in the overlying nappes. However, in several places, among the pebbles of the Miocene conglomerates, a few lithologies with very distinctive facies may easily be recognised, which belong to siliceous formations or magmatic rocks that outcrop in relatively restricted areas in the Taurus Range, thus suggesting the possibility to trace the origin of part of the Miocene deposits in which they are embedded. These particular lithologies include Pre-Cambrian diabases and Carboniferous red sandstones from the Dedegöl Dağ massif, green tuffites and volcanic rocks from the Huğlu Formation (Triassic) or marbles and schists from the Alanya Massif. Thanks to these different source indicators, it becomes possible to identify some parts of the original catchment areas where these sediments must have been derived from, but also implies morphological issues such as (a) to identify the remains, when preserved in the Taurus Range, of the waterways that brought these materials from inland outcrops down to the Miocene shores, and then (b) to reconstruct the organisation and dynamics of the landscape that existed prior to the uplift of the contemporary Taurus highlands.

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_19

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ALANYA MASSIF

Mediterranean Sea 0 o Huglu detritals pathways o Huglu pebbles

25

Pre-Cambrian detritals pathways PC pebbles

50 Km

to A lany a

32˚00'

Alanya detritals pathways carbonates and other detritals pathways

metamorphic pebbles

Fig. 19.1 Sketch map of the Manavgat and Köprüçay Miocene basins showing the distribution of the main conglomeratic bodies and their source rocks

19.2

Tracer Pebbles in the Western Taurus

In the Manavgat Basin (Figs. 19.1 and 19.2), the base of the Miocene transgressive sequence is the Tepekli conglomerate of Burdigalian–Langhian age (Akay 1985). This formation occurs with a variable thickness, up to 500 m in places,

denoting a highly irregular topography prior to its deposition. The first study of the composition of the pebbles (Flecker et al. 1995) illustrated a close relationship with the surrounding mountains, as could be expected considering the relatively quiet tectonic environment of the basin at that time. Especially clear is the abundance of pebbles of metamorphic rocks (marble, quartzite, schist) in the immediate

19

A Fossil Morphology: The Miocene Fluvial Network …

neighbourhood of the Alanya Massif, with a progressive decrease farther westwards. Another case of close relationship is found in the northern part of the Köprüçay Basin, where abundant pebbles of Pre-Cambrian diabases and red Carboniferous sandstones may be easily traced to their source rocks in the basement of the Dedegöl Dağ (Fig. 19.1). However, many other lithologies may be spotted in the pebbles, which are not found in close vicinity of the Tepekli conglomerate, such as ophiolitic rocks (serpentinite, peridotite, gabbro) or red radiolarites, but they cannot be considered as valid source indicators since similar rocks are present in many allochthonous units in the Antalya region. On the other hand, south of the Beyşehir Lake, a group of volcanic rocks forming most of the Huğlu unit (Figs. 19.1 and 19.3) shows very distinctive petrological features. These rocks predominantly consist of dark green tuffites intercalated with dacitic lava flows and volcanoclastic breccias, of Late Triassic age (Monod 1979; Andrew and Robertson 2002). The green tuffitic facies is especially noticeable as it includes small green chlorite speckles, 1–3 mm across, scattered in a finer chloritic matrix containing small quartz and feldspars, along with typical glassy shards with curved shapes or “Y” branching. These shards are not welded together and denote a cold aquatic environment (volcanic ashes) close to the dacitic emissions (Peterson 1961). All these siliceous facies are hard enough to produce resistant, conspicuous pebbles, which are now found in great numbers in the Tepekli conglomerate (Burdigalian) lying at the base of the Manavgat Basin, especially near Sevinç. The distance separating this depositional area of the conglomerates from the source rocks (Huğlu unit) is over 80 km. Knowing that part of the detrital materials in the Lower Miocene conglomerates originates from distant sources in the Taurus, particular attention was brought to landforms preserved in the higher part of the Taurus in order to find traces of a fossil network which could have brought these materials down to the Antalya gulf. Fieldwork (Fig. 19.4) and examination of satellite images, aerial photographs and more precisely, of the 1/25000 topographic maps and a digital elevation model (DEM, Fig. 19.5) built on part of the area have disclosed numerous fragments of dead valleys lazily meandering among an intensely developed karstic landscape with numerous dolines, sinkholes and poljes (Monod et al. 2006).

19.3

A Fossil Morphology in the Taurus

Presently, the highest parts of the Western Taurus (Dedegöl Dağ 2998 m) lie close to the Beyşehir Lake and extend southwards over 100 km with a very rugged topography where barren karstic plateaus alternate with deep, wooded but dry valleys thanks to which two roads can cut across the

387

chain. As concerns the superficial drainage, the chain contains five distinct catchment areas (Fig. 19.2), which include rivers flowing southwards into the Mediterranean (Köprü, Alara and Manavgat Rivers) and northwards into two endorheic depressions (Beyşehir Lake and Suğla Lake) connected to the Konya Basin in Central Anatolia. Interestingly however, the largest and highest part of the Taurus Range is not included within these five catchment areas and remains as an isolated high surface (HS in Fig. 19.2). In this vast area, superficial drainage is very limited, owing to intense karstic circulation through the Mesozoic carbonates which build the bulk of the chain. As a result, the high surface is paved with adjacent closed depressions, including two spectacular poljes (Kembos Ova (Fig. 19.4d) and Eynif Ova, 10–15 km long), as well as the highest summits of the chain (2500–2900 m).

19.3.1 The High Surface: Remnants of an Ancient Topography As depicted in Fig. 19.3, the high surface (HS) may be delineated south of Beyşehir as an extensive jigsaw puzzle of disconnected plateaus with a mean altitude of 1500– 2200 m. These remnants are exclusively found upon Mesozoic carbonates ranging in age from Late Triassic to Late Cretaceous. These plateaus are delimited by very steep gorges, over 1000 m deep in places, drained by the main rivers owing to the recent Plio-Quaternary uplift of the chain (Koçyiğit and Özacar 2003). In other localities, Late Miocene or younger faults have affected the high surface and are responsible for steep relief with fault scarps up to 1000 m high, limiting the fossil surfaces (in grey on Fig. 19.3). On top of these plateaus, drainage is superficial, weakly incised. Surprisingly, however, the high surface is deeply carved by several large, streamless valleys, which are now seen hanging well above the present valleys. As shown below, these hanging valleys belong to a larger fluvial network, which ran through the Taurus Range during the Miocene (Fig. 19.3).

19.3.2 Streamless Valleys Most conspicuous in the field as on the satellite imagery, these numerous fragments of dead valleys form a complex array of deep incisions into the high surface. They are mostly found in the higher parts of the Taurus Range where karstic erosion forms are best developed and exhibit impressive landscapes with narrow ridges of white limestone surrounding steep depressions and numerous sinkholes. Within these areas, which are most difficult to go across, the dead valleys are surprisingly large (up to 1 km) and easy to go

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Lake Beysehir (1121)

Dedegöl Dag

1713 1690

Incebel Pass

Çar

Bozburun Dag

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BEYSEHIR

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i ba R

sam

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Sarp D.

S

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Kembo

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s Ova

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ver

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2300

Lake Sugla (1090)

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Burmahan Dag

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Eynif

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a Ov

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1877

Ibradi

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(960)

Akseki 1439

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(1050)

HIGH SURFACE Ponor Polje

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Undergroud networks

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Local drainage into the karst

M

Manavgat

an av ga

tR

iv

er

M

Mediterranean Sea

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Beysehir basin

puz Kar

r Rive

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20

A

r

lar

A

Sugla basin MARINE DRAINAGE BASINS :

a

0

ENDOREIC DRAINAGE :

ve Ri

Köprü River drainage basin Manavgat River drainage basin Karpuzçay and Alara River basins

Present Rivers

Fig. 19.2 Five catchment areas in the Western Taurus are surrounding a high surface (HS) where superficial drainage is not reorganised yet. Black dotted lines: water divide; red dotted lines: main underground (proven) waterways

19

A Fossil Morphology: The Miocene Fluvial Network …

Fig. 19.3 Reconstructed Early Miocene drainage network in the Western Taurus. Fossil valleys are in blue: A.V. Akseki Valley; D.V. Derebucak Valley; H.V. Hallaç Valley; In.V. İncebel Valley; P.V. Piser Valley; S.V. Sultançukuru Valley; So.V. Sobova Valley; Ü.V. Ürünlü

389

Valley; Y.V. Yarpuz Valley; Z.V. Zimmet Valley. Normal faults figured here are Late Miocene or younger, with fault scarp in grey. Manavgat River gorge (purple) is younger (Plio-Quaternary)

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(a) 2330

2347

(d) Kembos Ova Polje

C Yarpuz fossil valley road

2250

C

1850

1230 1570

(c)

(b)

Ak D. 2135

1665 Hallaç fossil valley Zekerya fossil valley road

doline 1140

1460

Fig. 19.4 a Upper part of the Yarpuz fossil valley (the highest point of the road from Antalya to Konya). b Hallaç fossil valley, north of İbradi; c Zekerya dry valley d Kembos Ova, the largest polje in the Western Taurus; in front is an old well with a sweep system

through (Fig. 19.4). They are typically V-shaped (Fig. 19.4 a, b, c; Fig. 19.6, Sect. 1) with steep sides (30° to 40°) and narrow thalwegs (50–100 m wide), and Roman-built roads are still visible in some of them (cf. Derebucak lower valley). As a rule, these valleys are abruptly interrupted at both ends above the present drainage network running several hundred metres below (Zimmet and Sultançukuru valleys). The length varies from one to 10 km (Piser Valley) for a depth of 400–500 m. (Yarpuz Valley, Fig. 19.4a). The largest valleys are oriented NE-SW (Fig. 19.3), and some exhibit clear meanders (Hallaç Valley) with well-preserved meander necks. Several tributaries may also be noted on both sides (Fig. 19.5) with a lesser incision (150 m, at most), although they, too, are in hanging position. This suggests that several karstic cycles have occurred. The shape of the dry valleys implies a short period typified by a rather rapid rate of incision through the carbonates,

as lateral erosion did not widen the valley floors significantly. In spite of the limited preservation, some of the fossil valleys are long enough to suggest that the original slope was very low; e.g., the Hallaç Valley and the Piser Valley (8–10 km long) have nearly the same altitude at both ends. On a larger scale, although the former connections between the now isolated remnants of the fossil drainage cannot be precisely ascertained, several river bed profiles may be drawn through the Taurus Range with a realistic shape for some of them (Fig. 19.6, Sect. 2). With a source presently above 2000 m a.s.l. in the NE (Fig. 19.4a, along the main road from Konya to Antalya), an ancient river, 70 km long, was flowing south-westwards in a deep canyon down to the village of Kepez (750 m, Fig. 19.6), where coarse polymictic conglomerates and marls with plant remains suggest a deltaic environment. However, in many cases such a picture is not obtained, and sharp discontinuities

19

A Fossil Morphology: The Miocene Fluvial Network …

NW

SE

FOSSIL DRAINAGE NETWORK : 8 km

ZiMMET palaeovalley

ciNLi palaeovalley

HALLAç palaeovalley

Tributary

Tributary

2409

391

Tributary

3 km

Cevizli

1786

(1050)

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1545

HS

1980 1664

HS

Masata

o

Belen Dag to Konya

1877

1956 2099

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Sivri Tepe 1532

HS

1050

Üzümdere

(600)

1740

HS

1354

1398

(1150)

HS

: High Surface

6 km

Ibradi

(1080)

(420 m)

PRESENT DRAINAGE: Manavgat River

Fig. 19.5 Digital elevation model (DEM) picture of the Taurus seen from the south, showing the hanging position of several dry valleys (note the meandering Hallaç palaeo-valley) with hanging tributaries,

and the much deeper gorge (at Üzümdere) of the present drainage (Manavgat River). Sun is to the west. Location on Fig. 19.3

Fig. 19.6 Two morphological profiles (heights  4) across the Taurus Range (Fig. 19.3). Geological structures are not detailed. Section I shows the V-shaped incision of the fossil valleys (in blue), presenting rivers in purple. Section II runs along the palaeo-river (blue line) that was flowing from the top of the Yarpuz Valley (1850 m) down to the

Kepez palaeo-delta (750 m). The incision is uniform (300–400 m) throughout the 70 km of its course, but younger faults have disrupted the profile in places. The Manavgat river bed is 500 m lower than the fossil valley and drains a huge underground karstic network (in red). AN: Antalya Nappes; AM: Alanya Massif. Black dots: Eocene flysch

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in the profile or even slope reversals are met in various palaeo-rivers profiles. We consider that these breaks result from Late Miocene or younger fault activity (Koçyiğit and Özacar 2003), which have disrupted or inverted the initial profiles. A fluvial network may nevertheless be reconstructed according to the best fit of the fossil valleys. The resulting network (Fig. 19.3) shows an overall south-westwards drainage system with meandering rivers incised into the platform carbonates.

19.4

Dating the Palaeo-rivers Network

The age of the fossil drainage network can be loosely bracketed between that of the youngest carbonates (Mid Eocene) incised by the fossil valleys and the first marine transgression sediments (Lower Miocene) coming upon the high surface. A reliable dating of the river network would be best obtained by directly dating the valley infills (cf. Eriş et al. 2005, in the Mut region), but, unfortunately, in this part of the Taurus Range all the fossil valleys are empty in their higher parts. However, the lower part of one of them (İncebel Valley, Fig. 19.7) is well preserved and exhibits a clear connection to the marine Köprüçay Basin. Thanks to a late offset of the Kırkkavak Fault (Dumont and Kerey 1975), a conspicuous succession (800–1000 m thick) of coarse fluvial conglomerates is readily visible on both sides of the İncebel Pass (2000 m), where it entirely fills the lowest segment of the valley. On the western side of the pass, these conglomerates alternate with deltaic sandstones with pelecypods and marine marls of the Köprüçay Basin. The latter contain pelagic micro- and nannofaunas of Lower Miocene age (Langhian NN5, near Yaka village, Deynoux et al. 2005). We infer that the fluvial conglomerates situated only a few kilometres upstream from the dated marine intercalations have a similar age, and consider that the age of the incision of the İncebel palaeo-valley itself can be very close. As for the whole fluvial network, we infer that most of the fossil valleys have a similar age, as suggested by the uniform orientation and morphological shape of the valleys in this part of the Taurus Range. Most important, this age is compatible with the Burdigalian age of the Tepekli conglomerate containing the Huğlu tracer pebbles, thus allowing a coherent pattern of the palaeo-drainage network during the Lower Miocene to be proposed (Fig. 19.3). This Lower Miocene age, however, is contradicted by two conglomeratic occurrences outcropping on the eastern side of the İncebel Pass at a higher stratigraphical position. In the Sarıalan and Sarıyacık Yayla localities (Fig. 19.3), Huğlu pebbles are also found, although rarely, in deltaic conglomerates alternating with white marls containing

ostracodes (Babinot 2002) and rare fishes, which are of Upper Miocene age (Tortonian NN9-10). Contrasting with the Langhian İncebel conglomerates, these younger conglomerates seem independent from the previous fluvial system. Moreover, the associated Tortonian marls extend farther eastwards at a similar altitude as far as the Kelsu locality, 20 km away from the İncebel Pass (Fig. 19.3) with oysters and numerous burrows marking the Miocene shore line there (Deynoux et al. 2005; Çiner et al. 2008). This unexpected occurrence of marine Tortonian deposits far inland into the Taurus Range demonstrates a Late Miocene transgression coming from the Köprüçay Basin on top of the Langhian conglomerates, through a former ria at the İncebel Pass (Fig. 19.3). In that case, we consider that the Upper Miocene pebbles of the Sarıalan locality were reworked during another (or several other) phases of erosion and transportation, which affected earlier deposited materials. This possibility leads us to discard a Tortonian age and retain a Lower Miocene age for most, if not the entire fossil fluvial network preserved on the Taurus highlands.

19.5

Discussion and Conclusion

Could the fossil network be much younger in part, i.e. related to Quaternary glacial erosion? Apart from the immediate surroundings of two high massifs (Dipoyraz = Dedegöl Dağ, 2998 m and Geyikdağ, 2875 m) where conspicuous Pleistocene cirques and moraines have been described and dated (Arpat and Özgül 1972; Çiner et al. 1999, 2015; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015, 2017; Sarıkaya et al. 2017; Zahno et al. 2009), no other evidence of glacial impact has been recorded in the area. Conversely, the Messinian crisis, which resulted in deepening the lower course of the Mediterranean rivers (cf. Aksu River, Poisson et al. 2003), cannot be held responsible for morphological changes in the higher parts of the waterways. Lastly, an intense karstic percolation from the Pliocene onwards prevented the complete erosion of the Early Miocene valleys and probably acted in several phases, as suggested by the hanging position of many tributaries above the fossil valleys. In conclusion, the morphological evolution of this part of the Taurus Range may be summarised in three steps (Fig. 19.8), starting from an elevated landscape that was flattened during the Oligocene and early in the Miocene. By that time, large rivers transported coarse detrital materials from distant inland sources (Fig. 19.8a). This phase was followed by a rapid uplift of the Taurus Range causing the incision of the valleys with entrenched meanders and hanging tributaries (Fig. 19.8b). A last marine transgression is documented early in the Tortonian through the

19

A Fossil Morphology: The Miocene Fluvial Network …

393

(a)

(b)

Fig. 19.7 İncebel Pass, viewed from the east (a), showing a 750-m-thick fluvial conglomerate infilling the İncebel palaeo-valley carved into the Triassic carbonates. On the western side (b), the fluvial

conglomerates of the Incebel Valley alternate with Lower Miocene marine marls of the Köprüçay Basin (Langhian, Fig. 19.3)

pre-existing rias (İncebel River). Late in the Miocene, the fluvial network was totally disrupted by normal faulting and thrusting, and a last uplift (Pliocene to Recent) enhanced the underground circulation and initiated the present network, which is not yet fully organised (Fig. 19.8c). This fossil network is part of a vanished wider fluvial array that

once covered the Taurus area during most of the Miocene and was disrupted by the Late Miocene uplift, which gave rise to the Central Anatolian Plateau (Cosentino et al. 2012). This reconstructed picture, which connects high-altitude dry valleys on old and uplifted surfaces to deltaic sediments deposited downstream, is a rare record of a well-preserved,

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(a)

(b)

(b)

Fig. 19.8 Three cartoons illustrating the morphological evolution of the Western Taurus from Oligocene to present: a Landscape was flattened during the Oligocene and Early Miocene; b Uplifting with incision of deep valleys (in red) started in the Lower–Middle Miocene;

c Further uplifting (Tortonian and Plio-Quaternary) disrupted the former drainage system, but fragments of it are still preserved as hanging valleys on the high surface

19

A Fossil Morphology: The Miocene Fluvial Network …

composite geomorphological landscape of Miocene age in the Mediterranean chains. Acknowledgements The authors acknowledge the invaluable help of MTA, IFEA and TPAO for fieldwork facilities, and numerous discussions with M. Karabıyıkoğlu, H. Kozlu (TPAO), A. Okay (ITU), M. Deynoux (Strasbourg University) and A. Çiner (ITU). The authors also thank Diana Bailey for checking the English and two anonymous reviewers for useful and constructive comments.

References Akay E, Uysal S, Poisson A, Cravatte J, Müller C (1985) Stratigraphy of the Antalya Neogene basin. Bull Geol Soc Turk 28:105–119 Andrew T, Robertson AH (2002) The Beyşehir-Hoyran-Hadim Nappes: genesis and emplacement of Mesozoic marginal and oceanic units of the northern Neotethys in southern Turkey. J Geol Soc 159:529–543 Arpat E, Özgül N (1972) Rock glaciers around Geyik Dağ, central Taurides. Bull Miner Res Explor Inst Turk (MTA) 78:28–32 Babinot J-F (2002) Ostracodes miocènes de séries annexes aux bassins de Köprüçay et de Manavgat, région d’Antalya (sud Turquie). Revue Paléobiologie, Genève 21:735–757 Çiner A, Deynoux M, Çörekcioğlu E (1999) Hummocky moraines in the Namaras and Susam valleys, Central Taurids, SW Turkey. Quatern Sci Rev 18:659–669 Çiner A, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Monod O, Deynoux M, Tuzcu S (2008) Late Cenozoic sedimentary evolution of the Antalya Basin, southern Turkey. Turk J Earth Sci 17:1–41 Çiner A, Sarıkaya MA, Yıldırım C (2015) Late Pleistocene piedmont glaciations in the Eastern Mediterranean; insights from cosmogenic 36 Cl dating of hummocky moraines in southern Turkey. Quatern Sci Rev 116:44–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2015.03.017 Cosentino D, Schildgen TF, Cipollari P, Faranda C, Gliozzi E, Hudáčková N, Lucifora S, Strecker MR (2012) Late Miocene surface uplift of the southern margin of the Central Anatolian plateau, Central Taurides, Turkey. Geol Soc Am Bull 124:133–145 Deynoux M, Çiner A, Monod O, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Manatschal G, Tuzcu S (2005) Facies architecture and depositional evolution of alluvial fan to fan-delta complexes in the tectonically active Miocene Köprüçay Basin, Isparta Angle, Turkey. Sed Geol 173:315–343

395 Dumont J-F, Kerey E (1975) L’accident de Kırkkavak, un décrochement majeur dans le Taurus occidental, (Turquie). Bull Société Géologique Fr 7:1071–1073 Eriş K, Bassant P, Ülgen U (2005) Tectono-stratigraphic evolution of an Early Miocene incised valley-fill in the Mut basin, Southern Turkey. Sed Geol 173:151–185 Flecker R, Robertson AHF, Poisson A, Müller C (1995) Facies and tectonic significance of two contrasting Miocene basins in south coastal Turkey. Terra Nova 7:221–232 Gutnic M, Monod O, Poisson A, Dumont J-F (1979) Géologie des Taurides occidentales. Mémoire Société Géologique Fr 137:1–112 Karabıyıkoğlu M, Çiner A, Monod O, Deynoux M, Tuzcu S, Örçen S (2000) Tectonosedimentary evolution of the Miocene Manavgat basin, western Taurids, Turkey. In: Bozkurt E, Winchester JA, Piper JAD (eds) Tectonics and magmatism in Turkey and the surrounding area. Geological Society Special Publication 173, London, pp 475–498 Koçyiğit A, Özacar A (2003) Extensional neotectonic regime through the NE edge of the outer Isparta Angle, SW Turkey: New field and seismic data. Turk J Earth Sci 12:67–90 Monod O (1979) Carte géologique du Taurus Occidental au sud de Beyşehir et Notice explicative. CNRS Publication, Paris, pp 55 Monod O, Kuzucuoğlu C, Okay AI (2006) A Miocene Palaeovalley network in the Western Taurus (Turkey). Turk J Earth Sci 15:1–23 Peterson DW (1961) Dacitic ash-flow sheet near superior and globe, Arizona, USGS Open-File Report: 61–119 Poisson A, Wernli R, Sagular EK, Temiz H (2003) New data concerning the age of the Aksu Thrust in the South of the Aksu valley, Isparta Angle (SW Turkey): consequences for the Antalya Basin and the Eastern Mediterranean. Geol J 38:311–327 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2015) Late Pleistocene glaciations and paleoclimate of Turkey. Bull Miner Res Explor (MTA) 151:107–127 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2017) The late Quaternary glaciation in the Eastern Mediterranean. In: Hughes P, Woodward J (eds) Quaternary glaciation in the Mediterranean mountains. Geological Society of London Special Publication 433, pp 289–305. http://doi.org/10. 1144/SP433.4 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Yildirim C (2017) Cosmogenic 36Cl glacial chronologies of the Late Quaternary glaciers on Mount Geyikdağ in the Eastern Mediterranean. Quat Geochoronology 39:189–204. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2017.03.003 Şenel M (2002) Geological map of Turkey (1/500000), Konya sheet. MTA Publ, Ankara Zahno C, Akçar N, Yavuz V, Kubik PW, Schlüchter C (2009) Surface exposure dating of Late Pleistocene glaciations at the Dedegöl mountains (Lake Beyşehir, SW Turkey). J Quat Sci 24:1016–1028

Ice in Paradise: Glacial Heritage Landscapes of Anatolia

20

Mehmet Akif Sarıkaya and Attila Çiner

In memoriam Prof. Dr. Sırrı Erinç (1918–2002).

Abstract

Lofty mountains of Turkish landscape are shaped by glacial activities in the past. Over the last decade, our knowledge on the Quaternary glacial morphology and timing of glaciations has been notably increased thanks to cosmogenic exposure ages obtained from glacial landforms. Here, we synthesize the current art-of-the-science on the extent and chronology of Turkish glaciations. Glacier-related landscapes are found in three regions: in the Taurus Mountains, in the Eastern Black Sea Region and on volcanoes and independent mountains scattered across Anatolia. The Taurus Mountains show wellpreserved examples of lateral and terminal moraines on north-facing glacial valleys and cirques. Hummocky moraines are evident in large areas on Geyikdağ, in the central Taurus Range. The eastern and northern Turkey bear the most noticeable glacial and periglacial features. The only ice cap of Anatolia is located on the summit of Mount Ağrı (Ararat), and the longest valley glaciers are located in the south-eastern Taurus Mountains, near the Iraqi border of Turkey. Cosmogenic dating results from these mountains, especially from the western and northern parts of Turkey, suggest that the oldest glaciers existed well before the global Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) (around 35.000 years (35 ka) ago). However, the most extensive glaciers developed during the LGM, about 21 ka ago. Palaeoclimate on LGM obtained from glacier modelling suggest that the moisture levels were up to two

times more near the Mediterranean coast, while it was drier on the central and northern Turkey and 8–11 °C colder than present conditions. Younger glacial advances were generally smaller and dated between 16 and 11 ka ago. Modern glaciers and rock glacier were located only at certain locations, as descendant of the older glaciers. Recent glaciers have retreated significantly since the beginning of the last century, and the retreat rates calculated from historical observations are consistent with the general warming trend of the past century.





Keywords









Glacier Periglacial Rock glacier Ice cap Moraine Cirque Hummocky morphology Cosmogenic nuclides Palaeoclimate

20.1

Introduction

Turkey is characterized by strong topographic and climatic contrasts. The mean elevation of the Turkish landscape increases eastwards, from less than 500 m in the western lowlands, to around 1000 m in the centrally located Anatolian Plateau, to well over 3000 m in the mountains to the east. Turkey is located in between different climate patterns such as temperate Mediterranean systems influenced by North Atlantic cyclones (Macklin et al. 2002), mid-latitude

M. A. Sarıkaya (&)
A. Çiner Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences, Istanbul Technical University, 34469 Istanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] A. Çiner e-mail: [email protected] © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_20

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Fig. 20.1 Turkey Pleistocene glaciers map with present and LGM snowline altitudes

subtropical high-pressure systems (la Fontaine et al. 1990) and Indian monsoon climates (Jones et al. 2006). Due to this topographic and climatic variability, the country has been affected by several Quaternary glaciations. Although Turkey has not been known for its glaciers, this paradise of geology and geography includes some fascinating landscapes carved by glaciers in the past (Fig. 20.1).

20.2

Glacial Studies: Past and Present

Many researchers have studied the glacial landscape of Turkey since 1800s (Ainsworth 1842; Palgrave 1872; Maunsell 1901; Bobek 1940; Louis 1944; İzbırak 1951; Erinç 1953; Blumenthal 1952, 1958; Wright 1962; Birman 1968). Sırrı Erinç, the most prominent pioneer of glacial studies in Turkey, published many papers from different parts of Turkey in the 1950s (Erinç 1951, 1952, 1953, 1978). This was followed by Messerli (1967), Birman (1968) and Doğu et al. (1993, 1996) who published overview papers on recent and past Turkish glaciers. More recently, LANDSAT (Kurter and Sungur 1980; Kurter 1991) and ASTER (Sarıkaya 2011, 2012; Sarıkaya and Tekeli 2014) satellite images were used to report the inventory of present-day Turkish glaciers. Cosmogenic surface exposure dating is now widely used to determine the timing of Quaternary glacier activities

(Akçar et al. 2014; Sarıkaya et al. 2014). It is a geochronological tool to date the retreat timing of past glaciers by collecting rock samples from the uppermost surfaces of moraine boulders. Certain cosmogenic nuclides (i.e. 10Be, 26 Al, 36Cl) accumulate on rocks exposed to cosmic radiation. If the production rate of these nuclides on mineral lattice is known, the measured amount of nuclide on sampled rocks can be used to calculate the time of exposure. This method has been applied widely on glaciated landscapes, and also to other geomorphic features such as volcanic fields, active tectonic areas and fluvial/alluvial deposits. Today, the distribution, extent and ages of the Turkish glaciers are much better known because of cosmogenic nuclide application. We present here the state of research based on the existing literature combined with an evaluation of unpublished data and our personal field observations.

20.3

Quaternary Glacial Landforms

Quaternary glacial landforms are observed in three main areas—the Taurus Mountains, along the Mediterranean coast and south-east Turkey, the mountain ranges along the Eastern Black Sea and several high mountains distributed in the Anatolia Plateau (Kurter and Sungur 1980; Çiner 2004; Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015, 2017).

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20.3.1 The Taurus Mountains 20.3.1.1 The South-eastern Taurus These mountains are located on the highest crests of the Turkish Taurus and Iranian Zagros Mountains. They contain the largest modern glaciers in the Middle East (Sarıkaya 2009; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015). Here the glacial landscapes are concentrated in three subregions: Buzul Mountains (also known as Mount Cilo, 4135 m), İkiyaka Mountains (Mount Sat, 3794 m), both lying on the Iraqi border, and Kavuşşahap Mountains (Mount İhtiyarşahap, 3503 m) to the south of the Lake Van. Bobek (1940) studied the distribution of Pleistocene glaciers in the Buzul and İkiyaka mountains. He reported past glacier evidence on the northern side of the Uludoruk Tepe of Buzul Mountains. Those glaciers had lengths of 9 km from the cirque to their termini at 1800 m a.s.l. (above sea level). In the İkiyaka Mountains, 30 km south-east of the Buzul Mountains, the past glaciers reached an elevation of 2100 m and had a length of 10 km (Bobek 1940). Erinç (1953) claimed that the lowest terminal moraines on Buzul Mountains were deposited during the Last Glaciation. No numerical ages have been obtained from this region yet. Local LGM snowline estimates are in between 2100 and 2800 m a.s.l. (Wright 1962; Messerli 1967). The Kavuşşahap Mountains also contain numerous cirques on the northern slopes. Many of them, particularly those above 3000 m, are covered with rock glaciers (Sarıkaya et al. 2011). Remote sensing analysis revealed the presence of very well-developed lateral moraines at altitudes as low as 2100 m. The recent snowline is located at around 3400–3600 m a.s.l. in the region. 20.3.1.2 The Central Taurus The central Taurus Mountains have attracted much scientific interest because of their easy accessibility and conspicuous glacial deposits on Geyikdağ, Aladağlar, Bolkar and Soğanlı mountains. Geyikdağ (2850 m) is characterized by the presence of unusual hummocky topography that covers an area of about 30 km2 in the Namaras and Susam valleys (Arpat and Özgül 1972; Çiner et al. 1999) (Fig. 20.2). Our field observations suggest that the extraordinary hummocky morphology of the moraine deposits indicates a piedmont-type glaciation. In the southern sector of Geyikdağ, several lateral moraines were also developed. Cosmogenic dating results assign LGM to Holocene ages to these hummocky and lateral moraine deposits (Çiner et al. 2015, 2017; Sarıkaya et al. 2017).

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The Aladağlar (3756 m) consists mainly of Mesozoic carbonates similar to other Taurus Mountains with extensive karstic drainage network (Klimchouk et al. 2006). The mountain has witnessed extensive former glacial activity (Klaer 1962; Zreda et al. 2011). The Hacer Valley, a 1.4-km-deep U-shaped glacial valley located on the east side of the mountain, contains several moraine ridges at elevations from 1100 m (at the mouth of the valley) to 3100 m, on the Yedigöller Plateau, just below the summits of Aladağlar, where an ice cap was developed (Fig. 20.3). Seven moraines dated with cosmogenic 36Cl on twenty-two boulders gave ages from 10.2 ± 0.2 ka at the bottom of the valley to 8.6 ± 0.3 ka on the plateau (Zreda et al. 2011), indicating large early Holocene glaciers and rapid deglaciation (Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Zreda et al. 2011). Updated age calculations based on new production rates of 36Cl (Marrero 2012) suggest that these moraines originated during a Younger Dryas advance (from 14.0 ± 0.2 to 11.5 ± 0.4 ka ago). Other glacial valleys were found to the north and north-west of the Yedigöller Plateau, and several of them contain terminal and lateral moraines reaching down to altitudes of about 1850– 2100 m (Blumenthal 1952; Klaer 1962; Birman 1968). The Bolkar Mountains (3524 m), located 65 km south-west of Aladağlar, have some lateral and terminal moraines, especially on the northern Maden and Alagöl valleys (Blumenthal 1956; Birman 1968; Çiner and Sarıkaya 2017). Moraine deposits were located as low as 1650 m in the Maden Valley. Our findings from cosmogenic 36Cl analysis of erratic boulders on the Karagöl cirque area indicate several advances of glaciers between pre-LGM and early Holocene time (Fig. 20.4). To the east of Aladağlar, Soğanlı Mountains (2967 m) are located. They bear extensive glacio-karstic features that developed during the Pleistocene (Ege and Tonbul 2005). The lowest glacial deposits are observed in the Dökülgen Valley at 2250 m on the western and north-western sides of the mountain. The modern snowline in the central Taurus Mountains varies between 3200 and 3700 m a.s.l., and the LGM snowline was estimated to have been between 1900 m and 2600 m a.s.l. (Messerli 1967; Ege and Tonbul 2005; Sarıkaya et al. 2011).

20.3.1.3 The Western Taurus In the western sector of Taurus Mountains, there are several high peaks that witnessed past glaciers. Mount Sandıras (2295 m), located on the far south-western part, shows evidence of LGM and Late Glacial advances in two northern valleys (Fig. 20.5). LGM glaciers reached their maximum

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Fig. 20.2 Hummocky moraines of Namaras Valley on Geyikdağ (photograph by A. Çiner)

Fig. 20.3 Seven lakes (Yedigöller in Turkish) palaeo-ice cap plateau (*3100 m) of Aladağlar (photograph by A. Çiner)

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Fig. 20.4 Erratic boulders on limestone roche moutonnée in the Karagöl Valley, Bolkar Mountains (photograph by A. Çiner)

Fig. 20.5 Panoramic view of Lake Kartal terminal moraines on Mount Sandıras (photograph by M. A. Sarıkaya)

length of 1.5 km and terminated at an elevation of 1900 m 20.4 ± 1.3 ka ago. The glaciers re-advanced and retreated by 19.6 ± 1.6 ka ago, and then again by 16.2 ± 0.5 ka ago (Sarıkaya et al. 2008). On Akdağ (3016 m), the so-called pre-LGM glacial advance commenced well before the global LGM at around 35.1 ± 2.5 ka ago in the Kuruova Valley (Figs. 20.6 and 20.7). The local LGM glaciation was in synchronicity with

global LGM and other Turkish glaciers, which occurred at 21.7 ± 1.2 ka ago (Sarıkaya et al. 2014) (Fig. 20.8). The Dedegöl Mountains (2992 m) also experienced glaciation at LGM (>24.3 ± 1.8 ka ago), and later advances are dated for 19.8 ± 1.6 ka ago, 17.7 ± 1.4 ka ago and again 13.9 ± 2.3 ka ago, in the east facing Muslu Valley (Zahno et al. 2009). Several other mountains, such as Beydağ (3086 m) (Louis 1944; Messerli 1967), Mount Barla

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Fig. 20.6 A sampling scene for cosmogenic surface dating on Akdağ. Person is sitting on a terminal moraine loop of Kuruova Valley on Akdağ (photograph by M. A. Sarıkaya)

Fig. 20.7 A glacier lake in the Karadere cirque on Akdağ (photograph by A. Çiner)

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Fig. 20.8 Geomorphological map of Akdağ’s glacial valleys to show the location of moraines of different ages (modified from Sarıkaya et al. 2014)

(2800 m) (Ardos 1977), Mount Honaz (2571 m) (Yalçınlar 1954; Erinç 1955, 1957) and Mount Davraz (2637 m) (Atalay 1987), in the western Taurus Mountains have been reported to have evidence of late Quaternary glaciers; however, they have not been dated numerically. The modern snowline elevation in the western Taurus Mountains is estimated to be between 3000 and 3750 m a.s. l., and LGM snowline varied between 2000 and 2600 m a.s. l. (Sarıkaya et al. 2011).

20.3.2 The Eastern Black Sea Mountains The most prominent glaciated valleys with U-shaped morphologies are found in the Eastern Black Sea Mountains. They contain several peaks over 3000 m that are well above the glacial time snowlines (Fig. 20.9).

The Rize Mountains are the highest part of the Black Sea Range (also known as Pontides) (Fig. 20.10). They contain the highest peak, Mount Kaçkar (3932 m), which was studied by Akçar et al. (2007) using cosmogenic 10Be dating methods. The ages show that the advance of the Kavron palaeoglaciers stopped at least 21.5 ± 1.6 ka ago, with the LGM glaciation continuing until 15.6 ± 1.2 ka (Akçar et al. 2007). Subsequent to this recession, most probable Younger Dryas advance took place around 11.2 ± 1.1 to 10.0 ± 1.1 ka ago (Zahno et al. 2009). Comparable results were obtained from the nearby Verçenik (Akçar et al. 2008) and Başyayla valleys (Reber et al. 2014). Other mountains in the Eastern Black Sea Mountains, such as Karadağ (3331 m) and Karagöl (3107 m), both located on the westernmost part of the Pontide Mountains, bear terminal and hummocky moraines of Pleistocene age (Çiner 2004). On the far east of the range, Mount Karçal

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Fig. 20.9 Cirques and tarn lakes on Salacur Çoruh (photograph by Hakan Gün)

(3415 m) contains well-preserved rock glaciers and moraines (Dede et al. 2015, 2017) (Fig. 20.11). The present-day snowline in the Eastern Black Sea Mountains changes on both leeward and rain-shadow side, from 3100–3200 m (Erinç 1952) to 3500–3550 m a.s.l., respectively. The LGM snowline elevations were between 2300 and 2500 m on the northern side and 2600–2700 m on the southern side (Çiner 2004).

20.3.3 Other Mountains of Anatolia Other individual mountains in Anatolia show signs of former and recent glacial activity. Among them, Mount Ağrı (also known as Mount Ararat) (5137 m), located near the Armenian border, is the highest mountain in Turkey. It contains an ice cap of about 5.66 ± 0.57 km2 in area, which is the

largest single glacier in Turkey (Sarıkaya 2012) (Fig. 20.12). The recent snowline is located at 4300 m a.s.l. on Mount Ağrı. Birman (1968) reported a few glacial deposits on the south-facing slope of Mount Ağrı. However, Blumenthal (1958) questioned the existence of moraines and explained the lack of moraines by the absence of confining ridges to support valley glaciers, by insufficient debris load and by posterior volcanic activity that obliterated the development of moraines. A recent work by Azzoni et al. (2017) reported a glacier extent ca. 7.28 ± 0.03 km2 including 1.82 ± 0.01 km2 of debris-covered ice surface. The authors compared their results with values reported by Sarıkaya (2012) and Yavaşlı et al. (2015) and found their data underestimated because of the incomplete detection of debris-covered ice sectors. Mount Erciyes (3917 m), another high volcano located in the central Anatolia, shows four periods of glacial activity

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405

Fig. 20.10 Kaçkar Glacier (photograph by Naki Akçar)

since the LGM (Fig. 20.13). Cosmogenic 36Cl surface exposure dating results obtained from two valleys confirmed that LGM glaciers reached 6 km in length with glacier tongues descending to 2150 m a.s.l., and started to retreat 21.3 ± 0.9 ka ago. Glaciers re-advanced by 14.6 ± 1.2 ka ago and again by 9.3 ± 0.5 ka ago. The latest advance took place 3.8 ± 0.4 ka ago during the late Holocene period (Sarıkaya et al. 2009). LGM snowline elevation is calculated at 2700 m on the northern side (Sarıkaya et al. 2009) and 3000 m on the southern side (Messerli 1967). Today, a small glacier (*260 m long) is present to the north of the peak, with a snowline elevation at 3550 m (Sarıkaya et al. 2011). Repeated measurements of glacier length between 1902 and

2008 reveal a retreat rate of 4.2 m per year. If the rate of retreat observed in the past century continues, the glacier will disappear by 2070. Mount Süphan (4053 m), situated to the north of Lake Van, is the third highest peak of Turkey. During the LGM, the summit of Mount Süphan was covered by an ice cap, with outlet glaciers descending down to 2650–2700 m on the northern slope, and 2950–3000 m on the south. Former glaciers descended about 1.5–2 km and deposited moraines on the north side of the volcano (Kesici 2005). Mount Uludağ (2543 m), near the Marmara Sea, was also occupied by glaciers during glacial periods (Erinç 1949). Recent calculations using 10Be and 26Al cosmogenic dating

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Fig. 20.11 Mount Karçal rock glaciers on Çukunet Valley (photograph by Volkan Dede)

of glacial landforms demonstrated that the local LGM occurred around 20.3 ka ago (Zahno et al. 2009). Potential pre- and post-LGM fluctuations are also evident on the mountain and show phases of glacier advances at 16.1 ka ago, 13.3 ka ago and 11.5 ka ago (Zahno et al. 2009; Akçar et al. 2014, 2017). The LGM snowline was estimated at *2400 m a.s.l. (Messerli 1967), and the modern snowline elevation is at around 3500 m. In eastern Anatolia, the Mercan Mountains (3368 m), (Bilgin 1972), Esence Mountains (3477 m), Mount Mescid (3239 m) (Yalçınlar 1951; Atalay 1987), Mount Ilgaz

(2587 m) (Louis 1944) and Balık Gölü (Birman 1968) (Balık Lake, 2804 m) bear evidence of glacial heritage but have not been investigated in detail yet.

20.4

Present Glaciers and Rock Glaciers of Turkey

Glaciers respond quickly to climatic changes; thus, they are considered to be very accurate indicators of changes in atmospheric conditions. Currently due to climatic changes,

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407

Fig. 20.12 Ice cap on Mount Ağrı (Ararat) (photograph by Andrew Sevag)

our glacial assets are reducing rapidly. The latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) clearly indicates that global climate change is a truth beyond doubt (IPCC 2013). According to the same report, the mean surface temperature of Earth has increased by 0.89 °C since 1901 and this increase has caused a significant reduction in global snow and ice cover. In Turkey, the situation is very similar, and it is likely that if the current warming trend continues, the country will be almost ice free at the end of this century.

Today, some Turkish mountains, especially those in the eastern part of the country, have modern glaciers and rock glaciers. Thirty-three glacierets, 17 mountain glaciers, 1 ice cap (51 features in total) and 55 rock glaciers were recognized by remote sensing methods (Sarıkaya and Tekeli 2014). The only ice cap on Mount Ağrı (Fig. 20.12) alone constitutes half of the total glaciated area of Turkey (5.66 km2 of 11.5 km2 in total). The longest and most noticeable mountain glaciers are located in the south-eastern Taurus, on Mount Buzul. İzbırak and Erinç glaciers are

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Fig. 20.13 Aksu glacier valley and recent glacier on Mount Erciyes (photograph by M. A. Sarıkaya)

2.1 km and 1.5 km in length, respectively, both covering an area of about 2 km2. There are many smaller glaciers, smaller than 0.2 km2, which are probably remnants from earlier glacial stages. These glaciers are now located on the high, steep, northern slopes (Fig. 20.13). Turkish glaciers show substantial retreat, with maximum rates at 27.2 m per year on Mount Buzul since the beginning of the twentieth century (Sarıkaya and Tekeli 2014). The ice

cap on Mount Ağrı has also suffered from the general shrinking trend. Its total area has decreased by 29% since 1976 (Sarıkaya 2012). The general shrinking trend of Turkish glaciers is consistent with the general warming trend observed in the past century. Turkey also contains several examples of rocks glaciers in previously glaciated mountains (e.g. Erciyes Volcano; Sarıkaya et al. 2009; Kaçkar Range; Akçar et al. 2007; Karçal

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409

Fig. 20.14 Cosmogenic exposure ages of Turkish glacial landscapes. Ages obtained from Sarıkaya et al. (2008) (Mt. Sandıras), Zreda et al. (2011) (Mt. Aladağlar), Sarıkaya et al. (2009) (Mt. Erciyes), Zahno et al. (2010) and Akçar et al. (2014) (Mt. Uludağ), Zahno et al. (2009) and Köse et al. (2018), (Mt. Dedegöl), Akçar et al. (2007) (Kavron Valley; Kaçkar Mts.), Akçar et al. (2008) (Verçenik Valley; Kaçkar

Mts.), Reber et al. (2014) (Başyayla Valley; Kaçkar Mts.), Çiner et al. (2015, 2017) and Sarıkaya et al. (2017) (Mt. Geyikdağ), Sarıkaya et al. (2014) (Mt. Akdağ), Çiner and Sarıkaya (2017) (Bolkar Mts.) and Dede et al. 2017 (Karçal Mts.). Empty circles for pre-LGM, triangles for LGM, squares for Late Glacial, full circles for early Holocene and diamonds for late Holocene advances

Mountains; Dede et al. 2017; Geyikdağ Mountains; Çiner et al. 2017; Mount Karanfil; Çiner et al. 2018). Some of these periglacial features are still active (Oliva et al. 2018) (Fig. 20.11).

unusual early Holocene glaciations (possible Younger Drays glaciations), dated to 10–9 ka, were also reported from central Anatolia. Late Holocene and Little Ice Age advances were less extensive than older glaciations and are observed only at certain locations (Sarıkaya et al. 2011). Glaciers present on Turkish mountains today are retreating at accelerating rates, and historical observations of the retreat are consistent with the behaviour of other glaciers around the world. If the recent climate change continues at the same rate, Turkish glaciers will completely disappear by the end of this century. Glacier modelling together with palaeoclimate proxy from the region suggests the LGM climate was 8–11 °C colder than today (obtained from palaeotemperature proxies) and wetter (up to two times) on the south-western mountains along the Mediterranean (Sarıkaya et al. 2014). It was drier (by *60%) on the north-eastern mountains (Eastern Black Sea Mountains) and approximately the same as today in the interior regions (Mount Erciyes) (Sarıkaya 2009). The penetrating LGM precipitation over the mountains along the

20.5

Conclusions

Glaciers are not among the first things associated with Turkey; however, they still exist in Turkey, as they existed in the past, being represented by mountain glaciations and a few ice cap examples. Earlier researchers described the extent of these glacial landforms in many mountains, but they did not have numerical dating tools. Recent advances in cosmogenic dating methods allowed us to reveal important information regarding the timing of Quaternary glaciers. The oldest glacier activities were found on Akdağ and dated back to the pre-LGM times (*35 ka ago). On the other hand, the most extensive glacial advances in Turkey are reported from the global LGM period (*21 ka ago) (Fig. 20.14). Late Glacial advances occurred between 16 and 11 ka ago, and

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Mediterranean coast was produced by unstable atmospheric conditions due to the anomalously steep vertical temperature gradients on the Eastern Mediterranean (Sarıkaya et al. 2008). In contrast, drier conditions along the southern Black Sea were produced by the partially ceased moisture take up from the cold or frozen Black Sea and prevailing periglacial conditions due to the cold air carried from the northern hemisphere’s ice sheets at that glacial time. Acknowledgements This work represents a summary of several projects that were financially supported by TÜBİTAK (Grants 101Y002, 107Y069, 110Y300, 112Y087, 112Y139, 114Y548 and 116Y155) and by US National Science Foundation (Grant 0115298). This work would not have been possible without the inspiring guidance of Marek Zreda (University of Arizona) who pioneered the applications of 36Cl cosmogenic surface dating in Turkey. We would like to thank to our colleagues Serdar Bayarı and Erdal Şen (Hacettepe University), Lütfi Nazik (Ahi Evran University), Koray Törk (MTA), Cengiz Yıldırım (Istanbul Technical University) who joined us in the field and enriched our understanding regarding the glacial past of Turkey. Naki Akçar (University of Bern), Volkan Dede (Bilecik University), Hakan Gün (Atlas Magazine), Tahir Yılmaz and Andrew Sevag kindly provided some of the glacial landscape photographs. A.Ç. is also indebted to late Max Deynoux (University of Strasbourg) who passed away in 2017, for introducing him to glacial deposits in Turkey.

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M. A. Sarıkaya and A. Çiner Birman JH (1968) Glacial reconnaissance in Turkey. Geol Soc Am Bull 79:1009–1026 Blumenthal MM (1952) The high mountains of Taurids Aladağ, recent research on its geography, stratigraphy and tectonics (in German). Bull Miner Res Explor 6:136 Blumenthal MM (1956) Geology of northern and western Bolkardağ region (in Turkish). Bull Miner Res Explor 7:153 Blumenthal MM (1958) From Mount Ağrı (Ararat) to Mount Kaçkar (in German). Bergfahrten in nordostanatolsischen Glenzlanden. Die Alpen 34:125–137 Bobek H (1940) Recent and Ice time glaciations in central Kurdish high mountains (in German). Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde 27(1–2):50–87 Çiner A (2004) Turkish glaciers and glacial deposits. In: Ehlers J, Gibbard PL (eds) Quaternary glaciations: extent and chronology, part I: Europe. Elsevier Publishers, Amsterdam, pp 419–429 Çiner A, Sarıkaya MA (2017) Cosmogenic 36Cl geochronology of late quaternary glaciers on the Bolkar Mountains, south central Turkey. In: Hughes P, Woodward J (eds) Quaternary glaciation in the Mediterranean Mountains, vol 433. Geological Society of London Special Publication, pp 271–287. http://doi.org/10.1144/SP433.3 Çiner A, Deynoux M, Çörekçioğlu E (1999) Hummocky moraines in the Namaras and Susam Valleys, Central Taurids, SW Turkey. Quat Sci Rev 18:659–669 Çiner A, Sarıkaya MA, Yıldırım C (2015) Late Pleistocene piedmont glaciations in the Eastern Mediterranean; insights from cosmogenic 36 Cl dating of hummocky moraines in southern Turkey. Quat Sci Rev 116:44–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2015.03.017 Çiner A, Sarıkaya MA, Yıldırım C (2017) Misleading old age on a young landform? The dilemma of cosmogenic inheritance in surface exposure dating: moraines vs. rock glaciers. Quat Geochronol 42:76–88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2017.07.003 Çiner A, Köse O, Sarıkaya MA, Yıldırım C, Candaş A, Wilcken KM (2018) Late pleistocene cosmogenic 36Cl glacial chronology of the Mount Karanfil, Central Taurus Range, Turkey. In: Abstract, American Geophysical Union, Washington, 10–14 December 2018 Dede V, Çiçek İ, Uncu L (2015) Formations of rock glaciers in Karçal Mountains. Bull Earth Sci Appl Res Centre Hacet Univ 36(2):61–80 (in Turkish) Dede V, Çiçek V, Uncu L, Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2017) First cosmogenic geochronology from the Lesser Caucasus: Late Pleistocene glaciation and rock glacier development in the Karçal Valley, NE Turkey. Quat Sci Rev 164:54–67. https://doi.org/10. 1016/j.quascirev.2017.03.025 Doğu AF, Somuncu M, Çiçek İ, Tuncel H, Gürgen G (1993) Glacier shapes, yaylas and tourism on the Kaçkar Mountains (in Turkish). Turk Geogr Bull Ank Univ 157:183 Doğu AF, Çiçek İ, Gürgen G, Tuncel H (1996) Geomorphology of Akdağ and its effect on human activities (in Turkish). Turk Geogr Bull Ank Univ 7:95–120 Ege İ, Tonbul S (2005) The relationship of karstification and glaciation in Soğanlı Mountain (in Turkish). V. Quaternary workshop of Turkey, Istanbul Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey Erinç S (1949) Past and present glacial forms in Northeast Anatolian mountains (in German). Geol Rundsch 37:75–83 Erinç S (1951) The glacier of Erciyes in Pleistocene and post-glacial epoch. Rev Geogr Inst Univ Istanb 1(2):82–90 (in Turkish) Erinç S (1952) Glacial evidences of the climatic variations in Turkey. Geogr Ann 34:89–98 Erinç S (1953) From Van to Mount Cilo (in Turkish). Turk Geogr Bull Ank Univ 3–4:84–106 Erinç S (1955) Periglacial features on the Mount Honaz (SW Anatolia) (in Turkish). Rev Geogr Inst Univ Istanb 2:185–187 Erinç S (1957) About glacial evidences of Honaz and Bozdağ (in Turkish). Turk Geogr Bull 8:106–107

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411 Sarıkaya MA (2009) Late Quaternary glaciation and paleoclimate of Turkey inferred from cosmogenic 36Cl dating of moraines and glacier modeling. PhD thesis, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA Sarıkaya MA (2011) Present glaciers of Turkey (in Turkish). In: Ekinci D (ed) Research in physical geography: systematic and regional, Turkish Geography Union, Istanbul, vol 6, pp 527–544 Sarıkaya MA (2012) Recession of the ice cap on Mount Ağrı (Ararat), Turkey, from 1976 to 2011 and its climatic significance. J Asian Earth Sci 46:190–194 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2015) Late Pleistocene glaciations and paleoclimate of Turkey. Bull Miner Res Explor (MTA) 151: 107–127 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2017) The Late Quaternary glaciation in the Eastern Mediterranean. In: Hughes P, Woodward J (eds) Quaternary glaciation in the Mediterranean Mountains, vol 433. Geological Society of London Special Publication, pp 289–305. http://doi.org/ 10.1144/SP433.4 Sarıkaya MA, Tekeli AE (2014) Satellite inventory of glaciers in Turkey. In: Kargel JS, Leonard GJ, Bishop MP, Kääb A, Raup B (eds) Global land ice measurements from space Praxis. Springer, Berlin, pp 465–480 Sarıkaya MA, Zreda M, Çiner A, Zweck C (2008) Cold and wet Last Glacial Maximum on Mount Sandıras, SW Turkey, inferred from cosmogenic dating and glacier modeling. Quat Sci Rev 27(7– 8):769–780 Sarıkaya MA, Zreda M, Çiner A (2009) Glaciations and paleoclimate of Mount Erciyes, central Turkey, since the Last Glacial Maximum, inferred from 36Cl cosmogenic dating and glacier modeling. Quat Sci Rev 28(23–24):2326–2341 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Zreda M (2011) Quaternary glaciations of Turkey. In: Ehlers J, Gibbard PL, Hughes PD (eds) Developments in quaternary science, vol 15, pp 393–403 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Haybat H, Zreda M (2014) An early advance of glaciers on Mount Akdağ, SW Turkey, before the global Last Glacial Maximum; insights from cosmogenic nuclides and glacier modeling. Quat Sci Rev 88:96–109 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Yıldırım C (2017) Cosmogenic 36Cl glacial chronologies of the Late Quaternary glaciers on Mount Geyikdağ in the Eastern Mediterranean. Quat Geocholonology 39:189–204. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2017.03.003 Wright HE (1962) Pleistocene glaciation in Kurdistan. Eiszeit Gegenw 12:131–164 Yalçınlar İ (1951) Glaciations on the Soğanlı-Kaçkar mountains and Mescid Dağ (in French). Rev Geogr Inst Univ Istanb 1–2:50–55 Yalçınlar İ (1954) On the presence of the Quaternary glacial forms on Honaz Dağ-and-Boz Dağ (western Turkey) (in French). Compte Rendu Sommaire de la Société Géologique de France 13:296–298 Yavaşlı DD, Tucker CJ, Melocik KA (2015) Change in the glacier extent in Turkey during the Landsat Era. Remote Sens Environ 163:32–41 Zahno C, Akçar N, Yavuz V, Kubik PW, Schlüchter C (2009) Surface exposure dating of Late Pleistocene glaciations at the Dedegöl Mountains (Lake Beyşehir, SW Turkey). J Quat Sci 24(8): 1016–1028 Zahno C, Akçar N, Yavuz V, Kubik PW, Schlüchter C (2010) Chronology of Late Pleistocene glacier variations at the Uludag Mountain, NW Turkey. Quat Sci Rev 29:1173–1187 Zreda M, Çiner A, Sarıkaya MA, Zweck C, Bayari S (2011) Remarkably extensive glaciation and fast deglaciation and climate change in Turkey near the Pleistocene-Holocene boundary. Geology 39:1051–1054

Pleistocene Glacier Heritage and Present-Day Glaciers in the Southeastern Taurus (İhtiyar Şahap Mountains)

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Ali Fuat Doğu

Abstract

Contemporary and past glacial landforms are common in the higher sections of Turkish mountains. The Eastern Black Sea Mountains, the Taurus, and individual high mountains in Central and Eastern Anatolia contain glacier landforms and landscapes, hosting also actual glaciers. The high mountainous landscapes of these regions are deeply marked by the influence of intense glaciation that occurred approximately 20,000 years ago. These landscapes owe much to karstic processes too. In Eastern Anatolia (Southeastern Taurus), glacier morphological heritage from the Last Glacial and contemporary glaciers concentrates in two main ranges. The first one, located in the Southeastern Turkey between Iraqi and Iranian borders, includes the Buzul (Cilo glaciers) and İkiyaka (Sat glaciers) Mountains. The second one, located to the south of Lake Van, is the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains. Compared to the Buzul and İkiyaka Mountains where contemporary glaciers still cover relatively large areas, glaciers in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains are much smaller. In the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains, the permanent Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) snowline was 2700 m above sea level (a.s.l.). Today, the snowline has risen so high (3200–3300 m a.s.l.) that young moraine deposits and rock glaciers now cover the cirques of the melting glaciers. Keywords





Glacial geomorphology Southeastern Taurus Eastern Anatolia Glaciers

A. F. Doğu (&) Department of Geography, Yüzüncü Yıl University, Campus, 65080 Van, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

21.1

Introduction

During the colder phases of the Last Glacial period, i.e., between 74 and 12 ka ago, glaciations contributed to landform development in Turkey, particularly in high mountainous areas. During the LGM ca 24–18 ka ago,1 glaciated landscapes prevailed in three areas of Turkey (Erinç 1978; Kurter 1980; Doğu et al. 1993; Çiçek et al. 2006; Çiner 2003, 2004; Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015). These three areas are: (i) the “Eastern Black Sea Mountains” (often called “the Kaçkar Mountains”) which fringe the Black Sea shore in the northeastern part of the Anatolian peninsula; (ii) the Taurus Range (Western, Central and Southeastern Taurus) which runs from the southwestern end of the peninsula to its easternmost areas; (iii) some isolated high volcanoes and other high ranges in Central and Eastern Anatolia. Ancient cirques, glacial valleys, and contemporary glacier tongues in Turkey are mostly distributed on the secluded northern and northeastern slopes of these mountains. This is particularly true for the present-day glaciers (Çiner 2004). In addition, the altitude of the permanent snowline increases from southwards to eastwards, e.g., from 2050 m on Mount Sandıras (Doğu 1993) to 2500 m on Akdağ (Doğu et al. 2000) and from 2650 m on Mount Buzul to 2800 m at the easternmost end of the mountainous line of Anatolia at Mount İkiyaka (İzbırak 1951; Erinç 1953). In northern Anatolia, the snowline is 2275 m in the west on Uludağ (Erinç 1949), 2650 m on Mount Verçenik (Doğu et al. 1996), and 2700 m on Mount Kaçkar, (Doğu et al. 1993). In central Anatolia, the snowline is approximately 3000 m a.s.l., (Sarıkaya et al. 2009) a very high altitude which is largely due to continentality. The Southeastern Taurus Range follows a direction curved northwards.

1

In recent studies aiming to date Turkish glacial deposits by cosmogenic nuclide dating methods, Akçar et al. (2007, 2008) obtained 18,500 years, and Sarıkaya et al. (2008, 2009, 2012, 2014) 18,000– 23,000 years.

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_21

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Various ancient moraine deposits, cirques, glacial valleys, and contemporary glaciers occur on these mountains, among which İhtiyar Şahap Mountains (3634 m), Karadağ (3752 m), Mount Buzul (Ulu Doruk Peak: 4135 m), and Mount İkiyaka (3711 m) are the most important ones.

21.2

Geological and Geomorphological Characteristics of the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains

İhtiyar Şahap Mountains in the Bitlis Massif are composed of metamorphic rocks including Precambrian gneiss, Upper Paleozoic schists, phyllite, marble, and recrystallized limestone; Paleozoic to Mesozoic marble and recrystallized limestone and schists. The peaks that hosted glaciers are largely composed of Paleozoic marbles (MTA 2012). In line with the general extension of the Southeastern Taurus, the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains follow a NW-SE structural orientation, from Mount Hasanbeşir (3503 m) in the northwest to İhtiyar Şahap Mountains (3634 m) in the southeast. The water divide between these peaks passes by several hills attaining heights over 3000 m a.s.l. (Fig. 21.1). The glacial landscape in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains, whether ancient or recent, has developed in a karstic context, which is the characteristic of the Taurus (Çiner et al. 2015). Starting from Akdağ in the westernmost Taurus (Doğu et al. 2000; Sarıkaya et al. 2014; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2017), such nivokarstic or glaciokarstic morphology can be detected all the way to the easternmost Buzul–İkiyaka Mountains (Cilo–Sat Mountains). Karstic and glacial geomorphic processes are reshaped morphology and so the polycyclic topography have been occured in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains (though not as much as in the Akdağ Massif in SW Turkey). Field observations in the most elevated sections of the mountains show that periglacial and glacial landforms (e.g., cirques) have developed preferentially in karstic landforms such as poljes and dolines, which acted as privileged places for superficial erosion during glacial times. For example, glaciers developed in sinkholes or dolines turned these karstic landforms into cirques. When the glaciers melted and disappeared, the transformation reversed and the cirques turned back into dolines modeled again mainly by karstic processes. Today, lakes exist in some of these sinkholes which are still blocked with periglacial debris fallen from the cirque walls. Uzun Tekne Polje at 2240 m a.s.l., located between the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains and Mount Çadır (Fig. 21.2), is the largest karstic landscape within the massif. With the watershed between the Lake Van closed basin and the Tigris River headwaters being located in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains, the spatial distribution of karstic landforms in the massif suggests that the area drained by the underground water system

in the mountains may not match surface runoff organization and drainage area. This underground water network is fed by runoff swallowed by several dolines and in poljes in the mountains without any clear indication in which direction the disappearing flow is directed to, Lake Van basin or Tigris River headwaters. The İhtiyar Şahap Mountains contain many glacial valleys connected upslope to cirques positioned at the foot of high mountain peaks. Today, streams drain these valleys and their floors are covered by alluvial material reworking old moraines. In Güzelkonak, for example, (Fig. 21.3), the Yanıkçay stream flowing down from the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains deposits a large alluvial fan mixing river and glacial reworked materials. Similar secondary deposition of glacial sediments down a glacial valley is currently observed in the fluvial valleys eroding the eastern slopes of the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains.

21.3

Glacial Landforms on the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains

According to their orientation and drainage organization, the İhtiyar Şahap Mountain glacial valleys may be divided into two groups: (i) cirque-fed glaciers flowing into valleys belonging to the Lake Van closed basin and to another closed system formed by the Uzun Tekne Polje; (ii) glaciers flowing in the direction of the Tigris Basin.

21.3.1 Glacial Valleys Flowing to Lake Van In the Lake Van closed basin, the Yanıkçay Glacial Valley system comprises five large glacial valleys fed by numerous cirques. The whole system constitutes one of the most significant areas, which have been glaciated and/or are still glaciated in the region. This system, first studied by Schweizer (1975), is formed from west to east by the glacial valleys of Karacabey-Güvercin, Parça, Çeşme, Merdiven, and Karagöl (Fig. 21.2). It forms one-fourth of the whole glacial landscape in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains. It is also the most noteworthy unit of the system today because it still contains active glaciers, which are in 3000–3300 m altitude and nearly 100–400 m length. The Yanıkçay Glacier used to descend approximately to 1800 m in Koçak Village (Fig. 21.3). In a study conducted here, Schweizer (1975) attributed the ancient lake levels he identified at 12 m, 30 m, 55 m, and 80 m above the current lake level, to lake terraces related to moraine deposits. The permanent snowline altitude during the LGM in the Yanıkçay Glacial Valley system was 2600 m. The cirques feeding these glaciers are positioned between 2900 m and 3100 m (Figs. 21.4 and 21.5). In this system, typical

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Fig. 21.1 Location of İhtiyar Şahap Mountains

U-shaped glacial valleys, moraine deposits, and roches moutonnées testify to intense glacial conditions during the Last Glacial (Figs. 21.6 and 21.7). Approximately 28,000 to 20,000 years ago, Lake Van level reached 1700–1705 m a.s.l. (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). Especially, the Yanıkçay Glacial Valley system descended to 1800 m, almost to the lake level, during the Last Glacial. Near Gevaş too, the landscapes at the lakeshore suggest that

during the LGM glaciers were flowing also to a level very close to that of the lake. This observation suggests a possible impact of precipitation increase during the LGM, feeding the glacial tongues and the lake level rise. Above the Uzuntekne polje, glaciers also incised a U-shaped valley in the eastern İhtiyar Şahap Mountains. Two other palaeoglaciers (the Aldere and Ayder glaciers) occupied the western part of the Uzuntekne polje. The mean

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A. F. Doğu

Fig. 21.2 Geomorphological map of İhtiyar Şahap Mountains

elevation of these cirques is 3000 m, and the tongues descended to 2250 m in the polje. The permanent snowline during the LGM in this area was 2700 m. A smaller glacier area exists on the northern slopes of the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains. Located to the west of the Hasan Beşir Peak, this system is known as the Büyükçayır Glacial Valley. The double-lined lateral moraine deposits in the lower section of this glacial valley (Fig. 21.8) are important for the identification of distinct retreat phases after the LGM.

21.3.2 Glacial Valleys Flowing to the Tigris Basin Glaciers in this area were flowing from east to west. In the western part of the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains toward Bahçesaray, the Nazım and Sergis streams now drain such glacial valleys that contain moraines inside. Here, the permanent snowline during the LGM was 2650 m a.s.l.

Flowing southeastward, the Avgani Glacier (Fig. 21.2) used to occupy the central part of this area. In the eastern part of this south-looking glaciated area, there are several glacial valleys (Göldere, Hatungölü, Siyah, Nur, and Baş valleys). Here, the permanent snowline during the LGM was at 2800 m a.s.l. This system ends in Yukarı Narlıca Village, at approximately 2250 m in altitude. The İhtiyar Şahap Mountains hosted many glacial valleys during the LGM. The mean permanent snowline was then approximately at 2700 m a.s.l. The length of the glacial valleys in this system ranged between 2 and 14 km. Despite being shorter (approx. 10.5 km), the Yanıkçay Valley is the finest example of Alpine-type glacial valleys in the whole area. The glacier tongues in the valleys of the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains that flowed into different directions in the Last Glacial descended to different levels. They descended to 1800 m in the north, 2500 m in the west, and 2250 m in the east. This link between orientation and glacier length must have responded to differences in the amount of precipitation,

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Pleistocene Glacier Heritage and Present-Day Glaciers …

Fig. 21.3 Yanıkçay Valley, Güzelkonak Fan Delta, and Lake Van

Fig. 21.4 A lake in the Güvercin Dere Glacial Valley (glaciokarstic landform)

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Fig. 21.5 Cirques to the south of the Hatun Gölü Glacial Valley Fig. 21.6 Cirque beyond sheepback (roche moutonnée) at the Kirapet Pass

A. F. Doğu

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Pleistocene Glacier Heritage and Present-Day Glaciers …

Fig. 21.7 Present-day glacier areas in the Parça Glacial Valley and extensive moraine deposits in the Tekne Valley

Fig. 21.8 Double-lined lateral moraine deposits of the Büyükçayır Glacial Valley

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Fig. 21.9 An example of a contemporary glacier on the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains (southeast of the Kirapet Pass)

Fig. 21.10 A rock glacier area to the south of the Hatun Dere Glacial Valley

A. F. Doğu

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Pleistocene Glacier Heritage and Present-Day Glaciers …

the longest tongues needing more precipitation than the shortest ones. It is remarkable that the precipitation distribution pattern is the same as that of today around Lake Van, where the highest precipitation occurs in the west (Tatvan), followed by the east, with the lowest precipitation occurring around Van city south of the lake.

21.4

Contemporary Glaciers on the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains

Climate changes from the Last Glacial to the present have led to the rapid melting of the glaciers (IPCC 2013). The melting of glaciers occasionally accelerated and slowed down before the Holocene. During the Holocene, the glacier retreat speeded up and contemporary glaciers in Turkey disappear at different rates, according to their location. Today, modern glaciers in the country are located on isolated volcanoes such as Ağrı, Süphan, and Erciyes and in the Southeastern Taurus Mountains (İhtiyar Şahap, Buzul, and İkiyaka Mountains). Recently, the remaining glacier area in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains has shrunk more rapidly than those in the Buzul and İkiyaka Mountains. Remaining glaciers are under threat of total disappearance. Meanwhile, a difference in melting rate is evident between the remaining glaciers in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains, which is related to altitude, position, and topographic conditions (Fig. 21.9). After the LGM intense glacial context, climate conditions in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains allowed glaciers to remain active at the highest altitudes and peaks. However, the contemporary glaciers are small and located at 3000–3100 m altitude at the base of cirques or on cirque walls. Most of the glaciers mapped by Schweizer (1975) in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains and in Hasanbeşir and Yanıkçay glacial areas either do not exist any longer or have shrunk to disappear under moraine and debris deposits. This change over the last 40 years shows the rate of present melting. In front of the rapidly melting glaciers, rock glaciers developed in moraine rich deposits, sustaining themselves on the shaded slopes of cirque walls (Oliva et al. 2018). These periglacial landforms that are largely related to actual glaciers resemble true glaciers in aerial and satellite photographs. The moraines left inside the valleys by the melted glaciers provide material necessary for the formation of these rock glaciers (Fig. 21.10). At many places, concentric arc ridges at the surface of these ice-rich reworked moraine deposits are typical indications of rock glacier activity and persistent ice flow. The dynamics of the ice present, or water seeping, in these deposits responds to daily and seasonal freezing and thawing. When these waters freeze, they stick the rock blocks together. With the pressure of ice, this material starts to flow along the slope, generating glacier-imitating landforms. Today, several such rock

421

glaciers occur in the highest cirques of the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains, particularly on the northern and northeastern slopes. They are located either in front or over the surface of an actual glacier. Some of these rock glaciers are still forming, whereas others are no more active.

21.5

Conclusions

In the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains, to the south of Lake Van, the southern and northern slopes of the highest peaks between Hasanbeşir Peak (3503 m) and İhtiyar Şahap Peak (3634 m) were occupied by glaciers during the Last Glacial (Fig. 21.2). The permanent snowline during the LGM was approximately at 2700 m a.s.l. Many of the cirques in the range are glaciokarstic landforms, which developed at 3000– 3100 m altitude in the limestones of the Bitlis Massif. The İhtiyar Şahap Mountains glaciers used to occupy valleys oriented toward east, west, and north. The most characteristic glacier system in the range is that of the Yanıkçay Valley and its upper tributaries, which trend toward Lake Van. In the western part of the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains, double-lined lateral moraines in the Büyükçayır Glacial Valley record several phases of deglaciation since the LGM. During the LGM, the glacier tongues reached their lowest altitude (1800 m a.s.l.) on the northern slopes facing Lake Van (Yanıkçay Glacial Valley). Today, the peaks of the range host retreating glaciers. Contemporary global climatic change generates rapid temperature increase that produces immediate and rapid melting of the remaining glaciers. As a result, rock glaciers cover an extensive area in the İhtiyar Şahap Mountains today, some of which are still active.

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A. F. Doğu (2010) Upper Pleistocene terraces of Van Lake (eastern Anatolia, Turkey) and their relationships to climate forcing, recent tectonic impacts and volcanic activity during Upper Pleistocene. J Quat Sci 25(7):1124–1137 MTA (2012) Türkiye Jeoloji Haritası/Geological Map Of Turkey Van, 1/500 000 ölçekli, compiled by Mustafa Şener, Tuncay Ercan MTA Ankara Oliva M, Žebre M, Guglielmin MM, Hughes P, Çiner A, Vieria G, Bodin X, Andrés N, Colucci RR, García-Hernández C, Mora C, Nofre J, Palacios D, Pérez-Alberti A, Ribolini A, Ruiz-Fernández J, Sarıkaya MA, Serrano E, Urdea P, Valcárcel M, Woodward J, Yıldırım C (2018) The existence of permafrost conditions in the Mediterranean basin since the Last Glaciation. Earth-Sci Rev 185:397–436. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2018.06.018 Sarıkaya MA (2012) Recession of the ice cap on Mount Ağrı (Ararat), Turkey, from 1976 to 2011 and its climatic significance. J Asian Earth Sci Volume 46:190–194. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jseaes. 2011.12.009 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2015) Late Pleistocene glaciations and paleoclimate of Turkey. Bull Miner Res Explor (MTA) 151: 107–127 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2017) The late Quaternary glaciation in the Eastern Mediterranean. In: Hughes P, Woodward J (eds) Quaternary glaciation in the Mediterranean mountains, vol 433. Geological Society of London Special Publication, pp 289–305. http://doi.org/ 10.1144/SP433.4 Sarıkaya MA, Zreda M, Çiner A (2009) Glaciations and paleoclimate of Mount Erciyes, central Turkey, since the Last Glacial Maximum, inferred from 36Cl cosmogenic dating and glacier modeling. Quatern Sci Rev 28(23–24):2326–2341 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Zreda M (2011) Quaternary glaciations of Turkey. In: Ehlers J, Gibbard PL, Hughes PD (eds) Quaternary glaciations-extent and chronology; a closer look, vol 15. Developments in Quaternary Science, Elsevier Publications, Amsterdam, pp 393–403. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-444-53447-7.00030-1 Sarıkaya MA, Zreda M, Çiner A, Zweck C (2008) Cold and wet last glacial maximum on Mount Sandıras, SW Turkey, inferred from cosmogenic dating and glacier modeling. Quatern Sci Rev 27(7– 8):769–780 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Haybat H, Zreda M (2014) An early advance of glaciers on Mount Akdağ, SW Turkey, before the global Last Glacial Maximum; insights from cosmogenic nuclides and glacier modeling. Quatern Sci Rev 88:96–109. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. quascirev.2014.01.016 Schweizer G (1975) Untersuchungen zur Physiogeographie von Ostanatolien und Nordwestiran, geomorphologische, kilma- und hydrogeographische Studien im Vansee- und Rezaiyehsee-Gebiet. Tübinger Geogr. Studien, 60, Geogr. Inst. Univ. Tübingen, 145 pp

Aladağlar Mountain Range: A Landscape-Shaped by the Interplay of Glacial, Karstic, and Fluvial Erosion

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C. Serdar Bayarı, Alexander Klimchouk, Mehmet Akif Sarıkaya, and Lütfi Nazik

Abstract

The Aladağlar Mountain Range (AMR) is a large massif mainly composed of carbonate rocks hosting beautiful examples of glacial, karstic, and fluvial erosion. Extreme variations in climate and topography as well as the multitude of diverse geochemical conditions since the early Paleocene allowed development of huge hypogenic and epigenic karst systems. The interplay between the surface and karst drainage systems resulted in an attractive fluvial morphology with large karst springs, travertine bridges, gorges, and valleys. All of the karst valleys spreading from the heights of the AMR-hosted valley glaciers that once flowed down to 1100 m elevation. With its diverse landscape, the AMR is a promising land for tourists, backpackers, trekkers, and mountaineers. Large hanging karst springs, long rafting routes along gorges, travertine bridges, U-shaped glacial valleys and lakes, and challenging peaks are the major landscape attractions. Keywords





Aladağlar Mountain Range Glacio-karst Quaternary glaciation Hanging karst spring Travertine bridge C. S. Bayarı (&) Department of Geological Engineering, Hacettepe University, 06800 Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] A. Klimchouk Institute of Geological Sciences, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kiev, Ukraine e-mail: [email protected] M. A. Sarıkaya Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences, Istanbul Technical University, 34469 Istanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] L. Nazik Department of Geography, Ahi Evran University, Kırşehir, Turkey e-mail: lutfi[email protected]

22.1

Introduction

Aladağlar Mountain Range (AMR) is a large (*1000 km2) carbonate massif located in south-central Anatolia (37°75′ N, 35°20′ E; Fig. 22.1). It is part of the Taurus Mountains Range, a mountain belt belonging to Alp-Himalaya Orogeny. The elevation in the AMR ranges from 400 m a.s.l. to above 3750 m a.s.l., which makes the AMR one of the deepest karst systems in the world. It is surrounded by the left-lateral Ecemiş Fault corridor on the west, Zamantı River on the east, Erciyes Volcano on the north, and Karsantı Tertiary Basin on the south. The AMR hosts large lead and zinc carbonate deposits and provides great pastures for nomadic shepherds. With its rugged topography and number of challenging peaks, the AMR is a favorite area for international trekkers and mountaineers (Fig. 22.2). The AMR hosts several national parks because of its pristine and unique vegetation and spectacular landscapes like hanged karst springs, natural travertine bridges, “superkarst” landforms (i.e., a very rugged and naked limestone topography shaped by numerous karrens and dissolution dolines with a complex network of conduits and shafts), glacially scoured highlands, rock glaciers, glacial valleys, and moraines. While glacial and periglacial climates dominated the massif during most of the Pleistocene, a mild Mediterranean and a semi-arid continental climate currently prevails in the southern and northern parts, respectively (Oliva et al. 2018).

22.2

General Setting

22.2.1 Geology and Geomorphological Evolution of AMR The geology of the AMR is characterized by the presence of five carbonate nappes, which have been thrusted onto each other during the late Cretaceous period due to the closure of

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_22

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Fig. 22.1 Location of Aladağlar Mountain Range (AMR) in Turkey. Locations of the sites mentioned in text are shown on the digital elevation model of the AMR

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Fig. 22.2 The aerial view shows western mountain flank and numerous peaks at the highlands (photo courtesy of Turgut Tarhan)

the northern branch of Neo-Tethys Ocean (Tekeli et al. 1984; Özgül 1984). This process resulted in stacking of five separate but compositionally similar stratigraphic sequences —once spread side-by-side in a 1500-km-wide epicontinental sea—into the roughly 30-km-wide AMR. These nappe sequences include deposits aged from Ordovician to late Cretaceous. While detrital and volcanic rocks are also observed, carbonate rocks are the dominant lithology in each nappe unit. Quiet conditions of the epicontinental sea terminated in the late Cretaceous with the beginning of ocean closure process. First, detrital deposits including marl, mudstone, siltstone, and sandstone along with the slump deposits, olistostroms, blocks of carbonate and ophiolite rocks cover the carbonate sequences. Then, these sequences moved as independent nappe units which thrusted onto each other to form the core of the AMR. Finally, a more than 1 km thick ophiolite nappe covered the AMR until the initiation of its exhumation around the early Paleocene (Tekeli et al. 1984). During the early Paleocene–late Eocene period (65– 50 Ma), hydrothermal activity and hypogenic karstification associated with nearby granitic rock formation resulted in the development of sulfidic lead-zinc deposits and open

hydrothermal cavities in the AMR. Based on observations of the nature of sedimentation in the surrounding basins to the south and west, it is understood that the AMR started to emerge above sea level (e.g., 250 m) during that period. At the end of the early Eocene, rapid uplift became dominant until the end of Oligocene (50–25 Ma). During this period, the maximum elevation was probably around 1000 m a.s.l. and a tropical to sub-tropical climate favored epigenic karst development as the ophiolite cover over the stacked nappes was gradually removed. It is assumed that the initially sulfidic lead-zinc deposits have been converted to their carbonate counterparts because of the infiltration of oxygen-rich groundwater recharge from precipitation. The maximum elevation of the AMR rose from *1000 m to *3000 m during the period between early Oligocene and middle Miocene when seawater intruded the surrounding basins due to enhanced subsidence resulted from increased erosion in the AMR (Jaffey and Robertson 2001, 2004). Probably because of the ever-increasing elevation of Anatolian micro-continent since the closure of the Neo-Tethys, the climate changed from tropical/sub-tropical marine to semi-arid continental that resulted in reduced precipitation input over the AMR. As the elevation increased, the mean

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annual temperature was reduced at the highlands where a poor, steppe type vegetation cover started to become dominant. These environmental changes slowed down the epigenic karst development in the AMR from early Oligocene to early Miocene (25–15 Ma). Though with slower rates, uplift of the AMR continued from early Miocene to recent with an increase in maximum elevation from *3200 m to *3500 m. Such land rise accompanied with cooler climate conditions reduced intensity of epigenic karst development until early Quaternary (last 2 Ma). Glacial conditions interrupted by interglacial paucities were dominant during the Pleistocene (*2 Ma to 10 ka). The AMR has been affected strongly by the Quaternary glaciations (Çiner 2004; Spreitzer 1957, 1971; Zreda et al. 2004). In the central part of the highlands, the Yedigöller Plateau has been covered by a thick ice cap from where the tributary glacial valleys were fed. Valley glaciers extended down to 1500 m on the western and 1100 m on the eastern flanks of the AMR (Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015, 2017; Zreda et al. 2011). Such extensive glacier formations along with the thawing and freezing in the periglacial zones resulted in the complete destruction of epikarstic landscapes formed before that time. Today, large glacial valleys extending from Yedigöller Plateau, cirques hosting permanent or temporal lakes, glacially scoured surfaces, roches moutonnées, saddles, outwash deposits, and large moraine sets constitute the major evidences of Pleistocene glaciations. Rock glaciers and kettle holes are the remnants of the last glacial activity of the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) between *20 ka and 10 ka ago. The effect of Pleistocene glaciations on epikarst of the AMR is amazing. Widespread formation of numerous decapitated shafts shows how immense the power of glacial scouring over the epikarst zone was (Klimchouk et al. 2006). Similarly, large number of unwalled cave occurrences observed along the walls of glacial valleys provides evidence on dissection by glacial erosion of pre-formed cave systems. Termination of the last glacial period has made strong reflections on the landscape of the AMR. Among those, the most prominent are the hanged karst springs, travertine bridges and a “superkarst” landscape. The superkarst zone, which is the rejuvenation of epikarst at the mountain flank, is developed along the timber line (i.e., 1800 m a.s.l.) at the south and southwest of the AMR where Mediterranean-type climate with wet-mild winters and hot-dry summers dominate. Here, pre-conditions for epikarst development were enhanced by periglacial processes and epikarst has been recovered during the Holocene (i.e., last 10 ka) due to favorable climate conditions. Both the hanged karst springs and travertine bridges are located about 10–30 m above the present stream level at respective sites. Moreover, there are other karst springs which are not hanged on the wall of gorges but are still

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above the level of stream they discharge to. Such an elevation difference apparently resulted from the difference between erosive powers of surface (i.e., fluvial) and subsurface (i.e., karstic groundwater) flow systems in the AMR. Under common circumstances where surface and subsurface erosion rates are at a comparable level, karst springs and the travertine deposits associated with them are located at the elevation of a neighboring stream. However, when the recharge to groundwater system is locked fully or partly in the ice phase but precipitation feeding the streams at lower elevations is in the form of rainfall, fluvial erosion is much faster than groundwater erosion. The result is that groundwater outflow and deposits associated with them are located above the stream level. Another process that favors the formation of elevated/hanged springs and travertine bridges is the glacio-isostatic rebound of the AMR. With an assumed ice cap thickness of 400 m, the AMR might have experienced an isostatic rebound of 100 m since LGM.

22.2.2 Hydrogeological Characteristics The AMR has a much higher elevation compared to the surrounding valleys and plains. Therefore, the groundwater recharge supplied by precipitation is transmitted to karst springs located along the flanks of the AMR. While there are karst springs along the northern, western, and southern margins of the AMR, the most prominent discharge of the karst system occurs through a number of karst springs located along the Zamantı River or its tributaries in the east where the AMR has a lower boundary elevation compared to the other sides. The karst aquifer system of the AMR acts like a sponge which has a very high absorbance capacity of the recharge fallen on it. Even the most torrential rainfalls fallen on snow cover do not generate substantial surface flows over the karst terrain. Notable floods occur only on detrital-dominant lithological units like ophiolite or ophiolite mélange where infiltration is limited. The high seepage capability of karst formations is due to extensive development of conduit system throughout their historical development. High hydraulic gradient imposed by the substantial elevation difference of main recharge and discharge zones is another factor that eases absorbing the recharge events. The long-term mean annual discharge of karst springs into the Zamantı River through a number of karst springs is about 1 billion cubic meters. Almost all of this discharge is accounted by Yerköprü 1, 2, 3, Göksu and Kapuzbaşı springs. Yerköprü in Turkish means earthen bridge, which refers to travertine bridges formed by these springs (Bayarı 2002). Yerköprü 1, 2, 3, Göksu, and Kapuzbaşı (hanged) springs account for the 46%, 31%, and 15% of the total karst groundwater discharge into the Zamantı River, respectively. The mean residence times of groundwater discharging from

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these springs were found to be around 20 years based on numerical modeling studies that rely on environmental tracer observations (Özyurt and Bayarı 2005).

22.3

Geomorphological Landscapes

22.3.1 Glacially Scoured Highlands, Yedigöller Plateau Extensive development of karst landscape in the AMR appears to have slowed down since early Miocene (15 Ma) when the mean elevation reached 1750 m a.s.l. Since then, the mean elevation steadily rose to 2000 m a.s.l. It is thought that sparse vegetation above 1750 m a.s.l. was the primary factor that slowed the karst development in the highlands. Following the humid Pliocene period, dramatic change in climate during the Pleistocene resulted in glacial conditions in the AMR. According to field observations, valley glaciers fed by an ice cap nested in Yedigöller Plateau extended down to 1500 m a.s.l. on the western and about 1100 m a.s. l. on the eastern flanks of the AMR. Continuous melting of ice at the foot of glaciers on the western flank resulted in the formation of a large sandur deposit by alluvial fans extending over the Ecemiş Fault (Sarıkaya et al. 2015a, b; Yıldırım et al. 2016). These well-preserved alluvial fans are located along a *20 km long, NNE trending linear valley on the western front of the AMR (Fig. 22.3). Recently, they have been dated using the 36Cl surface exposure dating methods (Sarıkaya et al. 2015a, b). The oldest alluvial fan surface was formed by 136.0 ± 23.4 ka ago. The incision of the younger Emli Fan surfaces occurred by 97.0 ± 13.8 ka and created an erosional surface around 81.2 ± 13.2 ka ago. After that time, glacial outwash sediments were deposited during the Last Glacial (Sarıkaya et al. 2015a, b). Today, the highlands including the Yedigöller Plateau are comprised of bedrock surfaces completely devoid of epikarst

Fig. 22.3 View of the AMR and alluvial fans developed along the Ecemiş Fault. Demirkazık Peak and Yalak River are on the left side of the photo. Emli Valley is located on the right side of the picture. Please

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zone. Freezing and thawing in the periglacial zone during the glacial periods or in the highlands during the interglacial periods followed by the glacial scouring at the bottom, sides and foot of the glaciers devastated the entire epikarst zone developed until Pleistocene (Fig. 22.4). The highlands of the AMR abound with glacio-karstic landscape elements like permanent and perennial lakes (tarns) nested in overdeepened cirques or over bedrock cavities, arêtes, cols, pyramidal hills, saddles, roches moutonnées, kettle lakes (holes), unwalled caves, and decapitated shafts (Bayarı et al. 2003; Klimchouk et al. 2006). A seven-year-long survey conducted in 2000–2008 by an international team of cavers discovered about 250 caves in and around the Yedigöller Plateau. Many of these caves are in the form of decapitated shafts partly filled by debris scoured from the epikarst zone by the Pleistocene glaciers. The AMR is rich in spectacular glacial landscapes like pyramidal hills and saddles (Fig. 22.5). While the Pleistocene glaciation terminated about 10 ka ago, rock glaciers and/or debris-covered glaciers are still observed at southern part of the Yedigöller Plateau and at the higher part of the Emli Valley where insolation does not reach effectively (Fig. 22.6). These glaciers are currently melting, probably because of the recent climate changes. Melting of large ice blocks within clay-to-boulder-sized debris results in the formation of ice caves with running streams inside or kettle holes which are meter-to-decameter-sized lakes nested in ice blocks (Fig. 22.6).

22.3.2 Glacial Valleys and Moraines; Hacer Valley Pleistocene glaciation has led to the formation of long valley glaciers, mainly originating from the ice cap in the Yedigöller Plateau. Among all, the most prominent was the glacier of Hacer Valley on the eastern part of the AMR

note that the alluvial fan surfaces were cut by the Ecemiş River, which runs to the south (right)

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Fig. 22.4 Early summer view of Yedigöller Plateau (looking west). The elevation ranges from 3000 m a.s.l. to 3750 m a.s.l. The highland has been completely scoured by Pleistocene glaciers, which removed

the epikarst zone, leaving only decapitated cave shafts filled by glacial debris. This highland is thought to have hosted an ice cap during the peak periods of glaciations

(Fig. 22.7). This glacier originated from the ice cap in the Yedigöller Plateau and extended down to 1100 m a.s.l. elevation through a 14-km valley which is now the major trekking route within the Hacer National Park. In the lower part of the valley, there are a number of terminal moraines followed by glacial outwash deposits. Surface exposure dates obtained from the cosmogenic chlorine-36 content of moraines and glacially eroded bedrock surfaces revealed an extensive glaciation during the transition of Pleistocene to Holocene (Zreda et al. 2011). Valley glaciers have been set up in valleys that had been formed during the Pleistocene by the interplay of fluvial and karst erosion processes. Many of such valleys appear to have formed by the gradual collapse of underground karst rivers that connected sinkholes to karst springs. Such underground rivers turned into gorges due to the continuing roof collapses as the underground drainage network grew larger. Then, these gorges turned into V-shaped valleys by continuing fluvial and karst erosion. These V-shaped valleys turned out to become U-shaped valleys due to glaciers flowing through them. Valley glaciers scoured and filled out all karst features once existing in these valleys. Furthermore, loss of the huge pressure exerted by glaciers on the walls of valley, due to ice melting, caused wall expansion that resulted in further destruction of karst shafts and their exposure in the canyon walls.

However, extensive glacial scouring during the Pleistocene (*last 2.6 Ma) devastated the epikarst and filled in almost all karst shafts extending into the depths of the karst system. Substantial effort has been spent for several years by an international team of cavers to find access to deep cave systems that should exist in such a thick unsaturated karst zone (Klimchouk et al. 2006). Eventually, a narrow crack, which hid itself from glacial debris inflow in the shadow of a roche moutonnée, led way to such a deep system, the Kuzgun Cave (Fig. 22.8). Entrance of the cave is located at 2800 m a.s.l. and after 4 years of efforts, the cavers penetrated in the main branch to a depth corresponding to *1400 m a.s.l. While further penetration has been stopped due to a risky boulder choke zone, there is still another 300 m of penetration potential before the local saturated zone is reached. Observations inside the Kuzgun Cave provided striking evidences on the historical evolution of the karst in the AMR. Morphology of high- and narrow-inclined passages (“meanders”) connecting separate shafts indicates their formation in the vadose zone and supports the idea that the entire system uplifted very fast after the early Oligocene. Vadose invasion shafts and connecting meanders cut across pre-formed voids of different origin, particularly hypogenic hydrothermal cavities lined with a crust of columnar calcite crystals and partly filled with clay containing large spherical concretions. The hypogenic karst development probably took place during the early stage of exhumation of the carbonate massif through the early Paleocene–late Eocene period (65–50 Ma). In sediment fill of other intercepted cavities, marine fossils of Miocene age were identified, indicating that sediments of Miocene age were once present

22.3.3 Deep Cave Systems; Kuzgun Cave The AMR has a more than 2000-m-deep unsaturated zone in which there is vast potential for vertical cave development.

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Fig. 22.5 a Pyramidal peaks shaped by glacial erosion in western AMR (left). Pyramidal peaks are common in the AMR. b Saddles (large-scale roches moutonnées) formed by the differential erosion of bedrock due to spatial velocity difference of overlying glacier are also common in the AMR (Körmenlik Valley, NW of AMR, right)

in a catchment area of the conduit system. Some parts of the Kuzgun Cave contain a multiplicity of unusual secondary mineral formations waiting to be thoroughly studied. Considering the large number of decapitated shafts discovered in and around the Yedigöller Plateau, it is understood that the AMR hosts an unsaturated zone with extreme conduit development. This argument is also supported by the fact that even the most torrential storms do not generate any surface flow over the carbonate terrain of the AMR.

22.3.4 Ulupınar “Superkarst” Zone One of the remarkable landscapes in the AMR is the “superkarst” (a kind of polygonal karst) extending along the tree line on the southeastern and southern parts of the massif (Fig. 22.9). The “superkarst” belt is characterized by numerous densely packed dolines and deep fissure-type karren (e.g., Öztürk et al. 2018). Because of the high density of dolines, the surface has gained a honeycomb-like

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Fig. 22.6 Rock glaciers as mixture of ice and boulder to clay-sized debris still exist above 3300 m a.s.l. in the Yedigöller Plateau. Kettle Holes are encountered frequently in the AMR. They are formed by rapid melting of large ice blocks in rock glaciers

structure. The regions with “superkarst” formation are open to Mediterranean Sea where abundant precipitation is supplied year-round. Lightning storms lasting all night are common events during the summer time. The valleys of the Zamantı River and its tributaries opening southward provide easy access paths to air masses to reach at these parts of the AMR. The superkarst belt corresponds to an area where periglacial conditions have been dominant during the Pleistocene glaciations. Hence, physical weathering and fracturing of the near-surface zone were intense in this belt because of frequent freezing and thawing. Active dissolution in favorable climatic conditions since the LGM caused rejuvenation of the epikarst development and the formation of the “superkarst” landscape at the periglacial zone during the glacial periods.

22.3.5 Kapuzbaşı Hanged Springs The spectacular Kapuzbaşı hanged karst springs pours from the steep right bank of the Kapuz Gorge which is located about 10 km east of the AMR (Fig. 22.10). There are seven major groundwater discharges four of which pour directly onto the stream which is also fed by spring water except during the snowmelt season. The springs are located about 15–30 m above the stream level. The site is a part of the Aladağlar National Park. The groundwater discharging through these springs is fed mainly from snowmelt in the Yedigöller Plateau. Because of the fast infiltration and lack of dissolved soil carbon dioxide, the recharge water has limited capacity to dissolve carbonate minerals before they pour out from the Kapuzbaşı springs. Hence, the specific

conductance of a spring’s water is around 120 microS/cm. The temperature of water (9 °C) is similar to the mean temperature at the time of snowmelt season (usually April– May). Numerical modeling studies based on long-term environmental tritium observations revealed a mean residence time of 20 years for these springs. In other words, it takes 20 years in average for snowmelt to reach these springs (Özyurt and Bayarı 2005).

22.3.6 Yerköprü Travertine Bridges Another noteworthy set of landscapes in the AMR is the Yerköprü travertines located at three distinct locations along the Zamantı River. These travertines are formed by karst springs that are fed from the highlands of the AMR (Bayarı 2002; Fig. 22.11). Two of these bridges (Yerköprü 1 and 2) are located upstream from the Zamantı River at 700 m a.s.l, and the third one is located on the downstream part of Zamantı River at 400 m a.s.l. (Yerköprü 3). Temperature of the groundwater forming the travertine bridges increases from 13.5 °C at Yerköprü 1 to 14.5 °C at Yerköprü 3. Similarly, the specific conductance of Ca-HCO3-type groundwater increases from 450 microS/cm at Yerköprü 1 to 500 microS/cm at Yerköprü 3 (Bayarı and Günay 1995; Özyurt and Bayarı 2008). Similar to the Kapuzbaşı springs, the mean residence time of groundwater discharging from these springs is about 20 years. The width of the stream covered by the travertine bridges is about 15 m whereas the bridges are located about 10 m above the low level of the stream. Currently, the stream water erodes the bridges while they are still being built by the

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Aladağlar Mountain Range: A Landscape-Shaped by the Interplay …

Fig. 22.7 a Down-looking view of 14-km-long U-shaped Hacer Glacier Valley on the eastern part of the AMR (looking east from *3000 m a.s.l.). Green zone is the pine forest spreading below 1800 m a.s.l. The pine forest covers several terminal moraines beyond which tarns are nested. b an erratic block left on the moraines upon melting of the glacier. The weight of the erratic is estimated to be 170 tons. Note the human scale at the bottom-left of erratic boulder

431

432 Fig. 22.8 a The profile of Kuzgun Cave (above); b the downside view of one of the large shafts in this cave (below, note the human scale at central right)

C. S. Bayarı et al.

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Aladağlar Mountain Range: A Landscape-Shaped by the Interplay …

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Fig. 22.8 (continued)

Fig. 22.9 “Superkarst” belt is located along the eastern flank of AMR where Mediterranean-type climate dominates. Favorable climate conditions result in extreme dissolution of carbonate rocks. As a consequence, a long and thick belt of epikarst has developed. Superkarst zone has been probably located in the periglacial zone during the glacial periods

associated karst springs. Calculations show that bridge formation by lateral travertine build-up is possible considering stream width and the height of springs from the stream (Bayarı 2002). However, there is evidence that trunks and bushes carried by the stream might have provided a basement for the travertine bridge development if they got trapped.

Almost all of the groundwater discharge from the AMR is supplied by karst springs located along the including Yerköprü 1, 2, and 3. However, travertine bridge formation is observed only in Yerköprü springs because the groundwater is super-saturated with respect to calcite only in these springs.

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Fig. 22.10 Kapuzbaşı hanged karst springs pouring from about 30 m above the stream formed as a result of competition between the fluvial and karst erosion rates during the glacial periods (photograph Attila Çiner)

Fig. 22.11 Yerköprü 3 Travertine bridge located at 400 m a.s.l. on Zamantı River (looking from upstream). The travertine bridge measures 20 m across the stream and *10 m wide

22.4

Conclusions

The Aladağlar Mountain Range of south-central Turkey is probably one of the most outstanding regions on Earth in terms of a unique collage of spectacular glacial, karstic, and glacio-karstic landforms. Long-lasting research on the

processes that shaped these landforms has shed light on the morphogenetic evolution of the AMR. However, there are still many issues to be resolved in the future like the extent of deep cave systems and the wealth of information about paleo-environments they contain. Furthermore, there is an ever-increasing pressure over the natural stability of this region. Raising the quality of existing backcountry roads

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Aladağlar Mountain Range: A Landscape-Shaped by the Interplay …

will eventually cause an increase in tourist population and construction of hydropower structures over Zamantı River threatens aesthetic values of the karst springs and the travertine bridges. Acknowledgements The authors thank the following institutions for their support/funding through various projects: General Directorate of Mineral Resources of Turkey (MTA), Hacettepe University Research Fund, The Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK project 112Y087), National Science Foundation (USA) and Ukrainian Speleological Association.

References Bayarı CS (2002) A rare landform: Yerköprü travertine bridges in the Taurids karst range, Turkey. Earth Surf Process Land 27:577–590 Bayarı CS, Günay G (1995) Combined use of environmental isotopic and hydrochemical data in differentiation of groundwater flow patterns through the Aladag karstic aquifer-Turkey. Application of Tracers in Arid zone Hydrology. IAHS Publication No 232, pp 99– 117 Bayarı CS, Zreda M, Çiner A, Nazik L, Törk K, Özyurt NN, Klimchouk A, Sarıkaya MA (2003) The extent of Pleistocene ice cap, glacial deposits and glaciokarst in the Aladaglar Massif: central Taurids Range, Southern Turkey. In: XVI Inqua Congress, Paper #55360, XVI Inqua Congress, Reno Nevada USA, 23–30 July 2003, Abstracts, 144 Çiner A (2004) Turkish glaciers and glacial deposits. In: Ehlers J, Gibbard PL (eds) “Quaternary glaciations: extent and chronology”, Part. I: Europe”, vol. 2. Elsevier Publications, Developments in Quaternary Science, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, pp 419–429. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1571-0866(04)80093-9 Jaffey N, Robertson AHF (2001) New sedimentological and structural data from the Ecemiş Fault Zone, southern Turkey: implications for its timing and offset and the Cenozoic tectonic escape of Anatolia. J Geol Soc Lond 158:367–378 Jaffey N, Robertson AHF (2004) Non-marine sedimentation associated with Oligocene-Recent exhumation and uplift of the Central Taurus Mountains, Turkey. Sediment Geol 173:53–89 Klimchouk A, Bayarı CS, Nazik L, Törk K (2006) Glacial destruction of cave systems in high mountains, with special reference to the Aladağlar massif, Central Taurids, Turkey. Acta Carsol 35(2):111– 122 Oliva M, Žebre M, Guglielmin MM, Hughes P, Çiner A, Vieria G, Bodin X, Andrés N, Colucci RR, García-Hernández C, Mora C, Nofre J, Palacios D, Pérez-Alberti A, Ribolini A, Ruiz-Fernández J, Sarıkaya MA, Serrano E, Urdea P, Valcárcel M, Woodward J, Yıldırım C (2018) The existence of permafrost conditions in the Mediterranean basin since the Last Glaciation. Earth Sci Rev 185:397–436. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2018.06.018 Özgül N (1984) Stratigraphy and tectonic evolution of the central Taurides. In: Tekeli O, Göncüoğlu MC (eds) Geology of the Taurus Belt: proceedings of international symposium, Ankara, Turkey, 26– 29 September, pp 77–99

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Öztürk MZ, Şimşek M, Şener MF, Utlu M (2018) GIS based analysis of doline density on Taurus Mountains, Turkey. Environ Earth Sci 77:536. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-018-7717-7 Özyurt NN, Bayarı CS (2005) Steady and unsteady state lumped parameter modelling of 3H and CFCs transport: hypothetical analyses and application to an alpine karst aquifer. Hydrol Process 19(17):3269–3284 Özyurt NN, Bayarı CS (2008) Temporal variation of chemical and isotopic signals in major discharges of an Alpine karst aquifer in Turkey: implications with respect to response of karst aquifers to recharge. Hydrogeol J 16:297–309 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2015) Late Pleistocene glaciations and paleoclimate of Turkey. Bull Miner Res Explor (MTA) 151:107– 127 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2017). The late Quaternary glaciation in the Eastern Mediterranean. In: Hughes P, Woodward J (eds) “Quaternary Glaciation in the Mediterranean Mountains”, vol 433. Geological Society of London, Special Publication, pp 289–305. http://doi.org/10.1144/SP433.4 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Zreda M (2011) Quaternary glaciations of Turkey. In: Ehlers J, Gibbard PL, Hughes PD (eds) Quaternary glaciations-extent and chronology; a closer look, vol 15. Elsevier Publications, Developments in Quaternary Science, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, pp 393–403. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-44453447-7.00030-1 Sarıkaya MA, Yıldırım C, Çiner A (2015a) No surface breaking on Ecemiş Fault, central Turkey, since Late Pleistocene (64.5 ka); new geomorphic and geochronologic data from cosmogenic dating of offset alluvial fans. Tectonophys 649:33–46. https://doi.org/10. 1016/j.tecto.2015.02.022 Sarıkaya MA, Yıldırım C, Çiner A (2015b) Late Quaternary alluvial fans of Emli Valley in the Ecemiş Fault Zone, south central Turkey: insights from cosmogenic nuclides. Geomorphol 228:512–525. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2014.10.008 Spreitzer H (1957) Zur geographie des Kilikischen Ala Dağ im Taurus, Festschr. Z. Hundertjahrfeier der Georg.Ges.Wien, s. 414–459, m.1 Taf., 8 Abb. İ Text u 12 Bildern Spreitzer H (1971) Rezente und eiszeitliche Grenzen der und periglazialen Höhenstufen im Zentralen Taurus (vornehmlich am Beispiel des Kilikischen Ala Dağ), Mitt naturwiss. Ver Steiermark, Band 101, 139–162, Graz Tekeli O, Aksay A, Ürgün BM, Işık A (1984) Geology of the Aladağ Mountains. In: Geology of the Taurus Belt, proceedings of international symposium, Ankara-Turkey, 26–29 September Yıldırım C, Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2016) Late Pleistocene intraplate extension of the Central Anatolian Plateau, Turkey: inferences from cosmogenic exposure dating of alluvial fan, landslide and moraine surfaces along the Ecemiş Fault Zone. Tectonics 35. https://doi.org/ 10.1002/2015tc004038 Zreda M, Çiner A, Bayarı CS, Sarıkaya A (2004) Magnitude of Quaternary glaciers and glaciations from low to high latitudes: global or local dominant controlling factors, TÜBİTAK—NSF Project, Final Report, 86 p Zreda M, Çiner A, Sarıkaya MA, Zweck C, Bayarı CS (2011) Remarkably extensive glaciation and fast deglaciation and climate change in Turkey near the Pleistocene-Holocene boundary. Geology 39(11):1051–1054

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Glacial Landscape and Old-Growth Forests of the Mount Kaçkar National Park (Eastern Black Sea Region) İhsan Çiçek, Gürcan Gürgen, Harun Tunçel, Ali Fuat Doğu, and Oğuz Kurdoğlu

Abstract

The Eastern Black Sea Mountains were substantially glaciated owing to the suitable geomorphologicalclimatological conditions during the Pleistocene. Glacial landscapes occur in valleys higher than 1800–2000 m a.s.l. The altitude of the Pleistocene climatic permanent snowline in the region is 2600 m a.s.l. The mountainous area is important for Turkey owing to six glaciers still present in these highlands. Today the glacier line in the area of Mount Kaçkar National Park is approximately 3000–3100 m a.s.l. Evidence of four glacier advances was found in the Başyayla Valley within Mount Kaçkar National Park area. Kavran Valley lies in the Kaçkar Mountain and is a N-S-oriented, typically U-shaped glacial valley consisting of a main and three tributary valleys. According to the 10Be ages, the advance of the Kavran Paleoglacier began at least 26.0 ± 1.2 ka ago, with the Last Glacial Maximum advance continuing until

18.3 ± 0.9 ka. In the area, there are 10 villages and 35 yaylas. All houses are built with stone and wood. The traditional activities of the population focus on animal husbandry, with a seasonal organization characterized by summer pasturing in the high sections of the mountains. In the National Park, approximately 13000 cattle and sheep migrate seasonally between village and yaylas, while honey production is another significant activity. On the other hand, the region provides exciting activities such as glacier and rock climbing, trekking, heli-skiing and nature photography, which attract foreign and domestic tourists. Keywords

23.1 İ. Çiçek (&) Faculty of Languages and History-Geography, Department of Geography, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] G. Gürgen Faculty of Education, Department of Primary Education, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] H. Tunçel Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Department of Geography, Şeyh Edebali University, Bilecik, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] A. F. Doğu Faculty of Letters, Department of Geography, Yüzüncü Yıl University, Van, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] O. Kurdoğlu Faculty of Forestry, Department of Forestry Engineering, Karadeniz Technical University, Trabzon, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]











Kaçkar National Park Glacial geomorphology Old-growth forest Pleistocene Last Glacial Maximum

Introduction

The Eastern Black Sea Mountains constitute the highest section of Turkey’s northern mountain ranges (Pontides). They reach 2000 m east of Samsun, rising eastwards. Their highest summit is Mount Kaçkar (3932 m a.s.l.). Further east from Kaçkar peak, summit altitudes decrease. Generally, the mountains have a W-E direction in the central Pontus range that parallels the Black Sea coast and SW-NE in the eastern Pontus range close to the Georgian border. The present study focuses on the highest section of the Eastern Black Sea Mountains. Ascending abruptly along the shoreline, the summits reach an altitude above 3000 m within 20–30 km (Fig. 23.1). The W-E orientation of the range, its rapidly increasing topographic ascent, the fact that it faces humid air masses originating from the Black Sea and temperature and precipitation increase along the north-facing slopes explain that glacial landscapes may have formed easily during the glacial periods of the Pleistocene. Today, however, and in spite of the still very high level of humidity, only a small part of

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_23

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Fig. 23.1 Location of the Mount Kaçkar National Park in the Eastern Black Sea Region

the glaciers and glacial features are still active in the region, suggesting that the highest parts of the mountains suffer from temperature rise. With its undestroyed natural ecosystems, alluvial forests, natural old-growth forests, subalpine shrubs, alpine pasture formations and centuries-old rural life and folklore in these natural systems, the region deserves strict conservation measures. A first step was realized with the creation of a National Park in 1994, which implemented protective status over 52,970 ha of the region. This National Park is part of the Fırtına Basin. It is also part of the “Caucasus Global Hotspot”, one of the 34-biodiversity hotspots identified by the World Protection and Monitoring Centre and one of the “100 forest hotspots” in Europe listed by the same institution. Within its 52,970 ha, the Kaçkar Mount National Park includes 33,704 ha of grazing land and 9050 ha of forested land. Of these forests, 4603 ha correspond to old-growth forests, a unique patrimony in Europe and Asia. Mount Kaçkar National Park consists of three major mountain masses: Üçdoruk (Verçenik), Göller (Hunut) and Kaçkar, respectively, from west to east (Figs. 23.1 and 23.2). The northern part of the park includes the upper

section of the Fırtına Basin, while the southern part falls within the limits of the Çoruh Basin.

23.2

Pleistocene Glacial Landscape in the National Park

A total of 12 glaciated valleys are located in the three mountains forming the Mount Kaçkar National Park. After some pioneering works (e.g. Palgrave 1872; Erinç 1952; Birman 1968), geomorphological features of glacial heritage in the Mount Kaçkar National Park were first mapped by Doğu et al. (1993, 1994, 1996) and then by Çiçek et al. (2004). Regarding the topographical positions of the glaciated valleys, all except Hastaf and Dübe are located on the northern slopes of the mountain (Figs. 23.3 and 23.4) where they run parallel, from south to north. Further east, the direction of the glaciated valleys shifts to SE-NW, following the general orientation of the range axis (Table 23.1). This is largely due to hydromorphological qualities of the basin prior to glaciation and orographic position of the mountains. The cirques originated in accumulation areas of pre-glacial

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Glacial Landscape and Old-Growth Forests of the Mount Kaçkar …

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Fig. 23.2 Mount Kaçkar, one of the mountains forming the Kaçkar Mountains National Park

Fig. 23.3 Hastaf glacial valley on the southern slopes of Mount Kaçkar (view looking east)

rivers and the glacial valleys developed parallel to the pre-glaciation drainage network, with a south-east– north-west orientation, depending on the extent of the mountains.

Four of the glaciated valleys in the study area are longer than 10 km. Elevit Valley, for instance, is 12 km long (Table 23.1). The mean length of the glaciated valleys in the studied part of the Eastern Black Sea Mountain Range is

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Fig. 23.4 Geomorphological map of Mount Kaçkar National Park (includes the distribution location of old-growth forests in the National Park)

approximately 7.3 km. The mean slope of the glaciated valleys generally ranges between 10 and 15%. However, it increases up to 20% in some valleys. The longer the valley, the smaller is the mean slope. When looking at the valley profiles, the elevation of cirques in the upper parts of the valleys ranges between 3400 and 2800 m. Their occurrence depends on orientation, and cirques formed on the north-facing slopes are more frequent. These cirques have stepped structure formed by transverse rock barriers and riegels. Even though the formation of the steps owes much to the gradual withdrawal of glaciers, structural differences also play a significant role. Most cirques are hanging above and are disconnected from the main glaciated valleys. The cirques, which have no connection with the main glacier valley and develop from

nival, are usually located on south-facing slopes. Cirques are more common on the northern slopes because these slopes are exposed to less sunlight than the southern slopes. There is a secondary contrast between the east- and west-facing slopes, as cirques are more common on the former. Reduced sunshine and extended periods of shade on the eastern slopes result in low temperatures and favoured the development of more and larger cirques. The floors of all cirques are host to many small and large lakes. Glaciated valleys end at around 1800–2000 m, depending on the orientation and the degree of erosional incision. When ending, the glacial U-shaped valley profile gives way to a fluvial V-shaped valley. In some of the glaciated valleys (Hacıvanak, Palovit, Verçenik Valleys), two distinct lateral moraines occur (Figs. 23.4 and 23.5). Two striated sets with different

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Glacial Landscape and Old-Growth Forests of the Mount Kaçkar …

Table 23.1 Topographical features of the glacial valleys in National Park (Çiçek et al. 2004)

Mountain name

Valley name

Orientation of valley

Length of valley (km)

Elevation of Cirque base (m)

Pleistocene permanent snowline (m)

Kaçkar

Hastaf

SW-NE

5

3100–3400

2835

Dübe

SW-NE

5

3100–3200

2725

Çeymakcur

S-N

3

2750–2800

2675

Göller

Verçenik

Kavran

S-N

7

2850–2900

2635

Elevit

S-N

12

3000–3200

2525

Hacıvanak

SE-NW

4.5

3100

Trovit

S-N and E-W

10.5

3050

Palovit

S-N

11

3000–3050

2600

Tatos

S-N

7.5

2850–3000

2650

Sarincof

S-N

3.5

2800

2775

Verçenik

S-N

10

2800–2900

2640

Çermec-Cimil

SW-NE

9.5

directions were detected on polished surfaces in the Verçenik Valley. These distinct moraine ridges indicate two glacial extensions of different age. Lateral moraines and intersecting glacial scratches in many glacial valleys in Mount Kaçkar National Park provide important evidence that the glaciation in the region includes more than one period. Since 2005, several studies that used cosmogenic nuclide dating methods are available from the Mount Kaçkar National Park area. The first studies were later reassessed, and the glacial periods in Anatolia and their Fig. 23.5 Line of angular boulders marks the remnants of two lateral moraines and cirque lake in the Verçenik Valley looking south-west

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2580

relation to the global glacial periods were established (Akçar and Schluchter 2005; Akçar et al. 2007, 2008; Reber et al. 2014; Sarıkaya et al. 2011; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015, 2017). In the Kavran Valley, the advance of the palaeoglacier began at least 26.0 ± 1.2 ka and continued until 18.3 ± 0.9 ka. The palaeoclimatic conditions that caused the Last Glacial Maximum advance of the Kavran Palaeoglacier may be explained by the equilibrium between main accumulation of snow during winter and lowered summer insolation, resulting in a limited build-up of moraines. This may suggest

İ. Çiçek et al.

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geographical position of the polar jet front to the south of the Last Glacial Maximum coastline of the Black Sea. After around 18.3 ± 0.9 ka, the Kavran Palaeoglacier retreated and the magnitude of this recession remains open. Subsequent to this recession, the glacier most probably split into three smaller glaciers that were restricted to the tributary valleys. By 15.5 ± 0.7 ka, the main valley was definitely ice-free, with the Mezovit Palaeoglacier completing its recession around 15.5 ± 0.6 ka. The next younger glacial advance (most probably Younger Dryas) took place around 13.0 ± 0.8–11.5 ± 0.8 ka. 10 Be surface exposure ages from Akçar et al. (2007, 2008) date the beginning of glacier advances in the Kavran Valley for ca. 21.5 ± 1.6 ka and in the Verçenik Valley for ca. 21.7 ± 1.6 ka. In the Kaçkar Mountains, the major ice decay in the Kavran Valley began ca. 15.6 ± 1.2 ka at the latest and no later than 16.0 ± 1.2 ka in the Verçenik Valley, respectively (including geomagnetic field variation; see Akçar et al. 2007, 2008; Zahno et al. 2009). Deglaciation was basically accomplished by oscillating glacier retreat. This is indicated by glacier variations on the Kaçkar Mountains, which are dated to 11.2 ± 1.1 ka and 10.0 ± 1.1 ka in the Kavran Valley (recalculated for geomagnetic field variation: see Akçar et al. 2007; Zahno et al. 2009). Lateral moraines in the valleys in the Verçenik Mountains that make up the western part of the National Park provide important data for glaciation in the region (Fig. 23.4). The Verçenik Palaeoglacier advanced before 26.1 ± 2 ka. The Last Glacial Maximum advance continued until 18.8 ± 1.0 ka. The Verçenik Palaeoglacier collapsed during Termination I. After 17.7 ± 0.8 ka, there was no more ice in the main valley. The Verçenik Palaeoglacier most probably then split into five small glaciers that were restricted to the tributary valleys. These palaeoglaciers completed its recession around 15.7 ± 0.8 ka (Akçar et al. 2008). Reber et al. (2014) found the evidence of four glacier advances that built terminal and lateral moraines in the Başyayla Valley within the Kaçkar Mount National Park area. Three of them occurred before the global Last Glacial Maximum, which indicates that timing of the Maximum Ice Extent and the global Last Glacial Maximum were asynchronous. Surface exposure age determinations are provided for the Başyayla Valley, and these yielded ages for glacial activity before the global Last Glacial Maximum. For the timing of the global Last Glacial Maximum, we follow the chronostratigraphic definition by Shakun and Carlson (2010) of 22.1 ± 4.3 ka. The oldest advance of the Başyayla Valley chronology is dated at or is older than 57.0 ± 3.5 ka. Not later than 41 ka the next advance occurred, and the next younger pre-global Last Glacial Maximum advance is dated at 32.6 ± 2.1 ka or older. This advance can also be classified as an early global Last

Glacial Maximum phase. The glacier advance in the Başyayla Valley during the global Last Glacial Maximum is dated between 24.6 ± 1.6 ka and 20.3 ± 1.3 ka. The cirques in the uppermost valley became ice-free at 17.0 ± 1.0 ka, and the glacier was restricted to the cirque systems in the uppermost part of the valley. This is also in accordance with Zahno’s et al. (2009) data in which the data of Akçar et al. (2007, 2008) were reassessed.

23.3

Pleistocene Snowline in the Kaçkar Mountains

In the Kaçkar Range, the Pleistocene climatic (regional) permanent snowline was approximately at 2600 m a.s.l. (Çiçek et al. 2004). However, the calculated permanent climatic snowlines of the glaciated valleys during the Pleistocene in the National Park range between 2525 and 2835 m a.s.l. (Table 23.1). This is caused by the incision degree of the valleys and orientation conditions. The fact that the northern slopes are more humid and maritime and southern slopes are more arid and terrestrial has led to the formation of permanent snowline that is at different elevations on the northern and southern slopes. On the southern slope, the permanent snowline in the Hastaf glaciated valley is at 2835 m, and that of the Dübe glaciated valley is at 2725 m. On the northern slope, the snowline decreases down to 2525 m in the Elevit glaciated valley. Contrast in orientation between northern slopes facing cold humid air masses from the Black Sea which feeds longer ice tongues and warmer southern slopes facing humidity-depleted air masses which is not as favourable for the glaciers generates difference of ca. 300 m height between Pleistocene permanent snowlines in the Kaçkar Range. In the north-looking areas, the altitude of the permanent snowline decreases as one moves eastwards (Oliva et al. 2018). This is largely caused by the north-eastern direction of the Eastern Black Sea Mountains. The air masses that come from the north-west collide with this ridge and cause an increase in orographic—frontal precipitation. The precipitation and altitude, which increase to the east, lower the permanent snowline.

23.4

Present Glaciers

The Eastern Black Sea Mountains constitute one of the few regions in Turkey where glaciers are presently found (Kurter 1991; Çiner 2004). The most outstanding active glacier occurs over the slopes of the Mount Kaçkar with four glacier tongues still present in the Kavran glaciated valley (Figs. 23.4 and 23.6). Incising the north-western part of Mount Kaçkar, the valley is S-N oriented. The most

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Glacial Landscape and Old-Growth Forests of the Mount Kaçkar …

important branch of the valley north-west of the summit of Mount Kaçkar is presently occupied by an active glacier tongue (Fig. 23.2). Above, permanent small glaciers of various sizes occupy five cirques. Among these, four are located close to each other to the north-west of the summit of Kaçkar. The fifth one occupies a cirque looking north-east. The tongue front of this north-eastern glacier is at 3,200 m. In front of the glacier tongue, the valley continues with young ablation moraines and roches moutonnées. The sizes and altitudes of the glacial tongues from the north-west-oriented cirques at the summit of Kaçkar are different from the NE-oriented one. The longest glacier is 1250–1300 m and is the only valley glacier remaining within the system. Located at the base of a cirque cliff, it starts at 3600 m a.s.l. with a typical “bergschrund” and flows as far down as 3000 m a.s.l. The last 100 m of the glacier tongue is covered by debris from the slopes (Fig. 23.6). Three lateral smaller glaciers are located in cirques on both sides (east and west) of this sole remaining valley glacier. The tongue of longest glacier extends down to 3100 m a.s.l. In the 1940s, this tongue was reaching the altitude of 3000 m a.s.l. (Erinç 1945, 1949). There is a smaller glacier between the one in the west and the valley glacier. Young moraines form a large set in front of the lateral glaciers. Beyond a threshold in front of the moraine masses, the valley continues with lateral moraine sets remaining from Pleistocene glaciations. Further landforms of interest include roches moutonnées, polished surfaces and a lake, the U-shaped valleys of Kavran above, which it hangs with a 250 m-high steep step. In the cirques located on the southern slopes of Mount Kaçkar, there are contemporary glaciers of different sizes. The largest one flows out of a steep cirque. Yalçınlar (1951) Fig. 23.6 Two of Kaçkar glaciers in the Kaçkar Mountains

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cites after Krenek (1932) that a glacier existed between 3700 and 3550 m during the 1940s. To the north, another E-W oriented glacier forms a small hanging glacier valley at 3500–3480 m a.s.l. In front of this glacier, melt water feeds a small lake. Another glacier in Mount Kaçkar is located in the Dübe glaciated valley. Here the glacier originates from east-oriented cirque. On the north-facing slope, the floor of a cirque at 3130 m a.s.l. is occupied by a small glacier. In summary, a total of six glaciers of different sizes are located in the National Park of the Eastern Black Sea Mountain Range. As most of the glaciers have receded to the slopes of cirques, it is not possible to find the equilibrium-line altitudes by using cirque-floor altitudes or the toe-to-head wall altitude ratio methods. Regarding the present snowline, we consider that its altitude is equivalent to that of the lowest parts of the glaciers. On this basis, it is approximately 3000–3100 m a.s.l. Comparing this result with that based on past glacier tongues localized with frontal moraines, we consider that the permanent snowline has risen 400–500 m since the last glacial phase.

23.5

Old-Growth Forests

The Mount Kaçkar National Park contains 850 plant taxa. Within the Park, the Fırtına River Basin stands out from the other valleys because of its various and exceptionally rich vegetation types and flora. Ekim et al. (2000) and Gül and Kurdoğlu (2002) have found 116 endemic taxa in the National Park, of which 12 are endangered and 19 vulnerable. Considering that there are 386 endemic plant species in the entire Eastern Black Sea, Mount Kaçkar National Park

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İ. Çiçek et al.

Fig. 23.7 One of the most typical plant communities in the Mount Kaçkar National Park is this old-growth Buxus forest

hosts up to 30% of the endemic taxa of the whole Eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey. The Fırtına Basin and particularly the most untouched part of it which corresponds to the National Park, i.e. the head basin corresponding to the Palovit Valley, contains one of the few undestroyed old-growth forest ecosystems of Turkey (Fig. 23.4). The steep slopes of the range, its dense vegetation cover below the timberline and the frequent fogs inundating the landscapes ensured the area to be saved from tree-cutting pressure even before it was protected by the National Park. Fig. 23.8 Elevit Yayla (summer pasture land and village) and old-growth forests (front view)

The difficulty to exploit this forest, as well as the low population density and thus low need for fuel wood, led to the natural evolution and development of a healthy old-growth forest presenting many characteristics of such forests, such as the presence of old, monumental, fallen and dead, decaying and dried trees (Kurdoğlu et al. 2004). Within the National Park, natural old-growth forest covers approximately 4603 ha. Old-growth forests are present over the slopes of all valleys, particularly those that were occupied by past glaciers. They extend to the valley floors with extremely steep

23

Glacial Landscape and Old-Growth Forests of the Mount Kaçkar …

valleys where these exceptional primary river ecosystems concentrate rich riparian biodiversity and deliver visual quality. The fact that a great majority of these are high mountain forests makes these ecosystems more fragile and worth strict conservation measures (Fig. 23.7).

23.6

Human Activities

Inside the study area, there are 10 villages and 35 yaylas-mezras (summer pasture settlement is yayla, lower altitude small yayla is mezra in Turkish) whose population rises in the summer (Fig. 23.8). Almost all of the houses are built with stone and wood. The Kaçkar Mountains are snow-covered most of the winter. During summer, local populations use the highest land for animal husbandry. Within the National Park, approximately 5000 cattle and 8000 sheep are kept in the mountain villages, yaylas and mezras, pasturing the summer grounds. In the National park area, population reduces significantly to a few hundred during winter time but rises to more than 10,000 during summer. This has led to the opening of hotels and B&Bs in and around the national park. There are approximately 2000 houses in the national park area, not all of which are being used for animal husbandry, some of them being used for only holiday times. In recent years, tourism emerged in the region. Activities such as ice and rock climbing, trekking, heli-skiing and nature photography also attract many tourists to the region (Tunçel et al. 2004).

23.7

Conclusion

Examination of the 12 glaciated valleys in three mountains forming the highest parts of the Eastern Black Sea Mountains in Turkey yields the following results northward-facing slopes of the glacial valleys in the region mostly have a south to north direction. However, orographic specificities also caused glacial valleys to develop in a south-east– north-west direction (Table 23.1). The rivers in the glacial valleys draining the south of the Eastern Black Sea Range flow either from north to south or from west to east. The length of the valleys ranges between 12 km and 3 km, while their mean length is 7.3 km. The altitude of the mean Pleistocene climatic (regional) permanent snowline in the region is 2600 m. In the north-facing slopes, local permanent snowline (in valleys) ranges from 2525 to 2835 m, a variability responding to topographic conditions such as orientation and incision degree. In the south-facing slopes, the permanent snowline is higher because, when penetrating above the water divide towards the inland high plateaus, the air masses have already

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lost most of their humidity on the north-looking slopes of the coastal range. According to the latest absolute age assessments, the periods of glaciation in the Mount Kaçkar National Park are as follows: the Başyayla Valley revealed four glacial advances during the Late Pleistocene. Three occurred before the global Last Glacial Maximum, which indicates that the timing of the Maximum Ice Extent and the global Last Glacial Maximum were asynchronous (Reber et al. 2014). According to 10Be cosmogenic nuclide dating, the advance of palaeoglaciers occurred at 21 ka. During the Last Glacial Maximum, the advance continued until approximately 15.6 ± 1.2–16.0 ± 1.2 ka. Deglaciation was basically an oscillating glacier retreat. This is indicated by glacier variations on around 11.2 ± 1.1–10.0 ± 1.1 ka ago in the Kavran Valley of the Kaçkar Mountains (recalculated for geomagnetic field variation; Akçar et al. 2007; Zahno et al. 2009). After this period, the glacier was restricted to the cirque systems in the uppermost part of the valley. Today, six glaciers still exist in the region. Most of them are confined in their sourcing cirques, evidencing that the present altitude of the permanent snowline in the region ranges between 3000 and 3100 m. The local populations have used the economic potential of the study area in traditional ways, which are exceptionally preserved in the region (architecture, rural production activities, music and dances, food, language, cloths, etc.). With the rise of tourism, this way of life has started to change during the last decade. Mountainous areas have now many new permanent and seasonal settlements, as well as hotels and B&Bs for tourists. Even though sufficient facilities and planning do not exist, the region offers outstanding recreational opportunities. Mount Kaçkar is a well-known mountaineering destination and is suitable for activities such as parachuting, mountaineering, trekking, mountain biking, line fishing, photo-safaris and picnicking.

References Akçar N, Schlüchter C (2005) Paleoglaciations in Anatolia: a schematic review and first results. Eiszeitalt Ggw 55:102–121 Akçar N, Yavuz V, Ivy-Ochs S, Kubik PW, Vardar M, Schlüchter C (2007) Paleoglacial records from Kavron valley, NE Turkey: field and cosmogenic exposure dating evidence. Quatern Int 164– 165:170–183 Akçar N, Yavuz V, Ivy-Ochs S, Kubik PW, Vardar M, Schlüchter C (2008) A case for a downwasting mountain glacier during Termination I, Verçenik valley, northeastern Turkey. J Quat Sci 23(3):273–285 Birman JH (1968) Glacial reconnaissance in Turkey. Geol Soc Am Bull 79:1009–1026 Çiçek İ, Gürgen G, Doğu AF, Tunçel H (2004) Glacial morphology of eastern Black Sea mountain (Turkey). Cauc Geogr Rev (Tbilisi) 4:45–50

446 Çiner A (2004) Turkish glaciers and glacial deposits. In: Ehlers J, Gibbard PL (eds) Quaternary glaciations: extent and chronology, Part I: Europe. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp 419–429 Doğu AF, Çiçek İ, Tunçel H, Gürgen G, Somuncu M (1994) Göller (Hunut) Dağında Buzul Şekilleri, Yaylalar ve Turizm. AÜ Türkiye Coğrafyası Araştırma Ve Uygul Merk Derg (Ankara) 3:193–218 Doğu AF, Çiçek İ, Gürgen G, Tunçel H (1996) Üçdoruk (Verçenik) Dağında Buzul Şekilleri, Yaylalar ve Turizm. AÜ Türkiye Coğrafyası Araştırma Ve Uygul Merk Derg (Ankara) 5:29–52 Doğu AF, Somuncu M, Çiçek İ, Tunçel H, Gürgen G (1993) Kaçkar Dağında Buzul Şekilleri, Yaylalar ve Turizm. AÜ Türkiye Coğrafyası Araştırma ve Uygul Merk Derg (Ankara) 2:157–184 Ekim T, Koyuncu M, Vural M, Duman H, Aytaç Z, Adıgüzel N (2000) Türkiye Bitkileri Kırmızı Kitabı (Eğrelti ve Tohumlu Bitkiler), ISBN 975-93611-0-8, Ankara Erinç S (1945) Doğu Karadeniz Dağlarında Buzul Morfoloji Araştırmaları: İstanbul Üniv. Ed. Fakültesi Yay, Coğrafya Enstitüsü Doktora Tezi, Ser. 1, İstanbul Erinç S (1949) Kaçkardağı Grubunda Diluviyal ve Bugünkü Glasyasyon (Eiszeitliche und gegenwartige Vergletsche-rung in der Kaçkardağ-Gruppe). İstanbul Üniv. Fen Fakültesi, Mec, Seri B, C, XIV, 3, pp 243–245, İstanbul Erinç S (1952) Glacial evidences of the climatic variations in Turkey. Geogr Ann 34:89–98 Gül AU, Kurdoğlu O (2002) Biyolojik Çeşitlilik ve Görsel Kalitenin Sayısal Olarak Ortaya Konulması. Orman Amenajmanında Kavramsal Açılımlar ve Yeni Hedefler Sempozyumu, İ.Ü. Orman Fakültesi Bildiriler Kitabı, pp 212–219 Krenek L (1932) Gletsher im Pontischen Gebirg. Zeitscrift für GletschKunde 20(1–3):129–131 Kurdoğlu O, Kurdoğlu BÇ, Eminağaoğlu Ö (2004) Doğal ve Kültürel Değerlerin Korunması Açısından Kaçkar Dağları Milli Parkı’nın Önemi ve Mevcut Çevresel Tehditler. D.K. Ormancılık Araştırma Müdürlüğü, Ormancılık Araştırma Dergisi 21, ve Çevre ve Orman Bakanlığı Yayını 231:134–150, Trabzon Kurter A (1991) Glaciers of Middle East and Africa—glaciers of Turkey, In: Williams, RS, Ferrigno JG (eds) Satellite image Atlas of the World. USGS Professional Paper, 1386-G-1, 1–30

İ. Çiçek et al. Oliva M, Žebre M, Guglielmin MM, Hughes P, Çiner A, Vieria G, Bodin X, Andrés N, Colucci RR, García-Hernández C, Mora C, Nofre J, Palacios D, Pérez-Alberti A, Ribolini A, Ruiz-Fernández J, Sarıkaya MA, Serrano E, Urdea P, Valcárcel M, Woodward J, Yıldırım C (2018) The existence of permafrost conditions in the Mediterranean Basin since the last glaciation. Earth Sci Rev 185:397–436. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2018.06.018 Palgrave WG (1872) Vestiges of the glacial period in northeastern Anatolia. Nature 5:444–445 Reber R, Akçar N, Yeşilyurt S, Yavuz V, Tikhomirov D, Kubik PW, Schlüchter C (2014) Glacier advances in northeastern Turkey before and during the global Last Glacial Maximum. Quatern Sci Rev 101:177–192 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2015) Late Pleistocene glaciations and paleoclimate of Turkey. Bull Miner Res Explor (MTA) 151:107– 127 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2017) The Late Quaternary glaciation in the Eastern Mediterranean. In: Hughes P, Woodward J (eds) Quaternary glaciation in the Mediterranean mountains. Geological Society of London Special Publication 433, pp 289–305. http://doi.org/10. 1144/SP433.4 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Zreda M (2011) Quaternary glaciations of Turkey. In: Ehlers J, Gibbard PL, Hughes PD (eds) Quaternary glaciations-extent and chronology; a closer look. Elsevier, Amsterdam, pp 393–403 Shakun JD, Carlson AE (2010) A global perspective on last glacial maximum to holocene climate change. Quatern Sci Rev 29:1801– 1816 Tunçel H, Gürgen G, Çiçek İ, Doğu AF (2004) Doğu Karadeniz Dağlarında Yaylacılık. Fırat Üniversitesi Sos Bilim Derg (Elazığ) 14(2):49–66 Yalçınlar İ (1951) Soğanlı-Kaçkar ve Mescit Dağı Silsilelerinin Glasyasyon Şekilleri. İst, Üniv, Coğ, Ens, Der 1–2:82–88. Istanbul Zahno C, Akçar N, Yavuz V, Kubik PW, Schlüchter C (2009) Surface exposure dating of Late Pleistocene glaciations at the Dedegöl mountains (Lake Beyşehir, SW Turkey). J Quat Sci 24(8):1016– 1028

The Köroğlu Mountains: The Most Settled Highlands of Anatolia

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Nizamettin Kazancı and Yaşar Suludere

Abstract

The Köroğlu Mountains between Sakarya and Kızılırmak rivers form the inner part of the western Pontides. They are 550 km long and 40–60 km in width, with a mean elevation of ca 1800 m a.s.l. The highest point is 2399 m at Mt. Köroğlu, a large stratovolcano that gives its name to the entire highland area. Geographically, these mountains constitute the transitional zone between central and northern Anatolia and therefore have a high geo- and biodiversity. The Köroğlu Mountains have been much more widely used for permanent and temporary (yayla) settlements than other highlands in the country. Essentially, this socio-geographic emphasis has a long-standing basis that stretches from ancient civilizations to the present. Keywords





Köroğlu Mountains Settled highlands Geoconservation “yayla”

24.1

Introduction

Two mountain belts, the Taurus in the south and Pontides in the north, form two main elements of the geographic frame of Turkey. These belts meet in eastern Anatolia to form plateaus with elevations between 1800 and 2500 m a.s.l. In these belts, some individual high mountainous areas such as Kaçkar, Aladağlar, Küre, Munzur, Ağrı Mountains N. Kazancı (&) Geological Engineering Department, Ankara University, 06830 Gölbaşı Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] Y. Suludere JEMİRKO-Jeolojik Mirası Koruma Derneği (The Turkish Association for Conservation of Geological Heritage), 06570 Maltepe Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

(Fig. 24.1) have had a specific important effect on the lives of people although today they are rarely used for hunting, sports, or any other touristic purpose. This is not surprising as the upper parts of these mountain areas are steep, rugged, and bare above timberline. These mountains have always been much valued by traditional cultures for which they have become sources of mythological stories or superstitions. Among such examples, the Köroğlu Mountains, located in the inner western part of the Pontides, hold a special place because inhabitants have used them at least for the last four millennia (Lloyd 2003) (Fig. 24.1). The relatively lower parts (900–1500 m) concentrate the permanent settlements and are traditionally used for agriculture, while the upper parts (1700–2000 m) are temporarily inhabited by seasonal settlements called “yayla” for summer pastoral activities (Tunçdilek 1964; Emiroğlu 1977). In administrative terms, the Köroğlu Mountains are shared by the cities of Bilecik, Sakarya, Bolu, Ankara, Çankırı, and Çorum (Figs. 24.1 and 24.3). There are more than 1000 villages in this area (www.migm.gov.tr/istatistik). These plant-rich ecology (among which many endemics) and variety of resources and landscapes developed over volcanic soils appear to have been essential for the relatively high density of settlements in this area.

24.2

Location and General Geography

The Köroğlu Mountains are located between the Sakarya and Kızılırmak rivers and are roughly oriented in an E-W direction (Fig. 24.1). Landforms impacted by the activity of the North Anatolian Fault (NAF) (700–780 m a.s.l.) on the one side and the Central Anatolian plateau (850–900 m a.s.l) on the other side form the natural boundaries of the range along the north and south, respectively (Fig. 24.1). These highlands, 40–60 km in width and ca. 550 km in length, extend from Bilecik to the region north of Çorum (Erol 1991) (Fig. 24.1). Their mean elevation is ca. 1650–1700 m,

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_24

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N. Kazancı and Y. Suludere

Fig. 24.1 A 3D view of the north-west Turkey and locations of the Köroğlu Mountains (main view), Taurus, and Pontides (inset). Elevations of some numbered mountains are listed (after Erol 1991). A Aladağlar; B Bolkarlar; Kü Küre Mountains; S Soğuksu

and its highest point, Mt. Köroğlu1 (2399 m a.s.l.), gives its name to the whole highland area (Fig. 24.1). Other summits above 2000 m a.s.l. include Mt. Kartalkaya and Mt. Işık (Figs. 24.2 and 24.3). It is worth noting that the apparent height of these mountains is accentuated by their low bounding topographic features (NAF valley and Central Anatolian plateau) together with deep valleys entrenched by more than 900 m in the mountains (Figs. 24.4, 24.5, 24.6, 24.7 and 24.8). The Köroğlu Mountains form the transitional area between the semi-arid Central Anatolia and the humid Black Sea coasts, not only morphologically but also hydrologically (Fig. 24.1). The Sakarya river, which discharges into the Black Sea, originates at Mt. Işık. Flowing south-westwards first, it then turns west in Central Anatolia and later northwards to the Black Sea. Similarly, the Kızılırmak river flows 1

Köroğlu—“The son of the blind man” in Turkish—is a traditional hero who fought in the Middle Ages the local administration, particularly the Bolu city landlord.

to the Black Sea through deep gorges incised transversally in the Pontides (Figs. 24.1 and 24.3). These river network directions respond to the uplift of the Pontides, which is commanded by active tectonics in the region (Yıldırım et al. 2011, 2013). The ca. 450 mm mean annual precipitation in Central Anatolia contrasts with the 550–650 mm/yr and 800–1200 mm/yr rainfall in the Köroğlu Mountains and the central Black Sea coasts, respectively. July is the hottest, and January is the coldest month along the Pontides and in the Köroğlu Mountains (DMI 1984). Dependent on these climatic conditions, oak and steppic plants of Central Anatolia and forest plants of the Black Sea (mostly pines) meet in the Köroğlu Mountains (Akman and Ketenoğlu 1978). However, anthropogenic land uses and practices caused the wide extension of bare soils and rocks in the highlands, and the natural vegetation of the Köroğlu Mountains has changed to patchworks of tree and bush that cover below the timberline (i.e. below 2050 m a.s.l.). It is unfortunate that today the original, rich, and natural forests remain only in the vicinity of Kızılcahamam town (Figs. 24.1 and 24.3).

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The Köroğlu Mountains: The Most Settled Highlands of Anatolia

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Fig. 24.2 Satellite image of the Mt. Kartalkaya showing the crater rim (2399 m) of the Köroğlu stratovolcano

24.3

Geological Setting

In this area, the modern NAF forms the plate boundary between the Eurasian and Anatolian plates. The Köroğlu Mountains are found on the Anatolian plate (Fig. 24.3), and therefore its geological structure represents the northernmost part of Anatolia. In this structural context, the rocks forming the Köroğlu Mountains belong to the Sakarya Tectonic Zone, which limited the northern branch of the Neotethys Ocean (Okay et al. 1994). The Sakarya Tectonic Zone is represented in nearly the whole Pontide belt, except for a small Palaeozoic area in the north-west. During the Mesozoic, the Neotethys was divided into north and south branches by the Kırşehir Block, with the southern branch producing the Taurus belt. If one follows the Sakarya Valley from the west towards the town of Beypazarı or Seben, the main lithology of the mountains (Sakarya Tectonic Zone) consists of Jurassic limestones, Cretaceous flysch, Palaeocene marls, and Eocene limestones, while upstream from Seben, the remaining relief is mostly formed by Neogene volcanics (Figs. 24.1 and 24.3). These young volcanics

fossilize the units of the Sakarya Tectonic Zone (Fig. 24.3). Due to the wide volcanic coverage, the Köroğlu Mountains consist mainly of volcanic rocks, which form approximately two-thirds of the highlands. These rocks, known in the literature as “Köroğlu volcanics”, “Galatean volcanic complex”, and also “Kızılcahamam volcanics”, form one of the most significant volcanic provinces of Turkey (Öngür 1977; Türkecan et al. 1991; Toprak et al. 1996; Sarıaslan et al. 2001). They are composed of abundant pyroclastics and to lesser extent volcanic breccias, together with andesite, trachyte, and alkali basalt lava flows. This volcanism was active between 21 and 9 Ma (Öngür 1977; Keller et al. 1992; Tankut et al. 1998). This activity is interpreted as the result of a volcanic arc formation during the collision of the Anatolian and Arabian blocks in the Neogene (Koçyiğit et al. 2003). Relatively, the basalts are the youngest units in this volcanic complex. The pyroclastics exhibit a wide variety of rock types ranging from fine-grained tephras to agglomerates; a drill core at Kızılcahamam has shown that their thickness can reach 1500 m (Gevrek et al. 1986). When considering the topographic relief of the region, it is calculated that the volcanic body is no less than 2500 m thick.

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Fig. 24.3 Simplified geological map of north-west Turkey including the Köroğlu Mountains (after MTA 2002). The African continent is also part of the Sakarya Tectonic Zone here (see text for detail).

However, older sedimentary rocks of the Sakarya Zone are also exposed, typically between the town of Çerkeş and the Mt. Işık (Fig. 24.3). This disposition, which shows that the volcanic cover on the substratum is not homogeneous, is due to (i) the uneven basal palaeotopography, (ii) erosion periods between phases of volcanic activity, and (iii) the types of volcanic emissions and associated products. In addition, regional geology and relevant stratigraphy show that during the Neogene in Central Anatolia, Galatean volcanics were deposited at the same time as large depressions were occupied by depositional, mostly lacustrine basins (Fig. 24.3b). Consequently, the volcanism and sedimentary basins interacted together and produced thick volcano-sedimentary deposits enriched by trona, high calorific lignites, mineral, and thermal waters (Öngür 1977; Özgür et al. 1999; Kazancı et al. 2007). In Pliocene, the region was largely covered by mudstones and coarse clastics deposited by control of fluvial processes (Sen et al. 2017).

N. Kazancı and Y. Suludere

a Neogene units in various sedimentary basins and volcanic facies. b Distribution of the Kızılcahamam/Galatean volcanics and surrounding sedimentary basins of Neogene

24.4

General Morphology and Notable Landforms

Small- and moderate-scaled erosive landforms are the characteristics of the Köroğlu Mountains, typically seen between the towns of Seben and Ilgaz (Fig. 24.4). However, a large volcanic body (Mt. Köroğlu) and a nearby large depression (Bayındır) form the main morphological elements of the highlands (Figs. 24.7 and 24.8). Long-lasting erosion has produced cone-shaped volcanic hills or mountains (Figs. 24.4 and 24.6). It is noteworthy that Mt. Köroğlu and some other high hills are relatively close to the NAF rupture system, so that the general topography is asymmetric with a gentle slope towards the Central Anatolian plateau (Fig. 24.8). The other important landforms of the region are deep valleys and gorges incised in the marls and pyroclastics.

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The Köroğlu Mountains: The Most Settled Highlands of Anatolia

451

Fig. 24.4 Landscape of the lower apron of the Köroğlu Mountains near Central Anatolia. View from south to north

Fig. 24.5 A village that is used mostly during the summer months (Taşlıca, near Kızılcahamam). The inhabitants migrated to Ankara for different reasons and still come back during summer for holidays. Note that the area was deforested many years ago

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N. Kazancı and Y. Suludere

Fig. 24.6 The town of Kızılcahamam (975 m) and the Hodulca stratovolcano (1899 m). The E–W valley in the background is occupied by the Kirmir stream (see Fig. 24.3)

Slopes of the valleys eroding the pyroclastic substratum are locally irregular, with groups of fairy chimneys. Regional correlations suggest that the formation of these deep valleys and erosive landforms date to the Early Pleistocene (Kazancı et al. 2007; Kazancı 2012).

24.4.1 Stratovolcanoes Mt. Köroğlu and Mt. Hodulca are two stratovolcanoes (Sarıaslan et al. 2001) (Figs. 24.1, 24.6 and 24.7). The Köroğlu stratovolcano (2399 m) covers an area of ca

24

The Köroğlu Mountains: The Most Settled Highlands of Anatolia

453

Fig. 24.7 Topographic map of the Köroğlu and Hodulca stratovolcanoes and depressions. The NAF valley in the north was formed by fault segments determining elongated depressions

800 km2 (Fig. 24.7). It has an irregular crater, and its youngest lava flows, which are mostly basalts, form visible ridges providing examples of inverted relief. Mt. Kartalkaya, where skiing and resort centres have been constructed, is one of the high peaks of Köroğlu stratovolcano (Fig. 24.2). The Hodulca stratovolcano (1899 m) is a relatively small volcanic centre, covering an area of ca 65 km2. Radially distributed lava flows fringe its gently sloping summit (Figs. 24.6 and 24.7).

24.4.2 Dome-like Features Rounded, cone-like hills are common in the volcanic parts of the Köroğlu Mountains where they are generally concentrated in an area between Kızılcahamam, Güvem, and Mt. Işık (Figs. 24.1, 24.3 and 24.7). Some of these hills are conical, but others have a half-sphere appearance. They have been interpreted as lava domes and/or as volcanic intrusions (Özgür et al. 1999; Sarıaslan et al. 2001).

However, as they are seen also in fine-grained pyroclastic areas, Kazancı et al. (2007) suggested that these shapes result from the action of surface processes controlled by climatic factors and vegetation (runoff erosion, weathering).

24.4.3 Circular Depressions Four circular depressions, one of which is larger than the others, occur to the east of the Köroğlu stratovolcano (Fig. 24.7), all open in pyroclastic rocks. The smaller ones (Ovacık, Peçenek, and Sorgun depressions) are funnel-shaped with depths of 350–400 m. The length of the Ovacık and Peçenek depressions is 4–6 km, while the ellipsoidal Sorgun depression is 4  12 km (Fig. 24.7). Each depression has been trenched by narrow gorges that concentrate the outflowing drainage (Fig. 24.7). Because of their dimensions, they have been interpreted as calderas (Özgür et al. 1999). However, they seem to be simple

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N. Kazancı and Y. Suludere

Fig. 24.8 Asymmetric topography of the Köroğlu Mountains in the NW–SE direction. Note that the depression is a little larger than the area of the Köroğlu Mountains

explosive volcanic centres. The larger Bayındır depression is 20  30 km and was dammed artificially (Figs. 24.3, 24.7 and 24.9). Ring faults and brecciated lavas are other characteristics (Fig. 24.9). As a whole, Bayındır and the other three depressions form a large, low morphology covering an area as large as the Köroğlu stratovolcano (Figs. 24.7 and 24.8).

24.4.4 Yaylas “Yayla” is a temporary settlement at the top or on high mountain slopes that is used during summer months by families or villages for livestock. It is a Turkish word derived from “yay-yaz” = “summer”, and it means “settlement for summer”. These are familiar features of the entire country, but yaylas are most common in the Köroğlu Mountains, particularly in the Bolu region (Tunçdilek 1964; Emiroğlu 1977). This fact is not surprising because the region is very suitable for stockbreeding while agricultural options are limited by low soil fertility. In addition, high parts of the Köroğlu Mountains are generally cool in the summer and are covered by rich herbal and woody plants. Therefore, yaylas are very convenient places for both people and animals in hot summers. However, establishing a yayla is not easy because there are some protective legislation acts such as the Forestry Law, the Nature Conservation Law, and the Soil and Agriculture Law (Kazancı et al. 2012). Yaylas, all of which have been registered, are found in open, unforested regions in the mountains. Unfortunately, recent years have witnessed a decrease in livestock foraging with the yaylas replaced presently by permanent summerhouses (Fig. 24.4 and 24.5). The number of active yaylas is 383 in Bolu, 25 in Ankara, and 4 in Çankırı (www.bolukulturturizm. gov.tr; www.ankararehberi.com; www.cankiri.gov.tr/index). Documents indicate that Hittites, Phrygians, Bithynians, and Galatians have used the Köroğlu Mountains for centuries for the same purpose (Tunçdilek 1964; Lloyd 2003). Numerous archaeological sites, e.g. Gordion (Polatlı), Çeltikdere, Anchyra (Ankara), Juliopolis (Nallıhan), Claidopolis (Bolu), underground cities (Kızılcahamam), rock art

(Güdül-Beypazarı), graves on rockwalls (Beşdut and İnköyÇankırı,), and tumuli (Nallıhan, Beypazarı, Bolu) are relicts of these ancient civilizations (www.ankararehberi.com). Apparently, all settlements were situated on the southern slopes and occasionally on the eastern sides of the mountains, probably to shelter from northerly winds (known as “Poyraz” in Turkish) and maximize winter sunshine. It is unfortunate that many of these rural areas and even the smaller cities, except for Ankara, are being emptied by emigration.

24.5

Geo- and Biodiversity

The Köroğlu Mountains and the surrounding areas contain large- and small-scale geosites that hold great significance for deciphering local and regional evolution of the geological history. Some categories at the Geosites Framework List of Turkey are directly related to this region and Pontides (Kazancı et al. 2015). The pre-Oligocene, mostly Mesozoic rocks of the Köroğlu Mountains, that is, of the Sakarya Zone, have already a country- and global-size significance, because they represent the northern branch of the Neotethys which was a worldwide marine environment from early Mesozoic to the end of the Eocene epoch (item 1 in Fig. 24.3). The NAF bears also such a global-scale geological value, as is the second largest active transform fault in the world, ranking only after the San Andreas Fault in the USA. Four very well-developed pull-apart basins (Bolu, Gerede, Çerkeş, Ilgaz) occur along the NAF line and are good examples of the interaction between tectonic and sedimentary forces (Fig. 24.3). The region is particularly rich in geosites. Several of such sites have been identified within the volcanic highlands of the massif (Figs. 24.1 and 24.3) where columnar basalts associated with largely developed lava flows are well visible in narrow gorges, while hot-water travertines and mineral-water tufas are associated with thermal springs. In non-volcanic areas, exposures of carbonate turbidites, a large salt cave produced by centuries-long Eocene halite exploitation mining for centuries of halites in the Eocene

24

The Köroğlu Mountains: The Most Settled Highlands of Anatolia

455

Fig. 24.9 Bayındır depression is today filled by a dam lake. Two successive ring faults seem to have increased the depth of the depression

Fig. 24.10 Geo- and biodiversity of the Kızılcahamam geoconservation area; a three-tier columnar basalts (regular, irregular, and chimney-type fractures) in the Güvem area, b petrified trees in the

Bayındır depression, c, d fish and leaf fossils in Güvem, e endemic Kızılcahamam tulip in the Soğuksu National Park. See Figs. 24.1 and 24.3 for localities

456

N. Kazancı and Y. Suludere

deposits, Late Miocene vertebrate localities, large-scaled harmonic folds, active tectonic creeps (as well as the visible record of a 4 m left-lateral slip of the NAF, produced during the 1944 earthquake) are perfect sites for training of geology students (Fig. 24.3) (Kazancı et al. 2007). An area of 2000 km2 north of Ankara that contains unique geosites has been designed as a geoconservation area and has been named the “Kızılcahamam-Çamlıdere Geopark Project” (Fig. 24.1). Some vulnerable geosites in the geoconservation area include insect, leaf, and fish fossils, a petrified fossil forest, three-tier columnar basalts, the site of the well-known hominid Ankarapithecus meteai, the four-storey underground ground city (Mahkemeağcin), and fairy chimneys (Kazancı 2012) (Fig. 24.10). Biodiversity is high in the Köroğlu Mountains due to both climatic and morphologic differences between Central and northern Anatolia. In order to preserve this biodiversity, Soğuksu National Park was designed in 1959 by the government (Fig. 24.1). Apart from different forest trees (e.g. oak, pine, cedar), a rich moss flora, mushrooms, and many herbal plants are also found in the region (Akman and Ketenoğlu 1978; Kazancı et al. 2007). This floral diversity is associated with a rich lepidoptera fauna (Kıyak and Özdikmen 1993). Two species are endemic to the region: the Kızılcahamam tulip and the black vulture (Fig. 24.10).

24.6

Conclusions

The Köroğlu Mountains extend some 550 km in an E–W direction roughly from Bilecik or İzmit (near the Sea of Marmara) cities to the Çankırı-Çorum area. They correspond to the inner western part of the Pontides (Fig. 24.1). Although these mountains are not extraordinarily high or magnificent, every elevation level has been used by people of various civilizations, either on a temporary or on a permanent basis for millennia. Yaylas (summer settlements), usually situated above 1600 m a.s.l., are a prominent characteristic of these mountains. Climate, morphology, relevant ecology, and particularly plant cover, appear to be the cornerstones of human habitation. The richness of the geoand biodiversity indicates the complexity of natural conditions on these highlands and provides a high potential for an interesting variety of the future scientific studies. Acknowledgements This paper is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Ali İhsan Gevrek (1954–2008) who spent his academic life working on geothermal weathering and pyroclastic rocks. One of the authors (NK) is grateful to Ahmet Türkecan (MTA) for discussing the Köroğlu volcanics and providing some literature.

References Akman Y, Ketenoğlu O (1978) The phytosociological investigations of Köroğlu Mountains. Communications de la Faculté des Sciences de l’Université d’Ankara Serie C2(22):1–24 DMI (1984) Ortalama, Ekstrem Sıcaklık ve Yağış Değerleri Bülteni (Bulletin for the mean and extreme values of temperature and precipitation). T.C. Başbakanlık Devlet Meteoroloji İşleri (DMİ) Genel Müdürlüğü, Ankara Emiroğlu M (1977) Bolu’da Yaylalar ve Yaylacılık. A Publication of Faculty Linguistic, History and Geography of the Ankara University, Ankara, 272, 235 p (in Turkish) Erol O (1991) Geomorphological map of Turkey at scale of 1/1000 000. Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü (MTA) Publications, Ankara Gevrek Aİ, Demir A, Tekin Z (1986) Ankara-Kızılcahamam jeotermal enerji arama sondajı (KHD-1) kuyu bitirme raporu (The termination report of a well drilled for the research of geothermal energy at Kızılcahamam). Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü (MTA) Raporu, No 8760, Ankara (in Turkish, unpublished) Kazancı N (2012) Geological background and three vulnerable geosites of the Kızılcahamam-Çamlıdere Geopark Project in Ankara, Turkey. Geoheritage 4:249–261 Kazancı N, Suludere Y, Mülazımoğlu NS, Tuzcu SS, Mengi H, Hakyemez Y, Mercan N (2007) Soğuksu Milli Parkı ve Çevresi Jeositleri (Geosites in and around Soğuksu National Park), Kızılcahamam, Ankara, Doğa Koruma ve Milli Parklar Genel Müdürlüğü, Jeolojik Mirası Koruma Derneği ortak yayını, Ankara, 75 pp (in Turkish) Kazancı N, Şaroğlu F, Doğan A, Mülazımoğlu N (2012) Geoconservation in Turkey. In: Wimbledon WAP, Smith-Meyer S (eds) Geoheritage in Europe and its conservation. ProGeo Spec. Pub, Oslo, Norway, pp 366–377 Kazancı N, Şaroğlu F, Suludere Y (2015) Geological heritage and framework list of geosites in Turkey. Bull Miner Res Explor 151:261–270 Keller K, Jung D, Eckhardt FJ, Kreuzer H (1992) Radiometric ages and chemical characterization of the Galatean andesite massif, Pontus, Turkey. Acta Vulcanol 2:267–276 Kıyak S, Özdikmen H (1993) Über einige Neuropteranerten von Soğuksu Nationalpark (Kızılcahamam, Ankara). Priamus 6(3/4): 156–160 Koçyiğit A, Winchester JA, Bozkurt E, Holland G (2003) Saraçköy Volcanic Suite: implications for the subductional phase of arc evolution in Galatean Arc Complex, Ankara, Turkey. Geol J 38:1–14 Lloyd S (2003) Türkiye’nin Tarihi; Bir Gezginin Gözüyle Anadolu Uygarlıkları (Ancient Turkey- A Traveller’s History of Anatolia. Univ California Press 1989, London). Translated by E. Varinlioğlu, TÜBİTAK Popüler Bilim Kitapları, no 50, 20th Edition, Ankara MTA (2002) Geological maps of Turkey at scale of 1/500 000; Ankara ve Zonguldak sheets. Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü Publications, Ankara Okay AI, Şengör AMC, Görür N (1994) Kinematic history of the opening of the Black Sea and its effect on the surrounding regions. Geol 22:267–270 Öngür T (1977) Kızılcahamam GB’sının volkanoloji ve petroloji incelemesi (Volcanologic and petrologic study of the SW Kızılcahamam). Bull Geol Soc Turk 20(2): 1–12 (in Turkish with an English abstract)

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Özgür R, Yurtsever D, Uğur H, Yıldırım T, Yıldırım N, Güner N, Aydoğdu Ö (1999) Aktaş-Salur-Dereköy (Bolu,Gerede) ve Peçenek (Çamlıdere, Ankara) alanlarının jeolojisi ve jeotermal enerji olanakları (Geology and geothermal energy possibilities of AktaşSalur-Dereköy -Gerede, Bolu- and Peçenek - Çamlıdere, Ankaraareas). Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü (MTA) Raporu, No 10337, Ankara (in Turkish, unpublished) Sarıaslan MM, Yurdakul ME, Taka MO, Şener M, Gevrek Aİ (2001) Seben-Gerede-Kıbrıscık (Bolu)-Beypazarı-Çamlıdere-Güvem (Ankara) alanında yüzeyleyen Üst Miyosen volkanikleri altındaki birimlerin enerji hammadde potansiyeli (Energy raw material potential of the units beneath the upper Miocene volcanics exposed in the areas of Seben-Gerede-Kıbrıscık (Bolu)-Beypazarı-Çamlıdere-Güvem (Ankara). Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü (MTA) Raporu, No 10440, Ankara (in Turkish, unpublished) Şen Ş, Delfino M, Kazancı N (2017) Cestepe; a new early Pliocene vertebrate locality in Central Anatolia and its stratigraphic context. Annales de Paléontologie 103:149–163 Tankut A, Güleç N, Wılson M, Toprak V, Savasçın Y, Akıman O (1998) Alkali basalts from the Galatia volcanic complex, NW central Anatolia, Turkey. Turk J Earth Sci 7:269–274

457 Toprak V, Savaşçın Y, Güleç N, Tankut A (1996) Structure of the Galatia volcanic province. Int Geol Rev 38:747–758 Tunçdilek N (1964) Türkiye’de Yaylalar ve Yaylacılık (Yaylas and yayla-habit in Turkey). Bulletin of Istanbul Univ. Geography Institute 7, 15–28, İstanbul (in Turkish with English abstract) Türkecan A, Dinçel A, Hepşen N, Papak İ, Akbaş B, Sevin M, Özgür İB, Bedi Y, Mutlu G, Sevin D, Ünay E, Saraç G, Karataş S (1991) Bolu-Çankırı (Köroğlu Dağları) arasındaki Neojen yaşlı volkanitlerin stratigrafisi ve petrolojisi. Türkiye Jeoloji Kurumu Bülteni 6:85–103 Yıldırım C, Schildgen TF, Echtler H, Melnick D, Strecker MR (2011) Late Neogene and active orogenic uplift in the Central Pontides associated with the North Anatolian fault: implications for the northern margin of the Central Anatolian Plateau, Turkey. Tectonics 30(5): TC5005, 1–16 Yıldırım C, Schildgen T, Echtler H, Melnick D, Strecker M, Bookhagen B, Çiner A, Niederman S, Merchel S, Martschini M, Steier P, Strecker MR (2013) Tectonic implications of fluvial incision and pediment deformation at the northern margin of the Central Anatolian Plateau based on multiple cosmogenic nuclides. Tectonics 32:1–14. https://doi.org/10.1002/tect.20066

Part VI Tectono Geomorphology

Fairyland in the Erzurum High Plateau, Eastern Anatolia

25

Fuat Şaroğlu and Yıldırım Güngör

Abstract

In morphotectonics of Turkey, the Eastern Anatolian region lies east of Karlıova where the North Anatolian and East Anatolian faults meet. It is located between the Eastern Black Sea Mountains (Pontides Mountains) in the north and the Bitlis Mountains (Eastern Taurus Mountains) in the south. The region has been experiencing active N-S shortening tectonic regime, and consequent narrowing and uplifting since the late Miocene. The landscape has been shaped during this period, and its features can be attributed to the regional tectonic activity. In addition to structural features, intensive and extensive volcanic activity gave the region plateau-like landscapes, which reach 2500–3000 m asl. The plateau is dissected by several fault-controlled depressions (valleys), whereas in areas adjacent to the Black Sea Mountains the plateau surface is still preserved. Erzurum and Kars Plateaus form the best-preserved parts of the regional plateau incised by the drainage system. The primary configuration of fluvial sediments and synchronous volcanic rocks are still retained on the Erzurum Plateau. The best of such kind may be observable in the vicinity of Narman town. There, Plio-Quaternary sediments are incised by the young drainage system, thus leaving behind well-developed erosional features and a dissected landscape. The erosion of red sediments has resulted in the formation of wide valleys and large pinnacles (the so-called fairy chimneys) on the slopes and allows three-dimensional views of the sedimentary sequence. In addition to its beautiful appearance, the area can be treated as a natural museum with

F. Şaroğlu (&) Turkish Association for Protection of Geological Heritage (JEMİRKO), PB-10 06100 Maltepe, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] Y. Güngör Geological Engineering Department, İstanbul University, Avcılar, İstanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

unique erosional forms and depositional features. It is therefore recommended that Narman area should be protected as a geopark. Keywords





Geomorphology Erzurum high plateau Narman red beds Eastern Anatolia

25.1

Introduction

Neotectonic period in Eastern Anatolia starts at the end of early Miocene. At the beginning of this period, a peneplain or a peneplain-like landscape existed in most parts of Anatolia. This monotonous landscape was later disturbed and disrupted by neotectonic deformation, which caused the appearance of various landscapes in different parts of Anatolia. The Eastern Anatolia, a land located between the Black Sea Mountains in the north and Bitlis Mountains in the south, offers the best example of an area where landscape is predominantly controlled by tectonic structure. The western boundary of the region extends to Karlıova where the North Anatolian Fault (Şengör 1979) and the East Anatolian Fault (Arpat and Şaroğlu 1972) meet (Fig. 25.1). Since the late Miocene, a compressional tectonic regime has prevailed in this region. As a result, the region has been uplifted and subject to intense erosion. The resultant erosional features appear as spectacular landscapes, some of which have generated considerable scientific research for decades. The northern part of the area is characterized by plateaus topping at a height of 2500–3000 m. In the Erzurum Plateau, one of these tectonically relatively quiescent plateau landscapes in Eastern Anatolia, the Narman fairy chimneys can be considered as one of the best examples of the erosional features formed due to the development of a young drainage system. Narman is a poorly populated typical Anatolian town, located about 86 km away from Erzurum. It can be reached

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_25

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462

Fig. 25.1 Digital elevation model (DEM) of Eastern Anatolia. The rectangle shows the study area

by Erzurum–Artvin highway (Fig. 25.1). It is located in a young basin, which is filled with Plio-Quaternary sediments and surrounded by high mountains. The undeformed red beds filling the basin are subjected to effective erosion and incision creating well-developed erosional features such as fairy chimneys. Fairy chimneys, also called tent rocks, hoodoos, “demoiselles coiffées”, or earth pyramids, are tall, thin and/or pointed rocks that protrude from the ground of a drainage basin or badland (Ward 2004a, b). They are typical erosional features formed by rain and sometimes by wind erosion in arid and semi-arid regions. Fairy chimney occurrences are not rare in Anatolia. The best-known examples are recorded from Cappadocia where badlands and fairy chimneys are abundant (Topal and Doyuran 1995; Sarıkaya et al. 2015). They developed in a volcano-sedimentary succession of ignimbrites intercalated with rare sandstone–claystone, whereas fairy chimneys in the Narman area have formed in a sedimentary succession made up of alternating claystone, mudstone and conglomerate. This paper therefore aims to introduce the spectacular erosional landforms in the Narman region after description of the Erzurum Plateau. It starts with an overview of Eastern Anatolian geology and then describes the palaeogeography (Fig. 25.2). Afterwards, the characteristics of the Narman area will be explained in detail.

25.2

Geology of Eastern Anatolia

Following the break-up of the Pangea, continental fragments of various sizes rifted away from the northern Gondwana margin. The widening of rifts and the formation of oceanic basins gave rise to Palaeozoic Palaeo-Tethyan Ocean followed by the Mesozoic–early Tertiary Neotethyan Ocean. These continental fragments in time collided with the northern continent of Laurasia, thus resulting in sequential closure of Palaeo-Tethys, and then Neotethys. These sequences of formation and closure of oceanic basins, and consequent amalgamation of several of these continental fragments within the Alpine-Himalayan orogenic belt constitute the geological history of Anatolia (Şengör and Yılmaz 1983; Okay and Tüysüz 1999). Today, these continental fragments are represented by suture zones. Ophiolitic melanges are remnants of these oceans and continental margins and/or intracontinental sediments (Görür et al. 1998). The neotectonic regime followed the closure of the Neotethyan Ocean and started in the late Miocene. The present-day unique geomorphology of Anatolia is the manifestation of continent–continent collision and consequent intracontinental deformation, reflecting also palaeogeographic and climatic circumstances (Şengör 1980; Şengör et al. 1985).

25

Fairyland in the Erzurum High Plateau, Eastern Anatolia

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Fig. 25.2 Generalized geological section of the Eastern Anatolia (after Şaroğlu and Güner 1981)

Several subregions with differing morphologic characteristics therefore characterize Anatolia. Black Sea Mountains in the north (Fig. 25.1) are composed of tectonically juxtaposed volcano-sedimentary sequences that belong to different ancient continents. The region is a typical highland since the late Eocene. The Bitlis Mountains in the south are composed of metamorphic rocks imbricated along south-verging thrust faults and unconformably overlying sedimentary succession(s). The age of these rock units ranges from Precambrian up to early Eocene. The age of the youngest marine sediments suggests that the area of Bitlis Mountains has been a highland since the late Eocene. Cretaceous–Eocene Tethyan ophiolites and ophiolitic mélanges, occurring within an accretionary prism, form the basement in

the Eastern Anatolia that lies between the Black Sea and the Bitlis Mountains (Fig. 25.2). The basement also comprises limestones and metamorphic rocks as blocks within the prism. The Oligocene–early Miocene time interval corresponds to a period of tectonic quiescence and major transgression during which the area was invaded by sea from south to north. During the neotectonic period initiated in the late Miocene, the basement forming accretionary prism and overlying sedimentary cover was intensely deformed, continental basins formed and were filled with fluvial sediments. This deformation resulted in shortening and uplift of the region, which is distinguished through its unique landscape (Erinç 1953; Şengör and Kidd 1979; Şaroğlu and Güner 1981).

F. Şaroğlu and Y. Güngör

464

25.3

Palaeogeography of the Eastern Anatolia

During the late Oligocene–early Miocene time interval, the Eastern Anatolian region was a peneplain or showed a peneplain-like topography invaded by northward transgressing sea. The sea extended northward up to the Black Sea Mountains. Marine sedimentation was accompanied by deposition of lacustrine and fluvial sediments on land. The lacustrine sediments are composed mainly of variably coloured claystone–mudstone–sandstone alternations with salt, gypsum, anhydrite and coal band occurrences. The region was shortened and uplifted during the late Miocene phase of intense deformation and the sea retreated in response. As expressed by earthquake activity along active fault segments, this phase of tectonic activity still continues to shape the landscape of the region.

25.4

Morphotectonics of the Neotectonic Period in the Eastern Anatolia

Since the late Miocene, the continental crust in Eastern Anatolia has been shortened and thickened due to N-S compression (Şaroğlu and Yılmaz 1984; Dewey et al. 1986). The region has therefore been transformed into a high mountainous land. The fault-controlled landscape is characterized by E-W-, ENE-WSW- and WNW-ESE-trending ridges rising up to 2500–3000 m asl, together with similarly trending depressions at an elevation of 1300–2000 m asl. With this configuration, Eastern Anatolia is a typical elevated plateau, dissected by several fault-controlled depressions (valleys) and incised by young drainage system. Above the plateau level, some volcanic massifs rise, such as the Quaternary edifices of the Van to Doğubeyazıt area: Nemrut, Süphan, Tendürek, Ağrı and other volcanoes (Meydan, Etrüsk, etc.) (Fig. 25.1). The relationship between geological structures and morphology is as follows: At the beginning of the neotectonic period, folds with axes trending in E-W and ENE-WNW directions formed as a result of N-S compression. Surface manifestation of the anticlines is similarly trending ridges, while synclines correspond generally to depressions. Structures at the margins of some basins are transformed into reverse faults. Consequently, such depressions are interpreted as “intermontane basins” within an uplifting terrain (Şaroğlu and Güner 1981). On the other hand, in areas where the crust is overthickened (i) NE-SW—or NNE-SSE-trending sinistral (e.g. Erzurum fault zone), (ii) NW-SE—or WNW-ESE-trending dextral (e.g. Çaldıran Fault) strike-slip faults and (iii) N-S-trending tensional fractures (e.g. Nemrut tensional fracture) formed as characteristic structural features (Fig. 25.3).

Strike-slip faults have not affected the landscape in a vertical direction but have triggered extensive erosion in highlands associated with sediment deposition in lowlands (depressions) where plains (sometimes lacustrine) have developed. At the same time, pyroclastics and lavas of Plio-Quaternary volcanism were deposited in the area filling some depressions. These formations and structures constitute the present Eastern Anatolian Plateau (or Erzurum and Kars Plateaus) (Fig. 25.1). The plateaus are incised by rivers flowing from the southern slopes of the Black Sea Mountains. Pull-apart basins or pressure ridges evolved between overstepping strike-slip fault segments. In addition to dextral and sinistral strike-slip faults, thrust-related ruptures have also occurred during the earthquakes of last century. These observations confirm that Eastern Anatolia has reached crustal thickness with which all contraction-related structures may develop. Sinistral strike-slip faults dominate in the Erzurum region. The Quaternary sediments in which fairy chimneys developed in Narman area are still horizontal, thus confirming the almost pure strike-slip nature of the sinistral faults in the area. In general, N-S running streams are characterized by steep-sided valleys (e.g. Çoruh Valley in the west of Narman Basin) while streams running parallel to the long axes of the basins with meandering channels (e.g. E-W streams in Erzurum basin) (Fig. 25.1). The Muş-Van basin initially formed as an intermontane basin shaped by folds and thrust/reverse faults. During the Quaternary, the basin was parted into two sub-basins by the Nemrut Volcano. The eastern one is Van Lake—one of the largest endorheic lakes in the world, whereas the western one (Mus plain) is incised by a westward heading drainage system recently extended by a series of captures allowing today’s Murat River continuum (Figs. 25.1 and 25.3). In general, the landscape and surface features in East Anatolia are shaped and controlled by tectonic activity and consequent structural features. Some of the small-scale faults deforming Oligo-Miocene sediments around Erzurum near the Black Sea Mountains belong to the early stages of neotectonic period and are interpreted as structures inactive today (Fig. 25.1). Tectonic structures deforming the northern boundary of the Eastern Anatolian Plateau formed during the Quaternary are still active. This recent tectonics contributes to maintain the initial morphology of the plateau that was formed during the early stages of neotectonic period. The main part of the best-preserved plateau lies within the Erzurum Province. For this reason, the Eastern Anatolian Plateau is also named “Erzurum Plateau (including Kars Plateau)”. The Erzurum fault zone (EFZ) is a major structural element of this plateau (Fig. 25.3). Although the EFZ is an active fault, the original horizontality of the Plio-Quaternary sediments and the synchronous volcano-sedimentary sequence forming the plateau

25

Fairyland in the Erzurum High Plateau, Eastern Anatolia

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Fig. 25.3 Neotectonic map of Eastern Anatolia (after Şaroğlu and Yılmaz 1987). The Narman area is green-coloured in Turkey's map (top right of the Figure)

are not disturbed. These units therefore form extensive flat areas, deeply dissected by water courses often carving narrow and deep gorges (Tortum Stream, the headwaters of the Aras River in the Kars Plateau) (Figs. 25.1 and 25.3). Similar features are also common in the Kars Plateau located in the northeast of the Erzurum Plateau (Fig. 25.1). The Narman area to the north of Erzurum is one of the best locations where horizontal Plio-Quaternary sediments are well exposed (Figs. 25.1 and 25.4). The basin-fill is incised by fault-controlled young drainage system, thus leaving behind well-developed unique erosional features. In addition to its scientific value, the Narman region, with its beautiful views and spectacular geomorphic features, can be considered as a natural heritage in Eastern Anatolia (Fig. 25.4).

25.5

Lithology of the Narman Fairyland

Geology and morphology of the Narman area have been studied by several researchers (Akyürek et al. 1977; Bayraktutan 1982; Bozkuş 1990). MTA (General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration)’s geologists mapped different rock units according to their depositional environment (Konak and Hakyemez 2008). The Upper

Eocene clastic sediments (Oltu Formation) are the oldest Tertiary unit of the fairyland, and they are interpreted as marine sediments post-dating the closure of the Neotethys (Fig. 25.5). They include very dense and hardened coal nodules called “Oltu stone” in local terminology. Oltu stones are a kind of gemstones producing famous jewels (necklaces, earrings, etc.) and rosaries. The Oligocene–Lower Miocene lacustrine sediments represent the youngest formations belonging to the palaeotectonic period. They are composed of mudstone–claystone–sandstone alternations with salt, gypsum, anhydrite and coal band occurrences (Figs. 25.2 and 25.5). They are unconformably overlain by folded and thrust/reverse faulted fluvial and lacustrine sediments (with subordinate lava flows and tuffs) of late Miocene–Pliocene age. In the region, these lithologies are attributed to the neotectonic period. Plio-Quaternary red brown and greenish sandstone–conglomerate alternations form the younger rock units in the Narman region. These sediments are poorly deformed and preserve their original horizontality. Strike-slip faulting is the dominant process in the later stages of neotectonic period during the Plio-Quaternary time interval. Associated with strike-slip faulting, incision of streams emanating from adjacent highlands has resulted in the formation of wide valleys with depths reaching up to 100 m (Fig. 25.5a). In the meantime,

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466 Fig. 25.4 Sedimentary succession of red beds of the Narman area

extensive erosion of red beds has resulted in the formation of fairy chimneys. The host lithology of the erosional features (red clastics) were mapped under the names of Yoldere Formation (PlQy) and Büyükdere Formation (Qb) by Konak and Hakyemez (2008) (Fig. 25.5b). The youngest unit in the area are Upper Pleistocene and Holocene fluvial deposits labelled with Qeay and Qal, respectively (Fig. 25.5b).

Fig. 25.5 a Digital elevation model (DEM) of Narman and its vicinity. b Geological map of Narman and its vicinity (after Konak and Hakyemez 2008). Tek—Karataş Formation, comprising andesite, trachyandesite, trachyte and basalts; Too—Oltu Formation, made up of sandstone, mudstone with gypsum intercalations; Ton—Olivine basalt, augite basalt and augite andesites of the Narman volcanics; Toa

25.6

The Fairy Chimneys

Fairy chimneys are exposed in a *65 km sq. area, cut by eight major valleys. Each valley includes some of these fairy chimneys presenting 1 to 4 m heights and bottom diameters reaching up to 10 m widths. Erosional processes are still ongoing.

—Tuff and agglomerates of the Alabalık Formation with andesitic lava intercalations; PlQy—Poorly sorted conglomerate, sandstone and siltstones of the Yoldere Formation; Qb—Büyükdere Formation with poorly cemented gravel, sand and silt; Qeay—older alluvial fan deposits and Qal—Alluvium

25

Fairyland in the Erzurum High Plateau, Eastern Anatolia

467

Fairy chimneys are typical landforms in the Narman area. All of the rock units exposed here show these distinctive landforms (Figs. 25.4, 25.6 and 25.7). The Narman Basin contains alluvial fans and floodplains built of alluvial sediment, drained by braided rivers. Deposition was possibly controlled by the activity of strike-slip faults, together with vegetation cover density and soil development, which were dependant on changing climatic characteristics of the Quaternary. Rapid and deep dissection of the Mio-Pliocene red clastic sediments commenced in the middle or late Quaternary. This deep incision of young streams was favoured by both weak resistance of non-cemented clastic series, and by rapid uplift of the area. Large wide-bottomed valleys separate different parts of the eroded unit with depths reaching up to 100 m. These valleys are carved into sequences made up of sandstone–conglomerate–mudstone alternations; slope processes forming gully erosion and colluvial cones have been dominant during the development of valleys. Fracture-controlled weathering and subsequent erosion result in the formation of steep-sided valleys (Fig. 25.4). The fairy chimney-like features result from differential weathering and

Fig. 25.7 a-b Views from Büyükdere showing well-developed erosional features in the Plio-Quaternary red sediments, c An important erosional form located at the Yoldere-Göndere hiking path of the Narman Fairy Valley

Fig. 25.6 Fairy chimneys in the Narman Basin. The most resistant units are conglomerates, and the less resistant ones are mudstones within the red dominated colour formation. Peculiar landforms develop as a result of erosion

erosion, with resistant conglomerate blocks protecting at places some relict sandstone–mudstone layers below (Fig. 25.6). The drainage system and morphology provide good opportunity for investigating the three-dimensional depositional structures of these sediments (Figs. 25.6 and 25.7). At the margins of the basin, the Oligo-Miocene sediments are exposed with undisturbed boundary relationships. The Oligo-Miocene succession is composed of red, green and brown sediments with thick gypsum, anhydrite and salt layers. These sediments constitute the possible source rocks for the Plio-Quaternary sediments resulting from their reworking and redeposition in the basin. This region is thus

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468

important for studying the source and transport of the sediments as well as for tracing their red colour (Figs. 25.5 and 25.7). The rock units where fairy chimneys formed are exposed over an area of about 10 km2 (Fig. 25.5). These erosional features are developed best along valley slopes of an area of about 1 km2 corresponding to the drainage basin of the Göndere Stream and of its tributaries. The valley floors covered with herbaceous plants are partly fed by underground water flow. These valley floors are ideal grazing lands for farm animals. Small holes and cavities in the lower slopes resulting from differential weathering provide shelters for wild animals like fox and rabbits, whereas those in the highlands host often nests for eagles and other predatory birds (Fig. 25.7). The valley, also called “the land of fairies”, has acoustic sound specificities (echoes, voice deformations), which are well known by the people (especially shepherds). There is a hiking path along the crescent-shaped ridge that surrounds the valley. In the valley floor, there is room for both farming animals and wildlife. The area where the Göndere Valley connects to the Narman Creek is a wetland concentrating poplar trees.

25.7

Conclusions

The tectonically active Erzurum high plateau is one of the prominent terrains of Eastern Anatolia. Its present morphology has been developed by combination of tectonics and fluvial erosion by streams eroding fault-controlled valleys (Fig. 25.1). The differential resistance of Plio-Quaternary clastic units of the area favours the development of steep slopes, narrow gorges and fairy chimneys. The landscape in the Narman Valley attracts attention due to its scientific importance and spectacular unique erosional landforms. That is also why it is known in Turkey as the “Red Happiness Valley” or “Land of Fairies”. Around the valley, mudstones with gypsum and salt deposits, recently formed folds, sinistral strike-slip faults and spectacular erosional features are observable. A lake formed in the Tortum Valley, as a result of a landslide (Duman 2009). Furthermore, black amber (known as Oltu stone) occurrences also exist in this original landscape covering an area of approximately 60 km2. These features are a part of our common geological heritage. With all these characteristic features, the Narman “Land of Fairies” deserves to become a world-class geopark.

Acknowledgements The field study was made possible by Turkish Petroleum Corporation’s projects. Dr. Selim Özalp, Prof. Dr. Erdin Bozkurt, Dr. Ömer Emre and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Selami Toprak made considerable contributions during the preparation of the chapter. We are thankful to the mentioned institutions and persons.

References Akyürek B, Bingöl E, Doyuran S, Korkmazer B, Metin S, Öztemur C (1977) 1/50.000 ölçekli Tortum-G47-a paftasının jeoloji haritası izahnamesi. MTA 1/50.000 ölçekli jeolojik haritalar serisi. Ankara Arpat E, Şaroğlu F (1972) The East Anatolian fault system: thoughts on its development. Bull Miner Res Explor 78:33–39 Bayraktutan S (1982) Narman (Erzurum) havzasının Miyosen’deki Sedimantolojik evrimi. Ph.D. thesis, Atatürk University, 282 p (unpublished) Bozkuş C (1990) Oltu-Narman Tersiyer havzası kuzey doğusunun (Kömürlü) stratigrafisi. Türkiye Jeol Kurumu Bülteni 33(2):47–56 Dewey JF, Hempton MR, Kidd WSF, Şaroğlu F, Şengör AMC (1986) Shortening of continental lithosphere: the neotectonics of Eastern Anatolia—a young collision zone. In: Coward MP, Reis AC (eds) Collision Tectonics, vol 19. Geological Society of London, Special Publications, pp 3–36 Duman TY (2009) The largest landslide dam in Turkey: Tortum landslide. Eng Geol 104(1–2):66–79 Erinç S (1953) Doğu Anadolu Coğrafyası. İstanbul University Publication No 572, İstanbul Görür N, Şengör AMC, Okay Aİ, Özgül N, Tüysüz O, Sakınç M, Akkök R, Yiğitbaş E, Genç T, Örçen S, Ercan T, Akyürek B, Şaroğlu F (1998) In: Görür E (ed) Triassic to miocene paleogeographic atlas of Turkey. Ankara, Turkey Konak N, Hakyemez HY (2008) 1/100.000 ölçekli Türkiye Jeoloji Haritalar serisi Tortum-H7 Paftası. Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü yayını, Ankara Okay AI, Tüysüz O (1999) Tethyan sutures of northern Turkey. In: Durand B, Jolivet L, Horvath F, Seranne M. (eds) The mediterranean basins: tertiary extension within the Alpine orogeny: Geological Society of London Special Publication 156, pp 475–515 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Zreda M (2015) Fairy chimney erosion rates on Cappadocia ignimbrites, Turkey: insights from cosmogenic nuclides. Geomorphol 234:182–191. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. geomorph.2014.12.039 Şaroğlu F, Güner Y (1981) Doğu Anadolu’nun jeomorfolojik gelişimine etki eden öğeler, jeomorfoloji, tektonik, volkanizma ilişkileri. Türkiye Jeol Kurumu Bülteni 24:39–52 Şaroğlu F, Yılmaz Y (1984) Doğu Anadolu’nun Neotektoniği ve İlgili Mağmatizması. Türkiye Jeoloji Kurumu, Ketin Simpozyumu bildiriler kitabı, Ankara, pp 142–162 Şaroğlu F, Yılmaz Y (1987) Doğu Anadolu’da Neotektonik dönemdeki jeolojik Evrim ve Havza Modelleri. Maden Tetk Ve Aram Derg 107:75–94 Şengör AMC (1979) The North Anatolian transform fault: its age, ofset and tectonic significance. J Geol Soc Lond 136:269–282 Şengör AMC (1980) Türkiye’nin Neotektoniğinin Esaslari. Türkiye Jeoloji Kurumu yayını, Ankara, p 40 Şengör AMC, Görür N, Şaroğlu F (1985) Strike-slip faulting and related basin formation in zones of tectonic escape: Turkey as a case

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study. In: Strike-slip de formation. Basin formation and sedimentation, SEPM, vol 37. Special Publication, pp 227–264 Şengör AMC, Kidd WSF (1979) Post-collisional tectonics of the Turkish-Iranian plateau and a comparison with Tibet. Tectonophys 55:361–376 Şengör AMC, Yılmaz Y (1983) Türkiye’de Tetis’in Evrimi: Levha Tektoniği açısından bir yaklaşım. Türkiye Jeoloji Kurumu yayını, Ankara, p 75

469 Topal T, Doyuran V (1995) Effect of discontinuities on the development of fairy chimneys in the Cappadocia region (central anatolia-Turkey). Turk J Earth Sci 4:49–54 Ward S (2004a) Demoiselle. In: Goudie AS (ed) Encyclopedia of geomorphology. Routledge, London, p 238 Ward S (2004b) Hoodoo. In: Goudie AS (ed) Encyclopedia of geomorphology. Routledge, London, p 531

Landscape Evolution and Occupation History in the Vicinity of Amasya

26

M. Korhan Erturaç

To the memory of Strabo the master geographer of Antiquity and the greatest son of Amasya.

Abstract

The modern city of Amasya (NE Central Turkey), hometown of the great geographer Strabo, is a former fortified city of antiquity built in a unique geological and geomorphological setting of a narrow gorge. The gorge is carved into the mountains of the Pontide Range, which connects a major river, Yeşilırmak of the Central Anatolian drainage network, to the Black Sea. Although the kings of Pontus founded the city during the Hellenistic Period, the remains of human occupation of the surroundings can be traced back to the Middle Paleolithic. Continuous settlement during the historical times makes possible to see monuments from different cultures, from Hellenistic to Roman and Seljuk to Ottoman Periods. The city, from foundation to modern times, has direct interaction with the landforms and also with the evolution of the landscape under control of different geomorphological processes. This paper is an attempt to relate this interaction within the cultural geology perspective. Keywords







Landscape evolution Occupation history Amasya Cultural geology

26.1




Introduction

The city of Amasya (Amaseia in Antiquity), located in NE central Anatolia, was founded as a fortified city during the Hellenistic Period. It has a long history as a provincial and frontier capital, ruled by kings and princes, homed artists and scientists from the times of the kings of Pontus to Strabo the

M. K. Erturaç (&) Department of Geography, Sakarya University, 54187 Serdivan, Sakarya, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

geographer and many generations of the Ottoman imperial dynasty. The region is defined as a part of Pontide mountain range, and its morphology is characterized with narrow ranges up to 2000 m high (Akdağ and Karaömer mountains) and active tectonic basins in between (such as Suluova, Erbaa and Geldingen plains) where average base levels are *250– 400 m a.s.l. (Fig. 26.1). This high-relief morphology is dissected and connected by narrow gorges of the Yeşilırmak (Iris) River and its major tributaries, such as Tersakan “reverse flowing” River to the north and Çekerek River to the south. The morphology of the region, similar to other parts of Turkey, has formed in response to long-term tectonic evolution, fluvial activity and also in relation to the base level changes in the Black Sea Basin which is 80 km (bird flight) and 150 km (river’s course) NE of Amasya Gorge (Erturaç 2009). The human occupation in the close proximity of Amasya can be traced back to Middle Paleolithic, with an assemblage of lithic tools observed over the southern slopes of the Suluova Plain, at Taşlıyurt Village (Fig. 26.2). A fast search from the TAY Database (The Archaeological Settlements of Turkey; www.tayproject.org) reveals more than 100 spots of settlement in the vicinity. These settlements range from Chalcolithic Period (5500 BC) up to Bronze Ages and are mostly located on the floors of intramontane basins such as Suluova and Geldingen. A recent excavation at Oluz Höyük located on the Geldingen Plain reveals occupation history from Late Chalcolithic towards the Bronze Ages (Dönmez 2011). The region was an important settlement area in the second millennium BC, especially during the Hittite Empire (1650 BC), along with a major city located at the west of Geldingen Basin (Hakmish, Modern Zara/Doğantepe). The Yeşilırmak Gorge also forms a natural corridor between Central Anatolia and the ports at the Black Sea region. It is regarded as a part of “Silk Road” network, an important trade route of ancient times. Amasya is positioned at the centre of this unique high-relief morphology, known as Amasya Gorge, which is

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_26

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Fig. 26.1 Oblique 3D view of morphology of the city of Amasya and surroundings. Partially modified from Erturaç (2009)

very suitable for fortress-city model of the antiquity. When it was initially founded, the city had a stratified structure; a high citadel built on the apex of a cliff with steep slopes of Jurassic limestone; a lower castle and a palace on lower erosional terraces accompanied with an inner city, all located on the left bank of the river. All these structures were surrounded with a defence wall. The width of the floodplain (average height 390–400 m) varies at both sides of the river and narrows down to 350 m at the right side where the suburbs and logistic buildings were built. Later, the occupation spread in the east–west direction where the floodplain is wider, also using the staircases of erosional terraces within the slopes of the right bank.

26.2

Fig. 26.2 Lithic tools from Taşlıyurt. a retouched flake tool, b large flake, c core, d chopping tool. Photographs and identification by Berkay Dinçer

Tectonic Evolution of the Region and Geology of the City of Amasya

The geology and complex tectonic evolution of Amasya and the surroundings have been studied in detail (Alp 1972; Tüysüz 1992, 1996; Rojay 1993) on various scales. The geology of the Amasya Gorge and the city (Fig. 26.3) reflects

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Landscape Evolution and Occupation History …

this complexity very well. The oldest rocks of the region belong to the Karakaya Complex and include slightly metamorphosed clastics of Karasenir Formation and low-grade metamorphic (fillates with marble blocks), namely Fig. 26.3 Simplified geology of the Amasya Gorge. Redrawn from Tüysüz (1992)

473

Yeşilırmak Metamorphics, Ordovician and Silurian in age. These rocks are unconformably overlain by Lower Jurassic (Liassic) to Cretaceous limestones (Bayırköy, Bilecik and Amasya formations, Fig. 26.3). These formations were

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deposited during intense rifting and subsequent closure of the specific branch of the Tethys Ocean, which led to mass movements and rock slides. The result is the presence of allochthonous blocks of platform carbonates (Bilecik limestone) overlying younger pelagic carbonates and mudstones of Amasya formation (Tüysüz 1996). This phenomenon today governs the unique morphology of the city of Amasya, where the city citadel is settled on, and Pontus tombs are carved into these huge limestone blocks (Figs. 26.3 and 26.4). To the north of the gorge, Late Cretaceous volcanic and volcanoclastics of Lokman Formation are extensively exposed. The Paleocene–Eocene rocks of the region are coal-bearing continental clastics overlain by pelagic limestones, later characterized by intense post-collisional volcanism exposed to the north and south of Amasya Gorge. The Neogene evolution of the region is marked by the onset of Neotectonic Period of Anatolia. It included the formation of North and East Anatolian Fault Zones (NAFZ and EAFZ) and western extrusion of Anatolia towards the Aegean, following the closure of the last remains of the Neo-Tethys Ocean along the Bitlis suture (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981) in the Middle–Late Miocene (Okay et al. 2010). The contemporary high-relief morphology and scattered intramontane basins of North Anatolia developed mostly until the Early Miocene (Yılmaz et al. 1997; Barka 1992; Şengör et al. 2005). The NAFZ and its splay faults present a remarkable offset (Sunal and Erturaç 2012), and rejuvenation of these features occurred after latest Pliocene (Erturaç and Tüysüz 2012). Quaternary changes in the environment, climate and landscape are recorded in the continuous sediment sequences accumulated in the Suluova and Geldingen plains (Fig. 26.1; Erturaç 2009). Within the gorge, Quaternary landforms and formations include erosional terraces, well-developed alluvial fans and the large floodplain of Yeşilırmak River.

26.3

Foundation of Amasya

In Antiquity, Amasya was a fortified city climbing high from the river to the cliffs above. It has a long history as a wealthy provincial and frontier capital. The archaeological remains (Yüce 2004) and also the recent excavations at the higher citadel (Harşena Castle, Doğanbaş 2009) reveal that the city was founded during the Hellenistic Period, with the Pontic kings building here their palace and royal tombs (Figs. 26.4 and 26.5). The rock carved tombs (RCT) form one of the most impressing landmarks of Amasya (Fleischer 2009). The lower castle close to the floodplain was built during the same period on an erosional terrace. The historical city, from the higher citadel on the top of the hill to the inner city, was

surrounded with protection walls, which continue along the c northern bank of the river (envisaged by A. Gabriel who was referring to Strabo’s definition: Fig. 26.4a). These walls along the river were also used for preserving the city from frequent floods and bank erosion. The entrance and connections inside the city were established during the Late Roman Period with the arch bridge “Alçak Köprü” (Fig. 26.6a). Strabo (64/63 BC–c. AD 24), a geographer of the Antiquity, who is well known for his masterpiece Geographica, was born in Amasya (Fig. 26.4b). In this encyclopaedia, which consists of 17 books, he described the current state of geographical knowledge by means of both theoretical background and information on the known world. The 12th book of Geographica is about Anatolia. Among many other cities and surrounding landscapes, Strabo briefly describes his homeland Amaseia. He comments about the city’s morphology and relation with the fortress, palace, tombs, bridges and the protection walls built on both sides of Yeşilırmak River. My native city, Amaseia, lies in a deep and extensive valley, through which runs the river Iris. It is indebted to nature and art for its admirable position and construction. It answers the double purpose of a city and a fortress. It is a high rock, precipitous on all sides, descending rapidly down to the river: on the margin of the river, where the city stands, is a wall, and a wall also which ascends on each side of the city to the peaks, of which there are two, united by nature, and completely fortified with towers. In this circuit of the wall are the palace, and the monuments of the kings. The peaks are connected together by a very narrow ridge, in height five or six stadia on each side, as you ascend from the banks of the river, and from the suburbs. From the ridge to the peaks there remains another sharp ascent of a stadium in length, which defies the attacks of an enemy. Within the rock are reservoirs of water, the supply from which the inhabitants cannot be deprived of, as two channels are cut, one in the direction of the river, the other of the ridge. Two bridges are built over the river, one leading from the city to the suburbs, the other from the suburbs to the country beyond; for near this bridge the mountain, which overhangs the rock, terminates. Strabo’s Geography XII, 3/39

Strabo has some deductions about the formation of the landscape and rocks, sometimes referring to mythology, other times logically explaining some myths with his personal observation. For example, Strabo’s explanation for the process of fossilization refers to the foraminifera (Nummulites sp.) bearing Eocene limestone formation that is exposed to the northwest of Geldingen Basin. One extraordinary thing which I saw at the pyramids must not be omitted. Heaps of stones from the quarries lie in front of the pyramids. Among these are found pieces, which in shape and size resemble lentils. Some contain substances like grains half peeled. These, it is said, are the remnants of the workmen’s food

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Landscape Evolution and Occupation History …

Fig. 26.4 Several panoramic views showing the landscape of Amasya. a Imaginary view from the Roman Period. Drawing is courtesy of Yakup Çavuşoğlu, envisaged by Gabriel (1934). b Statue of Strabo and view of Pontus tombs along the bank of Iris River. Photograph by the author. c Part of the panoramic photograph of Amasya city from the late nineteenth century. Photograph by Ardaşes

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Kerkecelyan (from the archive of Hasan Varış). d Winter panorama of the northern bank of Yeşilırmak. e General view of the modern city towards east. f General view of morphology of the Amasya Gorge; to the NE: Akdağ Mt; also showing the recent occupation on higher strath terraces. (Photographs d to f are courtesy of Aydın Babacan)

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converted into stone; which is not probable. For at home in our country (Amaseia), there is a long hill in a plain, which abounds with pebbles of a porous stone, resembling lentils. The pebbles of the sea-shore and of rivers suggest somewhat of the same difficulty [respecting their origin]; some explanation may indeed be found in the motion [to which these are subject] in flowing waters, but the investigation of the above fact presents more difficulty. Strabo’s Geography, XVII, 34

Like in the rest of Anatolia, the first millennium AD for Amasya was politically unbalanced after the partition of the Roman Empire in the course of the fourth century, continuing first with Persian invasion, followed by Arabian, Mongolian and Turkish invasions. These disturbances led to the destruction of the former antique civil buildings. There is also little information on some earthquakes in the region during the first millennium AD, which is postulated to have contributed to the political instability. These specific events are regarded as the “Paphlagonian Temporal Seismic Gap” by Şengör et al. (2005). The start of the second millennium AD can be regarded as the rebirth of the city, as Seljuk State gradually took the control of the region. A second bridge (Kunç) on the Yeşilırmak, a hospital and schools with mosques typical for Seljuk architecture were built. The city flourished during the Ottoman Empire, especially during the fifteenth to sixteenth century, when it was regarded as the capital of a province (Sancak). Multifunctional monumental buildings were built, such as the Külliye (civil complex) of Beyezid II accompanied with many mosques, schools, baths and bedesten (covered market) (Yaşar 1912; Kuzucular 1996). At its cultural apex, the city hosted more than a hundred public buildings with its multinational social structure (Fig. 26.5). Only a half has survived until today. Amasya has been a centre of training and educating Şehzade’s (Persian: Šāhzāde, meaning Sultan’s son) of Ottoman Empire for several generations in between fourteenth to seventeenth centuries and therefore usually quoted as “The City of Princes”.

26.4

Close-up to the Landscape of Amasya City

The N-S profile (Fig. 26.5) shows the topographical variation across the city of Amasya where one can observe evidence of initially gradual (150 m), then fast (170 m) erosion, forming erosional terraces (ET). Several causes can be evoked for explaining incision of the gorge in limestone. Along with base level changes both in the Black Sea and active tectonic basins (Niksar–Erbaa, Suluova), there is a continuous uplift of the mountain range between Ezinepazarı

and Suluova faults (Fig. 26.1) which initiated *1 ma ago (Erturaç and Tüysüz 2012). This recent tectonic activity may have caused faster erosion rates and also triggered headward erosion at a northern tributary of Yeşilırmak, eventually capturing the Suluova Lake in the Late Pleistocene, adding *2500 km2 (%12 of the total) to the drainage basin with Tersakan River (Fig. 26.1; Erturaç 2009). OSL dating (Kıyak and Erturaç 2008) and further interpretation (Erturaç and Kıyak 2017) of fluvial terraces to the south of Amasya reveal that at least *50 m of erosion occurred after the onset of MIS5e interglacial (Fig. 26.5). Within this scope and evidence, seven possible erosional terraces are identified by means of topographical analysis of the Yeşilırmak Gorge (Fig. 26.5). These terraces can be correlated with the end of major glacial periods (terminations) marked with marine isotope record (Lisiecki and Raymo 2005) but have not been directly dated yet. After the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM, *20 ka), the valley was deepened by ca 10 m of vertical incision (evidenced by OSL dating; Erturaç and Kıyak 2017). Flood sediments later filled this incision during Late Holocene. Clues of Post-Roman deposition can be found at the Late Roman arch bridge “Alçakköprü”, where most of the arches and columns beneath are buried below the recent alluvium (Fig. 26.6). Within this distinct morphological context, the historical evolution of the city was severely affected and constrained by the landscape (Figs. 26.4 and 26.5). The location of the city was originally chosen because of the need for protection, which is satisfied by the local geological and geomorphological setting within the gorge. In addition, the gorge itself is a natural connection between central Anatolia and the Black Sea and therefore an important road in the ancient trade network. The tectonic setting of the region led to the formation of a huge block formed of Bilecik limestone surrounded with less resistant rocks, forming (i) steep but relatively low hills (200–250 m) which were suitable for both protection and also logistics of the citadel (Fig. 26.4); (ii) limestone strata with high dipping angles parallel to slope direction added to the strength of the protection wall; (iii) Erosional terraces preserved on the hillslopes were used for building the lower castle/palace and city; (iv) former fault planes in the limestone produced natural rock faces which were carved for building the tombs for the great Pontus kings (Fleischer 2009). The width of the Yeşilırmak River’s bed at the city centre is about 50 m and probably has not changed since the foundation of the city. The floodplain of Yeşilırmak is clearly asymmetric, where the right bank is *350 m in width compared to the 50 m of the left bank

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477

Fig. 26.5 Close-up morphology and topographic profile of Amasya showing the expansion of the modern city (grey shade) with historical monuments (Kuzucular 1996)

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Fig. 26.6 a Panorama of Alçakköprü bridge (view towards east). b Rise of the protection walls adapting former blocks. Photographs a and b are courtesy of Aydın Babacan. c Position of the Roman bridge in relation to the contemporary one. d Reconstruction of the Late Roman arch bridge, to show the amount of filling in the channel (compare with Fig. 26.6a to see the emergent part of the structure). Documents c and d are courtesy of Işıl Kalpkırmaz. e April 1940 flood

of Amasya showing the water level rising in the constrained channel. Photograph by Kemal Saraçoğlu and from Hasan Varış archive. f and g Two monumental mosques built ca. AD fourteenth century: (f Kilari Süleyman Ağa Mosque; g Gümüşlü Mosque) which were severely damaged during the 1668 earthquake and restored in the eighteenth century. Photographs f and g are author’s courtesy

(possibly related with lithological differences; Fig. 26.3). The drawing of Amasya during the Roman times (by Yakup Çavuşoğlu, inspired from A. Gabriel’s restitution in 1934; Fig. 26.4a) shows that most components of a major Roman city (such as the forum, the cardo, the theatre) should have been located on the right bank of the river. Among the very few structures which survived from the Roman period to this day, the main arch bridge “Alçakköprü” was elevated in the nineteenth century by additional *3 m columns on the arches. This elevation was necessitated by the fill aggradation in the active riverbed since the beginning of the first millennia (Fig. 26.6a–d). The bridge is considered architecturally identical to other contemporaneous Anatolian Roman arch bridges (such as İnce Köprü at Çine and Aizanoi/Çavdarhisar bridges). Reconstructed architecture of the arches (Fig. 26.6c–d) reveals that at least 4 m of deposition took place within the last 2000 years. Responding to the increase in flood frequency that the aggradation testifies

for, the protection walls of the inner city have been raised to prevent bank erosion below the houses. Therefore, although many former building blocks have been incorporated into recent structures (such as Torumtay Complex of Seljuk and Yörgüçpaşa Mosque of Ottoman Period), most of the Roman and Byzantine structures, such as roads and collapsed buildings, may have been preserved below recent flood deposits topping the valley floor which is today densely occupied by both Ottoman monuments and modern buildings. Another clue for this morphological change recorded in the gorge comes from the position of the Seljuk structures, which are built on slope deposits and alluvial fans close to the hillslopes, away from the river bed and frequent plain bottom flooding. The well-preserved wooden houses of the mid-Late Ottoman Period, survived from the urban fire which devastated the southern part of the city at the beginning of twentieth

26

Landscape Evolution and Occupation History …

century, also sit on the raised protection walls (which reuse worked stones and even pillars from Roman Period) located on the banks of the Yeşilırmak River channel (Fig. 26.6b, c). These walls, meant for preventing bank erosion, interfered with the natural evolution of the river and narrowed the channel provoking its incision at some places and increased flood peaks that may have overflew downstream. Earthquakes are frequent natural disasters in Amasya. Thanks to the local historians (e.g., H.H. Yaşar) and also restoration marks on the surviving historical buildings, we are able to determine the date and effects of earthquakes, especially after fourteenth century AD. The citadel is known to be refurbished nine times (Yaşar 1912), five of which correspond to the documented (Ambraseys and Finkel 1995) and dated (Hartleb et al. 2003) earthquakes. The city often suffered from major earthquakes that ruptured the North Anatolian Fault main strand (236, 1050, 1668, 1939) and also its splays (1579, 1647, 1794) (for a review, see Erturaç and Tüysüz 2010). Floods were very frequent as understood from historical documents, such as those in 1728–1732, which severely destroyed the monuments located on the right bank of the river (Yaşar 1912). They continued until the mid-twentieth century (Fig. 26.6e).

26.5

Conclusion

Occupation history within the city of Amasya and surroundings shows a remarkable interaction between the landscape evolution and settlement practices. This paper is an attempt to relate this interaction within the cultural geology perspective, which claims that the formation of cultural heritage has been dominated by natural processes such as climate, landforms, morphology and geological setting (Kazancı et al. 2017). Acknowledgements This paper is based on observations and thoughts from the author’s dissertation (2003–2009) that are assembled within the concept of “Cultural Geology”, after the kind invitation by the editors of this volume. The structure is mainly inspired by A. Gabriel’s work in early–mid-twentieth century AD and also by detailed studies of Doğan Alp, Okan Tüysüz and Bora Rojay. I would like to thank local sentients Hasan Varış and Aydın Babacan who are already a part of the landscape and history of Amasya. The discussions and contributions by Banu Doğan, Ozan Erdal, Berkay Dinçer, Işıl Kalpkırmaz and Çiğdem Lüle are also acknowledged. This paper is dedicated to Werner H. Schnuchel, who passed away unexpectedly, shortly after a fruitful discussion on this paper. It is also a salute to his continuous effort to document the extinct rural architecture of Anatolia.

References Alp D (1972) Amasya ve çevresinin jeolojisi, Doktora tezi. İstanbul Üniversitesi 22:101

479 Ambraseys NN, Finkel C (1995) The seismicity of Turkey and adjacent areas. A historical review, 1500–1800. Eren Yayınları. İstanbul, 240 p Barka AA (1992) The North Anatolian fault zone. Annales Tectonicae 6:164–169 Doğanbaş M (2009) “Amasya Merkez Harşena Kalesi 2007 Yılı Kurtarma Kazısı”, 17. Müze Çalışmaları ve Kurtarma Kazıları Sempozyumu, Side, pp 11–29 Dönmez Ş (2011) Oluz Höyük Kazısı Dördüncü Dönem (2010) Çalışmaları: Değerlendirmeler ve Sonuçlar. Colloquium Anatolicum, X. Türk Eskiçağ Bilimleri Enstitüsü, pp 103–129 Erturaç MK (2009) Morphotectonics of Amasya and surroundings. Unpublished PhD thesis, ITU Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences, 391 p Erturaç MK, Tüysüz O (2010) Amasya ve çevresinin depremselliği ve deterministic deprem tehlike analizi. İTÜ Dergisi, Mühendislik Serisi 9(3) Erturaç MK, Tüysüz O (2012) Kinematics and basin formation along the Ezinepazar-Sungurlu fault zone, NE Anatolia, Turkey. Turk J Earth Sci 21:497–520 Erturaç MK, Kıyak NG (2017) Investigating the fluvial response to late pleistocene climate changes and vertical deformation: Yeşilırmak terrace staircases (central north Anatolia) (In Turkish with extended abstract). Geol Bull Tur 60:615–636. https://doi.org/10.25288/tjb. 370625 Fleischer R (2009) The rock-tombs of the Pontic Kings in Amaseia (Amasya). In: Højte JM (ed) Mithridates VI and the Pontic Kingdom, Black Sea Studies, vol 9. Aarhus University Press, Aarhus, pp 109–120 Gabriel A (1934) Monuments turcs d’Anatolie: Deuxième Tome: Amasya-Tokat-Sivas, Paris: de Boccard. 204 p Hartleb RD, Dolan JF, Akyüz HS, Yerli B (2003) A 2,000 year-long paleoseismologic record of earthquakes along the central North Anatolian fault, from trenches at Alayurt, Turkey. Bull Seism Soc Am 93(5):1935–1954 Kazancı N, Özgen-Erdem N, Erturaç MK (2017) Kültürel Jeoloji ve Jeolojik Miras; Yerbilimlerinin Yeni Açılımları; Cultural geology and geological heritage; new initiatives for earth sciences. Geol Bull Turk 60(1):1–16 Kıyak NG, Erturaç MK (2008) Luminesence ages of feldspar contaminated quartz from fluvial terrace sediments, Geochronometria 30. https://doi.org/10.2478/v10003-008-0007-8 Kuzucular K (1996) “Amasya Kenti`nin 16–19. Yüzyıllar Arasındaki Fiziksel Yapısının Osmanlı Arşiv Belgelerine Göre İrdelenmesi”, Prof. Doğan Kuban`a Armağan. In: Mazlum D, Eyüpgiller KK, Ahunbay Z (eds) Eren Yayıncılık, İstanbul, pp 137–158 Lisiecki, LE, Raymo ME (2005) A Plio-Pleistocene Stack of 57 globally distributed benthic d18O records. Paleoceanography, 20, PA1003, 17 pp. https://doi.org/10.1029/2004pa001071 Okay AI, Zattin M, Cavazza W (2010) Apatite fission-track data for Miocene Arabia-Eurasia collision. Geol 38:35–38 Rojay B (1993) Tectonostratigraphy and neotectonic characteristics of the southern margin of Merzifon-Suluova Basin. (Central Pontides, Amasya). Unpublished PhD Thesis, METU, Ankara, 214 p Şengör AMC, Yılmaz Y (1981) Tethyan evolution of Turkey: a plate tectonic approach. Tectonophys 75(3/4):181–243 Şengör AMC, Tüysüz O, İmren C, Sakınç M, Eyidoğan H, Görür N, Le Pichon X, Rangin C (2005) The North Anatolian fault: a new look. Annu Rev Earth Planet Sciences 33:1–75 Strabo, Geography. trans. Falconer, W (G. Bell & Sons, London, 1903). Perseus Digital Library. Accessed July 2014 Sunal G, Erturaç MK (2012) Estimation of the pre-North Anatolian Fault Zone pseudo-paleo-topography: a key to determining the cumulative offset of major post-collisional strike-slip faults. Geomorphol 159–160:125–141

480 Tüysüz O (1992) Geology of Çorum G-35-c 1/50.000 quadrangle. Unpublished TPAO report Tüysüz O (1996) Amasya ve Çevresinin Jeolojisi, Türkiye 11. Petrol Kongresi Kitabı, Ankara, pp 32–48 Yaşar HH (1912–1928) Amasya Tarihi. 4 cilt. İstanbul Yılmaz Y, Tüysüz O, Yiğitbaş E, Genç ŞC, Şengör AMC (1997) Geology and tectonic evolution of the Pontides. In: Robinson AG

M. K. Erturaç (ed) Regional and petroleum geology of the Black Sea and surrounding region, memoir, vol 68. American Association of Petroleum Geologists, pp 183–226 Yüce A (2004) “Amasya Müzesi”, Amasya Valiliği Kültür Yayınları, 144 p, Ankara. ISBN: 975-585-409-6

27

The North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone A. M. Celâl Şengör and Cengiz Zabcı

Abstract

The North Anatolian Shear Zone (NASZ) and its most prominent member, the North Anatolian Fault (NAF), initiated some 11 million years ago, together form the northern boundary of the westerly extruding Anatolian Scholle. The NAF has had a remarkable seismic activity between 1939 and 1999 in which the westward migrating earthquake sequence created surface ruptures amounting to about two-thirds of its total length of 1600 km, leaving unbroken only the Marmara Segment, to the west, and the Yedisu Segment, to the east. Both the NASZ and the NAF are located within a broad zone of soft subduction-accretion material forming the suture fill of both the Palaeo- and Neo-Tethyan oceans. In general, the NASZ becomes wider from east to west in harmony with the widening of the zone of accretionary complexes and it reaches its maximum width in the Marmara Lobe. The NAF generally follows a very prominent valley from the Karlıova Triple Junction in the east, to the town of Bolu in the west. Farther to the west, the NAF bifurcates into two strands probably resulting from the existence of structures already established in the west as a result of the Aegean extension. There are many major river courses that cross the NAF where they bend in a clockwise fashion because of the dextral displacement of the fault. In the east, the tributaries of the Fırat (Euphrates) are deflected along a very narrow corridor, but further to the west, other major rivers display a broader zone of dextral deflection. The decreasing cumulative offset from east to the west suggests a diachronous character for the NAF A. M. C. Şengör (&)
C. Zabcı Maden Fakültesi, Jeoloji Bölümü, İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Ayazağa, 34469 İstanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] C. Zabcı e-mail: [email protected] A. M. C. Şengör Avrasya Yerbilimleri Enstitüsü, İstanbul Teknik Üniversitesi, Ayazağa, 34469 İstanbul, Turkey

that formed by the progressive strain localisation in this westerly widening right-lateral shear zone. The localisation of the NAF happened during the late Miocene in the extreme east of the shear zone and then gradually tore farther and farther westward at an average rate of some 13 cm/year until it finally reached its present position in the west some 200.000 years ago, although this extreme youth in the west is not yet universally agreed upon. This nucleation did not deactivate the earlier broad shear zone, but left some elements still active, creating earthquakes and shaping the topography, but at incomparably smaller rates. Keywords








North Anatolian Shear Zone North Anatolian Fault Tectonics Seismicity Turkey

27.1




Introduction

The North Anatolian Fault (Ketin 1948, 1969; Şengör 1979, Şengör et al. 1985, 2005) and the North Anatolian Shear Zone (Şengör et al. 2005), in which the fault originated some 11 million years ago, together form (i) one of the most conspicuous, structurally controlled, large-scale geomorphological features of Turkey, and (ii) the northern Aegean Sea connecting the Turkish–Iranian High Plateau with the West Anatolian–Aegean rift cluster, called the Aegean Taphrogen, along a course roughly parallel with and, on average, some 100 km south of the Black Sea coast of Asia Minor (Fig. 27.1a). The North Anatolian Fault is one of the world’s major active strike-slip faults with a total length of some 1600 km between the triple junction of Karlıova in eastern Anatolia (Ka in Fig. 27.1a) and the Pelion Peninsula in the west (P in Fig. 27.1a). It consists of an entire family of subordinate breaks (e.g. Fig. 27.1b) in the ground localising earthquakes of up to about Mw (i.e. moment-magnitude) = 8 (e.g. Fig. 27.1d, e), albeit the most destructive earthquakes

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_27

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along it release energies equivalent to 6 + to 7 + magnitudes, not quite reaching 8 (Fig. 27.1c, d). Although the fault is its most lively element, the North Anatolian Shear Zone itself is still in operation outside the fault, but exhibiting a much more subdued activity both in terms of the frequency of earthquakes it localises and of their number. Earthquakes occurring within the North Anatolian Shear Zone but outside the main course of the North Anatolian Fault hardly ever reach magnitude 7. Moreover, not all the strain along the North Anatolian Fault is accomplished by earthquakes. In at least one place near its middle sector it displays a well-documented and continuous creep (Fig. 27.1f). New evidence indicates that the northern branch of the fault is also creeping in the western part of the Sea of Marmara (the ‘Main Marmara Fault’: Fig. 27.1a) (Ergintav et al. 2014), but that it is locked in the centre and in the west (Schmittbuhl et al. 2015). That regions south of the fault in the Sea of Marmara are now straining more than the regions to its north (according to the Global Positioning System measurements: Le Pichon et al. 2003) supports the hypothesis that the middle segment of the Main Marmara Fault is locked and may be poised to generate a major earthquake (Mw  7.6) in the near future threatening, among others, one of the major cultural heritage sites of humanity and the economic centre of Turkey, the city of İstanbul. The North Anatolian Shear Zone and the North Anatolian Fault are the main structures guiding the westerly movement of the ‘Anatolian Scholle’ (Ketin 1948) to its north since the late Miocene (Fig. 27.2). The southern boundary of the Scholle is more complicated, despite the uniformly high but varied morphology of the Taurus Range noticed already in antiquity by Dikaiarchos of Mesana and Eratosthenes of Cyrene (fourth and second centuries BCE, respectively). It consists indeed of segments of major strike-slip faults (e.g. the East Anatolian Fault or the Pliny-Strabo ‘trench’ couple), extensional (e.g. the Hatay Rift) and transtensional basins (e.g. the Adana-Cilicia Basin) and subduction zones (e.g. the Cyprus Trench), in part resulting from the internal deformation of the Anatolian Scholle dominated by southwesterly moving wedges (Fig. 27.1a). The location and the simplicity of the North Anatolian Shear Zone and the North Anatolian Fault are not fortuitous. Both structures are located within a broad zone of soft subduction-accretion material (serpentinites, deep-sea shales, radiolarites and flysch) ranging in age from the Carboniferous to the early Eocene forming the suture fill of both the Palaeo- and Neo-Tethyan oceans here, the two in places having been mixed by much strike-slip motion throughout the Mesozoic and the Cainozoic (Fig. 27.2). Both to the north and to the south, this ‘soft’ material is clenched by the older and stiffer basements of the İstanbul Zone and the Eastern Pontides in the north and the Kırşehir Block in the south. Farther west, the northwestern end of the

A. M. C. Şengör and C. Zabcı

Menderes-Taurus Block replaces the Kırşehir Massif across the Inner Tauride Suture as the southern buttress (Fig. 27.2). As Fig. 27.2 shows, the North Anatolian Fault largely follows the northern bimaterial boundary between the suture fill and the northerly older basements almost as far west as the Chalkidiki Peninsula (Ch in Fig. 27.1a), although its predecessor and progenitor, the North Anatolian Shear Zone, occupies almost the entire suture fill (Fig. 27.2). The whole of Turkey and the Balkan Peninsula are within a plate boundary zone and therefore tectonically active as expressed in their lively seismicity (Fig. 27.3) and large relief exceeding 5 km (exceeding 8.5 km if the maximum depth of the Aegean Sea is also considered). However, both to the east and west of the vast central Anatolian plains, nested in the so-called ‘ovas’—large, roughly equant, flat-bottomed depressions, at an average elevation of some 1 km—the rate of deformation and heat flow are higher. The east is now an average 2.1-km-high plateau, called the Turkish–Iranian High Plateau (Fig. 27.1a), which began rising from beneath the sea about 13 million years ago (when global sea level may have been on average some 30 m higher than today, but showing rapid oscillations between 0 and 40 m: Miller et al. 2005) because of the average 22 mm/year convergence between Arabia and Eurasia. It is covered by extensive late Miocene to present volcanics. The west is a rift cluster consisting of six major east– west-trending individual rifts disrupting a Miocene plateau that once had an average elevation of some 3 km. That average elevation is now lowered down to 500 m and, in the Aegean Sea, has become submarine (Fig. 27.1a) as a consequence of some 3 cm/year lithospheric stretching in western Turkey since some 11 M years ago (extensional structures reported to be older were related to gravitationally driven crustal thinning during ongoing lithospheric shortening and not to total lithosphere stretching). This late Miocene to the present stretching doubled the medial Miocene north–south width of the rift cluster. Major vulcanicity in the rift cluster died already during the Miocene, but local centres of eruptions continued their activity into the end of the Pleistocene in its middle (e.g. the famous Katakekaumene, i.e. ‘the burnt land’, of Strabo in the Kula region: K in Fig. 27.1a) and into the historic times in the Aegean magmatic arc in its south (Fig. 27.1a). The central Turkish ‘ovas’ also have vulcanicity resembling more that in western Turkey than the one in the east. There is a volcanic line reaching from the Karadağ Volcano in Karaman to beyond Kayseri, along which all volcanoes coincide with small rifts with north–south orientations (Fig. 27.1a). They give the impression of a series of small tension gashes lined up along a northeast-trending sinistral shear zone, which we here tentatively call the Karaman-Niğde Shear Zone (KNSZ in Fig. 27.1a). South of Ankara there is a single undated, but most likely Eocene or

27

The North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone

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Fig. 27.1 (continued)

A. M. C. Şengör and C. Zabcı

27

The North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone

b Fig. 27.1 a North Anatolian Fault (white lines) and the North

Anatolian Shear Zone (yellowish, westerly widening zone astride the North Anatolian Fault) set within their tectonic ecology in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Tethysides. All the geological structures shown here are late medial Miocene (about 13 Ma) or younger, and most are still active. All pinkish faults are thrusts with teeth on the upper plate; all pinkish lines with double-headed arrows across them are folds (anticlines); all yellow faults are normal faults with hachures on the hanging wall block; all the yellow faults are strike-slip faults with black half arrows indicating sense of motion. Red patches are areas of volcanism. Red lines are dykes (all within the last 13 Ma). Within the Black Sea, the dark blue colour indicates anomalously thick (about 25 km) oceanic crust, whereas light blue indicates stretched continental crust (very preliminary: based only on magnetic data). Key to lettering: A-CTB: Adana-Cilicia transtensional basin, AEA: Aegean magmatic arc, AŞ: Aksaray-Şereflikoçhisar Fault, AT: Aegean Taphrogen, BT: Balkan Taphrogen, Ch: Chalkidiki Peninsula; CT: Cyprus Trench, E: Erzincan, EAF: East Anatolian Fault, G: Galatean volcanic massif, H: Hellenic Trench, HT: Hatay Rift, K: Katakekaumene (i.e. the Kula volcanic area), Ka: Karlıova Triple Junction, KNSZ: Karaman-Niğde Shear Zone (hypothetical), Kr: Karaman, KW: Kırşehir Wedge, Ky: Kayseri, MMF: Main Marmara Fault, P: Pelion Peninsula, P-S: Pliny-Strabo ‘trench’ complex, T-IHP: Turkish–Iranian High Plateau. Base image is from Google Earth. b The surface exposure of the NAF, deforming the Eocene turbidites at the east of the Saros Bay. The horizontal slickenlines most likely mark the modern strike-slip deformation that is along the one of many sub-parallel fault strands in the region. A. M. Celâl Şengör provides the scale (Photograph Oya Şengör). c Shortened asphalt on the İstanbul-Ankara autobahn (a part of the Trans-European Motorway E80) during the 17 August 1999 earthquake. The orientation of the fold axis is WSW– ENE, thus in the expected shortening orientation along the North Anatolian Fault striking roughly E–W here (Photograph Dr. Ömer Emre). d Petrol station astride a branch of the North Anatolian Fault that slipped during the 17 August 1999 earthquake between the two buildings and petrol pumps of a petrol station in the Nehirkent village. The curve along the trace of the backlights of a car (red and white) indicates the exact offset along the fault here during the earthquake, which is here 5 m. The fault strikes roughly E–W (Photograph Lois Lammerhuber). e (e1) Moletrack along the broken segment of the North Anatolian Fault that slipped during the 17 August 1999 earthquake showing both extensional gashes and shortening structures

younger volcanic plug (the red x touching the K of KNSZ in Fig. 27.1a). To the northwest of the capital, reaching almost as far west as the town of Bolu is the large body of the Miocene to Pliocene Galatean volcanic massif of enigmatic origin (mainly andesites and basalts: G in Fig. 27.1a). Not only is volcanism in Central Turkey much more subdued compared with its eastern and western neighbours but so is also the earthquake activity (Fig. 27.3). Laser levelling in the immense ‘ova’ of Konya failed to detect any motion along the terraces of this vast pluvial lake basin since the Pleistocene and seismologists agree that it is seismically the most tranquil place in the entire country (Fig. 27.3).

485 (folds and thrust faults that developed perpendicular to them (for greater detail, see inset Fig. 27.1e2). In some places, the ground is also broken along Riedel (R) shears. (e2) Detail along the moletrack seen in Fig. 27.1d1. The thin white line is along the strike of the main displacement zone of the North Anatolian Fault. The thicker white line is along the original orientation of the extensional gashes. Perpendicular to them are thrust faults that break the top soil layer. The thrust slabs also rotated clockwise thus opening up the extensional gashes into triangular chasms. A gentle folding with broad synclines and narrow anticlines also characterises both the overthrust slabs and the footwalls. Small blocks caught up along thrust fronts are pressed upward and rotated along horizontal axes (e.g. block marked B). Neither thrust strikes nor extensional gash strikes are straight but were obviously controlled by pre-existing structures (e.g. dehydration cracks) within the top soil layer (Photographs Ömer Emre). f The bent wall of the repair station belonging to the Turkish Highway Department (Kara Yolları) in İsmetpaşa astride a creeping segment of the North Anatolian Fault. Professor Pierre Henry and Dr. Céline Grall provide the scale (Photograph Cengiz Zabcı). g The fault-controlled valley of the Soruk River near the village of Öğürlü (Vezirköprü, Samsun). In this region, the North Anatolian Fault has already turned into a nearly E–W orientation along with the trace of the northern Neo-Tethyan suture of İzmir–Ankara–Erzincan. The Upper Cretaceous flysch and volcanics delineate the southern margin of the Rhodope-Pontide magmatic arc. View to the W–SW (Photograph Cengiz Zabcı). h Trace of the North Anatolian Fault N of the village of Eskibağ (Akıncılar, Sivas) showing a typical small sag pond localising a swamp. The age of the sag pond is clearly post some Pliocene and possibly Quaternary. The fault trace here also follows the Ankara– Erzincan suture, and the Eocene volcanics seen to the south are the products of the suture crossing, post-collisional magmatism (Photograph Cengiz Zabcı). i The very straight Yedisu (‘seven waters’) segments have formed the Peri Suyu (‘fairy’s water’) valley near the Döşengi settlement (Yedisu, Bingöl). The fault here very faithfully follows the Ankara–Erzincan suture (Photograph Cengiz Zabcı). j The fault, cutting through an ophiolitic mélange in its middle course, created a distinct depression near the village of Ilıpınar (Karlıova, Bingöl), near the Karlıova Triple Junction. Notice that the mélange carries remnants of an erosion surface most likely of latest Miocene– early Pliocene age here. The climate here is a continental semidesert (Dsa in the Köppen–Geiger climate classification) (Photograph Cengiz Zabcı)

27.2

The Geomorphology of the North Anatolian Fault

27.2.1 Fluvial Geomorphology Along the Fault The North Anatolian Fault follows a very prominent valley from the Karlıova Triple Junction in the east to the town of Bolu in the west (Figs. 27.1g, i, j). This valley is the result of the displacement and comminuting of the rocks resulting from grinding along the numerous branches of the North Anatolian Fault family (Fig. 27.1a), and of erosion attacking

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A. M. C. Şengör and C. Zabcı

Fig. 27.2 A schematic map showing the Neo-Tethyan sutures in the Eastern Mediterranean (the semitransparent red hue marks the sutures; the broad area of ‘suture fill’ in eastern Turkey is the East Anatolian Accretionary Complex that underlies much of the Turkish–Iranian High Plateau). The map clearly shows how strongly the course of the North Anatolian Shear Zone (and, of course, of the North Anatolian Fault) is controlled by the northern Palaeo-Tethyan and the Neo-Tethyan sutures. In the western part of the northern Turkish sutures, we did not show the Sakarya Continent, because it has a Palaeo-Tethyan suture within it and is itself highly disrupted. It provided little resistance to the nucleation of the North Anatolian Shear Zone or to the North Anatolian Fault. However, its presence may be one explanation for the much

poorer development of the southern strand of the North Anatolian Fault than the northern one. The red arrows show very crude directions of motion with respect to Eurasia. T is the early abandoned faults belonging to the North Anatolian Shear Zone covered by the latest Miocene–Quaternary deposits of the Thrace Basin. The heavy red line with teeth is the trace of the subduction hinge of the African Plate under the Anatolian Scholle, which includes Greece south of the Grecian Shear Zone (teeth on the Anatolian Scholle). A comparison of this figure with Fig. 27.1a shows how strongly most other neotectonic features of the Eastern Mediterranean Tethysides are dependent on palaeotectonic structures

the comminuted rocks along the furrows thus formed. Although the fault traverses, from east to west, continental semidesert (Dsa in the Köppen-Geiger climate classification), continental savanna (Dsb) and dry summer Mediterranean climate regions (Csa), its morphology is remarkably uniform all along its length. Even where the fault follows an elevated terrain, its course is always a furrow (Fig. 27.1j), except along fresh earthquake breaks, where diverse, both negative and positive, structures may form (e.g. Figs. 27.1 e1, e2). At the Karlıova Triple Junction (Ka in Fig. 27.1a) is a fault-bounded basin (Fig. 27.4, basin 1) with complex geometry owing to the peculiarities of the deformation as illustrated in Fig. 27.5 (Şengör 1979; Şengör et al. 1985). Because the fault zone consists of an anastomosing network of breaks, individual strands commonly surround positive spindle-shaped prominences, called whalebacks, elongated along the strike of the fault zone. They rise within the fault valley and divide it commonly into two or more subsidiary valleys whose floors may be at different

elevations. In such cases, depending on the shape of the whaleback, structurally subsequent valleys may form that violate the acute angle rule showing the direction of the flow of the structurally consequent stream (‘hooked drainage’). Such whalebacks in places block the mouths of tributary streams forming shutter ridges and deflecting stream courses. Behind shutter ridges, stream deflection can occur both in an anticlockwise or a clockwise manner depending on the shape of the shutter ridge; in some cases, an anticlockwise rotated subsequent valley may give way to a clockwise subsequent valley as the shutter ridge continues its displacement with respect to the main subsequent valley. Whalebacks in many places neighbour fault-wedge basins resembling negative whalebacks housing lakes or swamps. Both types of whalebacks most likely crown flower structures of the main fault at depth. There are also other deflected streams and major river courses that flow directly into the main consequent fault valley or even cross it. Such streams are bent, as a rule, in a clockwise

27

The North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone

487

Fig. 27.3 Distribution of seismic hazard in the Alpide plate boundary zone, which is a good guide to the long-term seismic behaviour (the Global Seismic Hazard Assessment Program GSHAP, terminated in

1999: map copied from: http://www.seismo.ethz.ch/static/GSHAP/ last visited on 7 July 2014). The heavy blue lines are the boundaries of the plate boundary zone

Fig. 27.4 Basins along the North Anatolian Fault and within the North Anatolian Shear Zone. 1. Karlıova Triple Junction Basin (Fig. 27.5), 2. Erzincan triple junction/pull-apart basin, 3. Refahiye ‘intermontane’ basins (a complex of pull-apart and fault-wedge and sag basins), 4. Niksar pull-apart basin, 5. Taşova-Erbaa pull-apart basin, 6. Havza-Lâdik pull-apart basin, 7. Vezirköprü pull-apart basin, 8. Kargı pull-apart basin, 9. Tosya ramp valley basin, 10. Çerkeş-Kurşunlu ramp valley basin, 11. Bolu pull-apart basin, 12. Düzce pull-apart basin, 13. Adapazarı pull-apart basin, 13. Gölcük-Derince pull-apart and Sapanca sag pond basins, 15. Yalova fault-wedge/pull-apart basin, 16. Çınarcık

fault-wedge basin, 17. Central Basin of the Sea of Marmara (complex negative flower), 18. Tekirdağ one-sided flexural foreland basin in front of Ganos Dağ (Işıklar Dağı), 19. Bayramiç(=Etili) pull-apart/sag? basin, 20. The Mysian trough basin complex: a series of nested basins including various pull-aparts and epi-flower basins, 21. Yenişehir pull-apart basin, 22. Pamukova pull-apart basin, 23. Merzifon pull-apart basin, 24. Kazova pull-apart basin. B is the Büyükdere Fault. The coloured small circles represent offset features along the North Anatolian Fault

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Fig. 27.5 Evolution of the Karlıova Triple Junction. A is Eurasia, B is Arabia, and C is the Anatolian Scholle. The circle in (a) is a strain marker showing the deformation character of the convergent plate margin. Coloured circles are offset geological features. Arrows in (b) show the stretching directions in the basin during its evolution

fashion all along the North Anatolian Fault because of the dextral displacement along it. This phenomenon is seen from the smallest rivulets to the main Anatolian rivers traversing the North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone. Figure 27.6 shows the largest of these rivers. From east to west, very impressive offsets of the Elmalı/Peri Suyu (Fig. 27.6, E) and the Karasu are seen (both rivers merge to become the Euphrates: Fig. 27.6, Ka). These rivers clearly show the clockwise rotations of their valleys near the North Anatolian Fault. Farther west, the Yeşilırmak (classical Iris: Fig. 27.6, Y) makes almost a hairpin turn. This hairpin turn is clearly a consequence of distributed displacement along the entire North Anatolian Shear Zone, but at first sight it looks as if, right on the fault, the river course shows a complete anticlockwise rotation. This is a consequence of the fact that the easterly tilting of the floor of the Taşova-Erbaa Basin

Fig. 27.6 Deformation of the courses of the major, north-flowing Anatolian rivers crossing the North Anatolian Fault. Blue letters: E: Elmalı/Peri Suyu, Ka: Karasu, Y: Yeşilırmak, K: Kızılırmak; F: Filyos,

A. M. C. Şengör and C. Zabcı

(Fig. 27.4, basin 5) here deflected the river, giving it its ‘anomalous’ course. Especially north of the basin, the river returns to its clockwise rotated bed fairly abruptly across a major strike-slip fault strand. Kızılırmak (the classical Halys: Fig. 27.6, K among black letters), the next major river to the west, has a spectacular almost hairpin bend and then an abrupt jump at the fault showing its dextral displacement. The broad hairpin bend is clearly a result of the west-southwesterly motion of the Kırşehir Wedge (KW in Fig. 27.1a). The ‘lobes’ of the Yeşilırmak, before its course turns into a northeast orientation, are results of dextral displacements along the Sungurlu Fault (Figs. 27.1a and 27.6) and its accompanying subsidiary neighbours. Farther west, the picture becomes very complicated as indicated by the aberrant trace of the course of the Filyos (classical Balios: Fig. 27.6, F). Erinç et al. (1961) here documented a complex capture history since the Mio-Pliocene related to slope changes and headward erosion in the active environment of the North Anatolian Shear Zone. Still farther west, both Sakarya (classical Sangarios: Fig. 27.6, S) and Susurluk (classical Macestus: Fig. 27.6, Su) show the expected clockwise rotation and Sakarya further has a sharp offset of some 26 km along the Pamukova pull-apart basin (Fig. 27.4, basin 22).

27.2.2 Structural Basins Along the Fault Unequal horizontal movement on both sides of the fault may give rise to what is called sag basins that may localise lakes or swamps, called sag ponds. The North Anatolian Fault has a large number of such sag ponds along it, ranging from small swamps and puddles to major lakes, the largest being Lake Sapanca along its northern branch (Fig. 27.4, basin 14). The main displacement zone of the North Anatolian Fault skirts the basin to the south and led to considerable

S: Sakarya, Su: Susurluk. Black letters: K: Karlıova Triple Junction, OF: Ovacık Fault, SF: Sungurlu Fault

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The North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone

deformation along its shores during the 17 August 1999 earthquake. Figure 27.1h shows a very much smaller sag pond localising a swamp to the north of the village of Eskibağ. There are numerous such sag ponds of diverse sizes along the North Anatolian Fault. Where the main displacement zone of the fault jumps to the right as in the Niksar or Taşova-Erbaa Basins, a pull-apart basin forms (Fig. 27.4, basins 4 and 5). Erzincan (Fig. 27.4, basin 2) is actually the largest of such basins, but it has a more complex structure, because another major, left-lateral fault, the Ovacık Fault (Fig. 27.6), takes off from it in a southwesterly direction causing the formation of a triple junction basin similar to the one in Karlıova (Fig. 27.4, basin 1). The Erzincan Basin was first established in the late Miocene as a pull-apart structure before the Ovacık Fault came into being during the Pliocene. Both earthquake and seismic velocity data indicate a thickness for its basin fill between 2 and 3 km, indicating substantial extension. This is consistent with the presence of bimodal volcanism (basalts and rhyolites) of 0.273 ± 0.04 ka and 0.246 ± 0.26 ka, suggesting crustal melting (Linneman 2002). Where the North Anatolian Fault jumps to the left, the resulting bend in the fault creates a hindrance to its activity resulting in shortening across the bend. Along such constraining bends, uplifts form from either folding or thrusting. In the latter case, flexural basins form in front of the overriding thrusts. The most spectacular example of an uplift-basin pair along the North Anatolian Fault is the Ganosdağ/Tekirdağ Basin couple in the western part of the Sea of Marmara (Fig. 27.4, basin 18; Fig. 27.7a, b). Shortening across the ramp anticlinorium of the Ganosdağ has given rise to NW–SE striking extensional features, and along these, gas emissions were discovered in 2007 at the foot of the Ganosdağ margin along the western margin of the Tekirdağ Basin (Fig. 27.7c). The detection of unusually high 3He in the upwelling gases here makes direct communication with the mantle a viable interpretation indicating that fractures along the North Anatolian Fault sample mantle gas reservoirs. This is consistent with earthquake focal depths reaching as far down as the crust–mantle boundary in the Marmara basins (about 16 km). When a flexural basin is thrust from both sides, they are called ramp valley basins. The Tosya Basin (Fig. 27.4, basin 9) represents the best and the largest of the ramp valley basins that formed along the North Anatolian Fault. By contrast, the neighbouring Çerkeş-Kurşunlu Basin (Fig. 27.4, basin 10) is a highly deformed asymmetric flexural basin overridden from the north. The two largest basins that are found along the North Anatolian Fault are the Sea of Marmara and its southern, but subaerial, twin, the Mysian trough (Fig. 27.4, basin 20). The Sea of Marmara and the Mysian trough have formed along

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the northern and the southern branches of the North Anatolian fault, respectively. These basins have complex origins. Their origin seems to have been triggered by both (i) north– south extension, because of the Aegean extension largely caused by the slab rollback along the Hellenic Trench (HT in Fig. 27.1a), and (ii) shear distributed across a width of some 110 km along the North Anatolian Shear Zone already during the late Miocene. Both basins initially formed east– west-trending extensional troughs with irregular margins probably dictated by horizontal shear fractures. Later, mainly during the early Pleistocene, as the northern branch of the North Anatolian Fault became more localised in the northern trough (i.e. that of the Sea of Marmara) and the southern branch became localised in the southern, Mysian trough, individualised sub-basins formed within the troughs. These are, in the north, the Çınarcık Basin (a fault-wedge basin: Fig. 27.4, basin 16), the Central Basin (Fig. 27.4, basin 17) and the Tekirdağ Basin (Fig. 27.4, basin 18). All of these basins began forming during the Pleistocene, at the very earliest during the latest Pliocene (Şengör et al. 2014). In the south, along the Mysian trough, the Uluabat (also known as Apolyont) and the Manyas basins, both still housing lakes, correspond to the deeps in the northern basin, i.e. those within the Sea of Marmara. The Bosphorus seems to show no influence of the North Anatolian Fault in its course, with the possible exception of its sharp dogleg bend in Büyükdere, on the European side, and Beykoz on the Asiatic side, where the small east– northeast striking Büyükdere Fault created a small graben (B in Fig. 27.4, where the length is somewhat exaggerated for it to be visible; Şengör 2011). This small fault may have been influenced by the North Anatolian Shear Zone. The situation is different for the Dardanelles. Le Pichon et al. (2014) have shown that the strait here follows an old fluvial valley that is nucleated on the continuation of what is called the South Marmara Fault. It seems that here the North Anatolian Shear Zone exercised a direct influence on the location of the Strait.

27.2.3 Hot Springs Another geomorphological feature of the North Anatolian Fault is the number of hot springs along its length (Fig. 27.8a, b). These springs are habitually near or within the extensional basins that formed along the fault, and some, such as the one near Bolu (about half-way between İstanbul and Ankara), have localised beautiful white travertine deposits not dissimilar to the more famous ones in Denizli (ancient Hierapolis). Some of these hot springs are being used as spas.

490 Fig. 27.7 a Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of the Ganosdağ ramp anticlinorium rising abruptly from the western shore of the Sea of Marmara. The foreland fold and thrust belt to the east of Ganosdağ and the belt of backthrusting separating the two have been established by seismic reflexion profiling (Şengör et al. 2014). The thin red lines with about 320° northwesterly trends are possible extensional fractures. The extensional structure that created the vent of Boris’ Bubblers (Fig. 27.7c) has the same trend. Other lines with similar ornament are other possible fracture sets inferred from unusually straight valley orientations. Yellow lines are generalised bed strikes outlining the anticlinorium. b Ganosdağ viewed from the southwest showing the northwesterly tilted beds within the ramp anticlinorium, which is truncated because of west-vergent thrusting seen in the seismic profiles (Şengör et al. 2014). (Photograph Professor Mehmet Sakınç). c Boris’ Bubblers: an extensional gas escape vent discovered in 2007 during the Dive 1644 of the IFREMER research submersible Nautile by Bernard Mercier de Lépinay and Boris A. Natal’in. The general strike of this vent is 320°–330° (Géli et al. 2008). Here, 70% mantle He has been found suggesting direct mantle He sampling through fault-related fractures (Burnard et al. 2012) (Photograph MARNAUT Team)

A. M. C. Şengör and C. Zabcı

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The North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone

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Fig. 27.8 a Hot spring at the westernmost point of the southern strand of the North Anatolian Fault, just west of the Etili Rift. b The same area as in Fig. 27.8a showing the disrupted character of the country rock

27.3

The Cumulative Offset of the North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone

The following is a list of the most reliable offset measurements along both the North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone summarised from Şengör et al. (2005). In it, G stands for offset of geological and M for geomorphological markers. The same coloured small circles in Fig. 27.4 on both sides of the fault represent offset geological or geomorphological features. 1. Offset of the Elmalı/Peri Suyu System (M): This tributary of the Euphrates is deflected right-laterally for some 60 km between Kümbet (39°50′ N, 41°20′ E) in the east and Akımlı (39°26′ N, 40°19′ E) in the west. As the river system is of Pliocene age here (Erinç 1953), the deflection represents a minimum offset. 2. The Yedisu Offset (G): The Yedisu Fault, the easternmost segment of the North Anatolian Fault, right-laterally offsets a thrust contact between an upper Lower Cretaceous to Upper Cretaceous ophiolitic mélange and an Upper Cretaceous to Palaeocene volcanic and volcaniclastic unit consisting of agglomerates, andesites, basalts, dacites, trachytes and conglomerates, for 50 km (Herece and Akay 2003, Appendix 13). This is a minimum offset for the North Anatolian Shear Zone; for south of the North Anatolian Fault, there are a number of fault splays that take up further displacement. Unfortunately, in this region such splays are entirely within Pliocene volcanics and it is as yet not possible to assess the amount of displacement they accomplish (Herece and Akay 2003).

3. Offset of the Karasu River (Euphrates tributary) (M): It was pointed out that the Karasu was displaced right-laterally for 50 km across the Erzincan Basin. However, this estimate ignores the bending of the river into the fault zone (most probably along a number of parallel faults). When that bending is taken into account, the morphological offset increases to some 70 km. 4. Offset of the northern Neo-Tethyan suture. This was the first reliable offset estimate along the North Anatolian Fault. 5. Turhal-Amasya Plain deflection of the Yeşilırmak (M): Here, the Yeşilırmak is deflected right-laterally for some 30 km. This deflection is on strike with narrow Albian to Middle Campanian ophiolitic mélange units recognised amid Palaeo-Tethyan mélange units of pre-Liassic age, which seem to have been emplaced along young strike-slip faults, expressed in the morphology as prominent parallel ridges. We interpret these faults to be related to the Sungurlu Fault some 20 km to the north (and thus parts of the North Anatolian Shear Zone). 6. Amasya Plain-Lâdik deflection (M): This major deflection of the Yeşilırmak sums the offsets (50 km) between the Sungurlu Fault to the south and the last northerly strand of the North Anatolian Fault to the north and hence gives us a part of the offset along the North Anatolian Shear Zone. This offset, however, may be as much as 75 km (Şengör et al. 2005). 7. The Kargı offset of the Kızılırmak (M): The Kızılırmak River is displaced for some 40 km right-laterally along the main strand of the North Anatolian Fault as mentioned earlier. The river here is probably early Pliocene in age, so the offset is probably close to the true cumulative displacement along the fault.

A. M. C. Şengör and C. Zabcı

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8. Mudurnu Çayı offsets (G): These three sets of offset geological markers are among the best constrained along the entire North Anatolian Fault. They are (1) a late Cretaceous ophiolitic mélange thrust over the Lower to Middle Eocene sandstones, (2) a steep fault zone juxtaposing uppermost Lower and Upper Cretaceous sandstones, shales, agglomerates, lavas and red clayey limestones, and tuffites with Lower Devonian arkosic conglomerates, violet-coloured siltstones, and fossiliferous siltstones, (3) a Devonian tectonic slice sitting in late Cretaceous (?) ultramafics. All of these are offset for some 50 km right-laterally along the southern strand of the North Anatolian Fault. 9. The Pamukova river diversion (M): Koçyiğit (1988) pointed out that in Pamukova (Fig. 27.4, no. 22) the Sakarya River is deflected right-laterally for 22 km. We have measured a similar deflection of 26 km in the same place by taking the bending of the main river course into account. 10. The dextral displacement for 4 km of the northwest– southeast-trending fold of the Central High in the Sea of Marmara (M). 11. The displacement of the western margin of the Central Basin of the Sea of Marmara (M): Le Pichon et al. (2001) showed that the eastern margin of the Central Basin within the Marmara Trough has been offset for some 4 km since about 200,000 years ago, which is the age of the northern strand of the NAF at this location. Recent suggestions (Grall et al. 2013) to make the fault older here depend on seismic stratigraphy, which is less certain than the offset, and terrace age data. It does not yet mean that they are wrong, though. The above list reveals a westerly decrease in the offset of the fault. However, when one looks at the offset of the major rivers across the North Anatolian Shear Zone, one sees that for the entire shear zone this is not the case. It seems as if there is a conservation of throw along the North Anatolian Shear Zone. From the age and similarity of styles in basins all along the North Anatolian Shear Zone, we surmise also that the total offset along the shear zone must probably be constant. Clearly, this is only an inference bereft of direct proof. The uncertainty of the method gives here an uncertainty of some ±20–25 km, which corresponds to the offset along the Sungurlu Fault (Fig. 27.4, offset no. 5).

27.4

The Age of the North Anatolian Fault

The best way to date the North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone is to look at the times when the basins related to the structures originated and at offsets of geomorphological features with known age.

The most ancient basins related to the shear evolution are in the easternmost part of the fault and the youngest in its northwesternmost part, although the basins along its southern strand are also as old as late Miocene in age. The oldest basins along the present main displacement zone are medial to late Miocene in age, whereas the youngest are barely older than the Pleistocene. Judging from the basins directly associated with it, the North Anatolian Fault clearly becomes younger as we go westward. By contrast, when we look at all the basins in the North Anatolian Shear Zone, this discrepancy in age and offset between the east and the west becomes much smaller, if not entirely non-existent, as pointed out above. In the Sea of Marmara, where the Main Marmara Fault is not much older than 200 ka and the fills of the main basins are not much older than Pleistocene (Şengör et al. 2005, 2014), the Marmara Trough itself is older, probably late Miocene in age as suggested by the seaward thickening deposits of the same age along the northern margins of the Sea of Marmara. Along the southern strand, the shear-related basins are also late Miocene in age, as mentioned above, and there are no observations to constrain the ages of the individual faults making up the southern strand. Şengör et al. (1985) pointed out and Le Pichon et al. (2003) concurred that the ‘fragmented’ nature of the southern strand shows that a through-going main fault has yet to materialise there. It seems as if the northern strand of the fault ‘stole’ the ‘future’ of the southern strand, before it could fully develop! The question now becomes whether the North Anatolian Fault jumped into existence with the same rate of motion as it now has. As this would imply infinite acceleration at the beginning, it is not possible (although assumed by many authors!). Instead, we assume that the entire North Anatolian Shear Zone started forming gradually, and as its evolution accelerated, the North Anatolian Fault nucleated in it from east to west, following the widening shear zone in the same direction. Figure 27.9 is a ‘speedogram’ of the North Anatolian Shear Zone. It plots cumulative offset against time since its origin deduced from its associated basins. Also plotted is the present rate of motion of the fault, which is approximately 2.5 cm/year as deduced from the geodetic data obtained from the Global Positioning System Stations in Turkey. If we project the present rate linearly backward in time, we see that the present cumulative offset could have accumulated in 3.5 Ma. The North Anatolian Fault would have formed in the early Pliocene between Zanclean and Piacenzian times. This is not only physically impossible, but also geologically most unlikely. We know from the Karnos Basin, one of the small basins making up the Refahiye ‘intermontane basins’ (Fig. 27.4, basin 3) that the NASZ originated some 13 to 11 Ma ago in the east (where the North Anatolian Shear Zone and the North Anatolian Fault are almost coincident), not 3.5 Ma ago. We therefore connect in Fig. 27.9 the

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The North Anatolian Fault and the North Anatolian Shear Zone

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Fig. 27.9 North Anatolian Shear Zone and Fault ‘speedogram’

present rate of motion with the rate of motion at the time of origin, which had to be 0 cm/year. We make the connection by means of a smooth curve to illustrate the way the rate of motion along the entire system has evolved with time.

27.5

Conclusions

The North Anatolian Fault is one of the dominating morphotectonic features of northern Turkey and the northern Aegean Sea, which has a remarkable constant velocity of 26 mm/year over its whole length (Le Pichon and Kreemer 2010). It created a roughly east–west fault valley interrupted in many places by diverse types of basins that originated as a direct consequence of the shear movement. The courses of the major north-flowing Anatolian rivers are all strongly influenced by the fault valley, its basins and by the dextral motion along them. Numerous erosion surfaces have been deformed by the fault, but very few of them have been dated so far. This is one of the most urgent desiderata of the research along the fault and along its progenitor, the North Anatolian Shear Zone. This westerly widening broad shear zone originated in the late Miocene and began carrying the Anatolian Scholle westward with respect to Eurasia with an ever-increasing rate of displacement. The North Anatolian Fault originated in this shear zone. The westerly movement of Anatolia seems to have ripped a part of the Balkans from Eurasia and

created the Balkan Taphrogen that opens up like a fan around a pole somewhere in the southernmost Pannonian Basin (Dewey and Şengör 1979; Fig. 27.1a, BTp; Fig. 27.2). The rates of motion in the Balkan Taphrogen are of intraplate values (less than a cm/year). By contrast, the Aegean Taphrogen is extending at rates characteristic of slow spreading centres, i.e. already at plate boundary rates. The rate of motion along the North Anatolian Shear Zone now is about the spreading rate of the Atlantic Ocean, so it is also of a plate boundary magnitude. It seems that in continents, plate boundary zones can be drawn fairly precisely where good geodetic data exist. How stable these boundaries are over time is a completely different question. Another interesting point about continental tectonics in the framework of this chapter is the abrupt change of character of the North Anatolian Shear Zone in Greece. The fault bifurcates in Turkey into two strands as already noticed by Dewey and Şengör (1979), enclosing between them a Marmara Block (Le Pichon et al. 2003). This Marmara Block extends as far the Pelion Peninsula in Greece as the two strike-slip faults delimiting it preserve their individuality. At the Pelion Peninsula, the North Anatolian Fault hits the western margin of the Vardar Zone, where the old orogenic fabric of the Alpides abruptly turns from west–southwest to north–northwest. At this point, the North Anatolian Fault also stops fairly abruptly and its function is taken over by the Grecian Shear Zone along which mainly normal fault-bounded blocks rotate in a clockwise fashion and distribute the shear strain

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(Şengör 1979; Fig. 27.2). This is a beautiful example of the control of older structures on younger ones. The geomorphology of Greece is not only dominated by extension caused by the rollback of the Hellenic Trench, but also by the activity of the Grecian Shear Zone, which is nothing more than the continuation of the North Anatolian Shear Zone all the way to the Hellenic Trench. The localisation of the North Anatolian Fault happened already during the late Miocene in the extreme east of the shear zone, because the North Anatolian Shear Zone was so narrow there to begin with. Gradually, the fault tore farther and farther westward at an average rate of some 13 cm/year until it finally reached its present position in the west some 200,000 years ago. But this fault nucleation did not entirely deactivate the earlier broad shear zone. Some elements of it are still active and nucleate earthquakes and influence topography, but at incomparably smaller rates, although we do not have the necessary density of Global Positioning System stations along the North Anatolian Shear Zone to see by how much. From now on, it seems likely that the fault will have a much greater difficulty of tearing its way across the contrary fabric of the Hellenides along the Grecian Shear Zone. The North Anatolian Fault is a major source of serious natural hazard in Turkey and in northern Greece, not only because it frequently nucleates disastrous earthquakes, but also unleashes major landslides in areas where flysch and serpentinites dominate the country rock.

References Burnard P, Bourlange S, Henry P, Géli L, Tryon MD, Natal’in B, Şengör AMC, Özeren MS, Çağatay MN (2012) Constraints on fluid origins and migration velocities along the Marmara Main Fault (Sea of Marmara, Turkey) using helium isotopes. Earth Planet Sci Lett 341:68–78 Dewey JF, Şengör AMC (1979) Aegean and surroundings regions: complex multiplate and continuum tectonics in a convergent zone. Geol Soc Am Bull 90:84–92 Ergintav S, Reilinger RE, Çakmak R, Floyd M, Çakır Z, Doğan U, King RW, McClusky S, Özener H (2014) Istanbul’s earthquake hot spots: geodetic constraints on strain accumulation along faults in the Marmara seismic gap. Geophy Res Lett 41(16):5783–5788 Erinç S (1953) Doğu Anadolu Coğrafyası: İstanbul Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Coğrafya Enstitüsü Yayınları, No 15, İstanbul, [III]+ 124 pp Erinç S, Bilgin T, Bener M (1961) Gerede cıvarında akarsu şebekesi. İstanbul Üniversitesi Coğrafya Enstitüsü Dergisi 6:90–99 Géli L, Henry P, Zitter T, Dupré S, Tryon M, Çağatay MN, Mercier de Lépinay B, Le Pichon X, Şengör AMC, Görür N, Natalin B, Uçarkuş G, Özeren S, Volker D, Gasperini L, Burnard P, Bourlange S, The Marnaut Scientfic Party (2008) Gas emissions and active tectonics within the submerged section of the North Anatolian Fault zone in the Sea of Marmara. Earth Planet Sci Lett 274:34–39. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsi.2008.06.047

A. M. C. Şengör and C. Zabcı Grall C, Henry P, Thomas Y, Westbrook GK, Çağatay MN, Marsset B, Saritas H, Çifçi G (2013) Slip rate estimations along the western segment of the Main Marmara Fault over the last 405–490 ka by correlating mass transport deposits. Tectonics 32:1587–1601 Herece E, Akay E (2003) Kuzey Anadolu Fayı (KAF) Atlası/Atlas of the North Anatolian Fault (NAF). Maden Tetkik Arama Genel Müdürlüğü, Özel Yayın Serisi 2, Ankara, [IV]+ 61 pp +13 appendices as separate maps Ketin İ (1948) Über die tektonisch-mechanischen Folgerungen aus den grossen anatolischen Erdbeben des letzten Dezenniums. Geol Rundsch 36:77–83 Ketin İ (1969) Über die nordanatolische Horizontalverschiebung. Bull Miner Res Explor Inst Turk 72:1–28 Koçyiğit A (1988) Tectonic setting of the Geyve Basin: age and total displacement of the Geyve Fault Zone. METU J Pure Appl Sci 21:81–104 Le Pichon X, Kreemer C (2010) The Miocene-to-present kinematic evolution of the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East and its implications for dynamics. Annu Rev Earth Planet Sci 38:323–351 Le Pichon X, Şengör AMC, Demirbağ E, Rangin C, İmren C, Armijo R, Görür N, Çağatay N, Mercier de Lépinay B, Meyer B, Saatçılar R, Tok B (2001) The active Main Marmara fault. Earth Planet Sci Lett 192:595–616 Le Pichon X, Chamot-Rooke N, Rangin C (2003) The North Anatolian fault in the Sea of Marmara. J Geophys Res 108(B4):2179. https:// doi.org/10.1029/2002JB001862 Le Pichon X, İmren C, Rangin C, Şengör AMC, Siyako M (2014) The South Marmara fault. Int J Earth Sci (Geologische Rundschau) 103:219–231 Linneman S (2002) Quaternary volcanism of the Erzincan Basin, Eastern Turkey: an example of pull-apart basin volcanism. In: The Tectonics of Eastern Turkey and the Northern Arabian Plate, International workshop, 23–25 September, Erzurum Turkey, 19 Miller KG, Kominz MA, Browning JV, Wright JD, Mountain GS, Katz ME, Sugarman PJ, Cramer BS, Christie-Blick N, Pekar SF (2005) The Phanerozoic record of global sea-level change. Science 310:1293–1298. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1116412 Schmittbuhl J, Karabulut H, Lengliné O, Bouchon M (2015) Seismicity distribution and locking depth along the Main Marmara fault, Turkey. Geochem Geophys Geosyst 17:954–965. https://doi.org/10. 1002/2015gc006120 Şengör AMC (1979) The North Anatolian Transform fault: its age, offset and tectonic significance. J Geol Soc (London) 136:269–282 Şengör AMC (2011) İstanbul Boğazı niçin Boğaziçi’nde açılmıştır? In: Ekinci D (ed) Fiziki Coğrafya Araştırmaları Sistematik ve Bölgesel (Profesör Doktor Mehmet Yıldız Hoşgören’e Armağan), Türk Coğrafya Kurumu yayınları, no 6, pp 57–102 Şengör AMC, Görür N, Şaroğlu F (1985) Strike-slip faulting and related basin formation in zones of tectonic escape: Turkey as a case study. In: Biddle KT, Christie-Blick N (eds) Strike-slip deformation, basin formation, and sedimentation, society of economic paleontologists and mineralogists, Special Publication 37 (in honour of JC Crowell), 227–264 Şengör AMC, Tüysüz O, İmren C, Sakınç M, Eyidoğan H, Görür N, Le Pichon X, Rangin C (2005) The North Anatolian fault: a new look. Annu Rev Earth Planet Sci 33:37–112 Şengör AMC, Grall C, İmren C, Le Pichon X, Görür N, Henry P, Karabulut H, Siyako M (2014) The geometry of the North Anatolian transform fault in the Sea of Marmara and its temporal evolution: implications for the development of intracontinental transform faults. Can J Earth Sci 51:1–21 (J. Tuzo Wilson Special Issue)

Morphotectonics of the Alaşehir Graben with a Special Emphasis on the Landscape of the Ancient City of Sardis, Western Turkey

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Gürol Seyitoğlu, Nicholas D. Cahill, Veysel Işık, and Korhan Esat

Abstract

Neotectonic processes affect human habitation by controlling landform and landscape, natural resources and natural disasters. The Alaşehir Graben of western Turkey, including the ancient city of Sardis, is one of the best areas to observe this interaction between nature and human life. The Alaşehir Graben is a result of the extensional tectonics in the Aegean region. Its southern margin has prominent topography that indicates the major graben-bounding fault system which is located on this side. The northward younging normal fault system and the rotation of previous faults (Alaşehir-type rolling hinge mechanism) have controlled the morphological development of the graben since Miocene times. These geological processes have not only created fertile plains, hot springs and placer gold deposits that attracted human settlements, but also cause natural disasters such as major earthquakes. All these geological issues can be followed in the history of the ancient city of Sardis and also continue today. Keywords





Alaşehir Graben Western Turkey Earthquake Neotectonics




Sardis

G. Seyitoğlu (&)
V. Işık
K. Esat Tectonics Research Group, Department of Geological Engineering, Ankara University, 06830 Gölbaşı, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] V. Işık e-mail: [email protected] K. Esat e-mail: [email protected] N. D. Cahill Department of Art History, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 800 University Avenue, Madison, WI 53706, USA e-mail: [email protected]

28.1

Introduction

Among the prominent geomorphological features of western Turkey are a series of E-W trending depressions running inland from the Aegean coast (Fig. 28.1a, b). From north to south, these features are known as the Alaşehir (Gediz), Küçük Menderes and Büyük Menderes valleys and contain rivers that bear the same names. The northern Alaşehir (Gediz) and the southern Büyük Menderes valleys join near Denizli and create a route between the coast of the Aegean Sea and inner Anatolia. The mild climate, hot springs and fertile plains of this passageway attracted early human habitation, evidenced by the fossil of Homo erectus in Denizli (Kappelman et al. 2008), the footprints on the 65–49 ka tuffaceous units of the Kula volcanics (Ozansoy 1969; Lockley et al. 2008) and the prehistoric settlements on the Alaşehir plain (Luke and Roosevelt 2009). The geomorphology of the area reflects its recent geological history, which dates back to Early Miocene times (24 Ma), much earlier than human habitation. It is interesting, however, to explore the link between geomorphological features that are related to the geological history of the area and the human settlements whose history is closely linked to the regional geology through natural resources and natural disasters. The Alaşehir (Gediz) valley of western Turkey is a perfect location to examine the interaction between geology, landscape and landforms, and human settlements because it has graben morphology and contains the ancient city of Sardis, a site with a long and well-documented history.

28.2

Geological Background

A depression limited by normal faults is known as a “graben” and generally bears the same name as the river located in the depression. Therefore, the name “Gediz Graben” has been used in the past to describe the graben along the Gediz River. Since 1992, however, the name “Alaşehir Graben”

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_28

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Fig. 28.1 a Aegean region of western Turkey. b Topographical features of western Turkey. Yellow and purple stars are the epicentres of the 17 AD and the 28 March 1969 earthquakes, respectively (Ambraseys 2009; Eyidoğan and Jackson 1985). See Fig. 28.2 for the X-X’ profile. c Geological map of the Alaşehir Graben (After Seyitoğlu et al. 2000, 2004). I, II and III represent Fault I, Fault II and Fault III, respectively

has also been used in the geological literature for the following reasons: (1) the town of Gediz is located outside of the graben, 100 km NE of the town of Alaşehir; (2) the Gediz River only enters the Alaşehir (Gediz) valley at Adala, in the middle of the graben; (3) the Gediz earthquake (28 March 1970; M = 7.0) created surface ruptures near the town of Gediz outside the graben (Ambraseys and Tchalenko 1972); (4) the Alaşehir River, the town of Alaşehir and the surface ruptures of the Alaşehir earthquake (March 28, 1969; M = 6.1) are located within the graben (Arpat and Bingöl 1969; Eyidoğan and Jackson 1985).

The Alaşehir valley is an arc-shaped depression trending E-W and NW-SE in the western and eastern ends, respectively (Fig. 28.1b, c), and is an expression of current extensional tectonics in the region. A nearly N-S topographical cross section of the Alaşehir Graben shows that its southern margin has more prominent topography than its northern side. This indicates that the southern margin has a major normal faulting system (Fig. 28.2). The southern margin of the Alaşehir Graben is composed of the metamorphic rocks of the Menderes massif in which two-stage exhumation processes have developed since Oligocene times due to the

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Fig. 28.2 A topographical cross section from the Alaşehir Graben and the locations of the graben-bounding normal faults

first asymmetric and then symmetric core complex formations (Seyitoğlu et al. 2004). The metamorphic rocks of Menderes massif and the synextensional granitoids (Salihli granitoid) formed the footwall of the Alaşehir shear zone, limiting the Alaşehir Graben and acting as a sediment source for the basin fill (Seyitoğlu et al. 2002; Işık et al. 2003). Along the Alaşehir shear zone, many meso- to microscale ductile shear-sense indicators (i.e. shear band cleavage, mineral fish and asymmetric porphyroclast) in both the mylonitic metamorphic rocks and the ductilely deformed granodiorite are observed. All of these kinematic indicators display an overall N-NE sense of shearing along the Alaşehir shear zone (Işık et al. 2003). Brittle structures are characterised by slickensides, anastomosing brittle shear zones, cataclastic rocks (i.e. breccia, microbreccia, cataclasite, foliated cataclasite and pseudotachylyte) and alteration products along the Alaşehir detachment fault (Işık et al. 2003). Both measurements of the ductile structures and the detachment fault surface can be correlated. The Alaşehir detachment fault surface characteristics show that the hanging wall of the detachment fault moves towards the north with respect to the footwall. This orientation is the same as that of the stretching lineations in the ductilely deformed granitoid (Işık et al. 2003). All these kinematic data suggest that the Salihli granitoid is a syntectonic intrusion and related to the regional extensional deformation in western Turkey. The Alaşehir Graben fill is composed of four sedimentary packages, which can be easily distinguished from each other along the graben (Fig. 28.3a). The first package, Alaşehir Formation is composed of angular boulder conglomerates, sandstones and organic-rich mudstones indicating lacustrine and fan delta facies and dated by palynological analyses to 20–14 Ma (Eskihisar sporomorph association). The second package, the Kurşunlu Formation, contains red clastics representing lateral alluvial fan facies. The transition between the first and second sedimentary packages has been dated by magnetostratigraphy to 15.5 Ma (Şen and Seyitoğlu 2009). The third sedimentary package unconformably

overlies the older units and contains light yellow semi-consolidated conglomerate and sandstones. Its name “Sart Formation” comes from the ancient city Sardis (Seyitoğlu and Scott 1996). A Pliocene age is attributed to the Sart Formation by using micromammalian fossils. The fourth sedimentary package is the Quaternary alluvium seen in the graben floor (Seyitoğlu et al. 2002). The tectono-sedimentary development of the Alaşehir Graben is explained by the rolling hinge mechanism (Seyitoğlu et al. 2002). In the initial stage of the graben Formation, the first fault (Fault I) is a high-angle structure that controlled the deposition of the first and second sedimentary packages, the Alaşehir and Kurşunlu Formations, during the Early–Middle Miocene (Fig. 28.3b). The second fault developed on the hanging wall of Fault I and controlled the accumulation of the third sedimentary package, the Sart Formation, during the Pliocene. Fault III is located on the hanging wall of Fault II and controlled the deposition of the Quaternary alluvium. The faults thus become younger from south to north and were developed at the hanging walls of the previous systems. In the meantime, each new fault caused rotation of the earlier faults, so that the initial fault became a low-angle normal fault, the Alaşehir detachment fault, which caused the exhumation of considerable amount of metamorphic rock units including synextensional granitoids (Alaşehir-type rolling hinge mechanism: Seyitoğlu et al. 2014). The most recent Fault IV chopped off all earlier structures, especially to the south of the town of Alaşehir (Seyitoğlu et al. 2002; Fig. 28.3b).

28.3

The Landscape and Landform of the Alaşehir Graben

The N-S topographical cross section of the Alaşehir Graben indicates that the topography of the southern margin of the graben is higher than that of the northern margin (Fig. 28.2). The elevation difference between highest peak of Bozdağ and the graben floor is 2070 m. The asymmetry of the

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Fig. 28.3 a Stratigraphy of the Alaşehir Graben. b Tectono-sedimentary development of the Alaşehir Graben. After Seyitoğlu et al. (2002)

topography supports the half-graben history and indicates that the major fault system is located on the southern margin of the graben. When we closely examine the DEM view and topographical maps of the southern margin of the graben, we see that the northern slopes of Bozdağ have only a gentle dip from south to north (Fig. 28.4). This feature is due to the low angle of the exposed Alaşehir detachment fault surface (see earlier). Several villages are located on this surface (Fig. 28.4). This smooth topography suddenly changes at the contact with the detachment fault and the sedimentary graben fill. The well-lithified, red-coloured Kurşunlu Formation creates a different landform with its gentle extensional foldings (Figs. 28.4 and 28.5). The third sedimentary package, the Sart Formation, supports a unique terrain, whose light yellow semi-consolidated conglomeratesandstone alternations create very steep slopes; this feature may help to distinguish the Sart Formation from other sedimentary units (Figs. 28.6 and 28.7). The highly erosive nature of the Sart Formation is probably due to its semi-consolidated nature. Figure 28.8 is an example of rapid erosion undercutting the Byzantine acropolis wall of Sardis. Fault II limits the southern boundary of the Sart Formation. This fault developed in the sedimentary fill of the

graben and therefore does not create a distinct morphological expression, but is easy to recognise in the field at the boundary that generally separates the red-coloured Kurşunlu and the light yellow Sart formations. Fault III, however, creates a distinct topographical scarp that separates the Neogene units from the Quaternary alluvium. This tectonic feature can easily be seen in the DEM image and topographical maps of the Alaşehir Graben. The remains of the ancient city of Sardis are located on the trace of Fault III (Figs. 28.4 and 28.5). The rapid uplift of both metamorphic rocks and the Neogene graben fill has been enhanced since Pliocene times by the Alaşehir-type rolling hinge mechanism (Seyitoğlu et al. 2014). This rapid uplift created the lateral deep cutting valleys distinguished on both the Alaşehir detachment and the basin fill (Fig. 28.4) in the southern margin of Alaşehir Graben.

28.4

Cornerstones in the History of Sardis

Sardis developed relatively late in the history of western Anatolia (Table 28.1). Occupation has been traced back to the Late Bronze Age, but the settlement only grew to an

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Fig. 28.4 Geological map and cross sections of the southern margin of the Alaşehir Graben around Sardis. See the geological map for the cross-sectional locations

important place during the Lydian period in the seventh century BC (Hanfmann 1983). Before this time, the major capital of the region seems to have been about 20 km to the north-west, along the shores of the Marmara Gölü (Gygaean Lake; Roosevelt 2010). The sudden, almost explosive transformation of a small settlement into a major imperial,

international power between about 700 and 550 BC seems to have been fuelled partly by the discovery of gold, a by-product of the particular geological processes described here, and its exploitation by a strong dynasty of rulers known as the Mermnad dynasty (Greenewalt 2010). This led, among other things, to the Lydians inventing coinage in the

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Fig. 28.5 A 3D perspective view of the geology and landform around Sardis

mid-to-late seventh century BC (Gitler 2018; Cahill et al. 2018). By the sixth century BC, Sardis was the capital of an empire that stretched from the Aegean to the Kızılırmak (Halys) River, and from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean. In 547 BC, the conquest of Sardis by Cyrus the Great of Persia brought this native dynasty to a sudden end. However, Sardis remained an important capital of the Achaemenid Persian Empire, and then of the Hellenistic Seleucid empire. After Attalos III left the region to the Romans in his will (in 133 BC), Sardis continued to prosper, but played a rather minor role in the geopolitics of western Turkey. Under the Roman peace Sardis prospered, as did other cities of western Anatolia, and many of the most prominent buildings of the site, including the Bath–Gymnasium complex, synagogue, a temple of the imperial cult, and much of the temple of Artemis, belong to the Roman phase of the site. And like so many cities of western Anatolia, Sardis fell into gradual economic decline during the sixth century AD, and the lower city was largely abandoned by the early seventh century. The reasons for this decline and abandonment are still uncertain, but are among the most important questions in the archaeology of the region (Rautman 2011).

28.5

Geology, Wealth and Destruction at Sardis

The unique geology of Sardis with its many intersecting geological formations and the faults that passed through and around the city had a profound effect on its urban

development. Perhaps the two most important factors that contributed to the Lydians’ rise to international power in antiquity were the impregnable acropolis of Sardis and the rich gold deposits of the Pactolus and neighbouring rivers (Figs. 28.4 and 28.8). The steep cliffs of the acropolis result from the rapidly uplifted, poorly consolidated conglomerate of the Pliocene Sart Formation. These weathered into lovely chimney-like vertical cliffs and were perhaps enhanced by trimming the conglomerate beneath the citadel walls into vertical cliffs, leaving the citadel of the city immune from attack, “the strongest place in the world” according to Polybius. In its long history, Sardis was besieged by the Cimmerians, Persians, Greeks and others, and the lower city was captured many times; but to our knowledge, the acropolis was never taken by military force. A famous siege by Antiochus III in 215/214 BC lasted a whole year, and Antiochus only captured the acropolis by bribing the guards to betray their commander. In the Byzantine period, after the fall of the lower city, the citadel was fortified with powerful defences, and Sardis remained an important regional stronghold if not a city (Fig. 28.8). The specific geology of the site affected other aspects of its urban development as well. Slippage along Fault III left a plateau of soft conglomerate intermediate in level between the plain and the acropolis. This was eroded into a series of individual “spurs” jutting from the cliffs of the citadel, about 100 m above the lower city (Figs. 28.9 and 28.10). These were regularised and developed as terraces in the Lydian period as a high-status, elite region of the city, perhaps a palatial quarter, surrounded by masonry terrace walls up to

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Fig. 28.6 a A photograph showing the landform of the southern margin of Alaşehir Graben around Sardis. b Geological structures. c Camera view angle on the 3D perspective map

12 m high (Fig. 28.10). Lower terraces, probably also ultimately the result of natural faulting and erosion, were regularised and developed into the theatre, stadium, a sanctuary of the Imperial Roman cult and other civic features

(Fig. 28.9). The complex geology and topography of Sardis were thus developed into a unique urban structure, anticipating later monumental terracing programmes such as those at Halikarnassos and Pergamon (Cahill 2008, 2010).

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Fig. 28.7 Morphological difference between the Kurşunlu and Sart Formations

The gently dipping northern slopes of Bozdağ developed due to the exhumation of the low-angle Alaşehir detachment fault (see earlier). When the synextensional granitoids (Turgutlu and Salihli) intruded into the ductile shear zone of Fault I in the mid-crustal depth, mineral deposits may have been produced, and valuable materials were carried to the surface along the exhumed fault surface. Faulting contact has undergone brittle deformation, which created a favourable environment for the circulation of mineral-rich hydrothermal fluids. After the exhumation, the detachment surface eroded rapidly, and deeply cut valleys were created by the rapid uplift. Tiny particles of gold thus enriched the placer deposits in the bed loads of streams flowing to the north of Bozdağ. One of them is the Sart Çayı, the famous Pactolus stream described by Herodotus as one of only two things worth seeing in Lydia, bringing wealth of gold to enrich the Lydians. Other small streams also carried sediments from the placer gold-bearing Sart Formation and may also have been exploited in antiquity (Çağatay and Arda 1980). This gold made the Lydians famous for their wealth and power as early as in times of Gyges, the first Mermnad king, who came to power about 680 BC. The contemporary poet Archilochus writes, “I do not care for the wealth of Gyges, rich in gold”. It forced technological developments by the Sardians, as they learned to refine gold and to mint it into coins, first as electrum, an alloy of gold and silver, and then in pure gold and pure silver. One refinery has been excavated along the banks of the Pactolus stream, dating to the

Lydian period (ca. 600–500 BC); there were undoubtedly others (Ramage and Craddock 2000). The rivers around Sardis were probably not the Lydians’ only source of gold; but they may have enabled them to embark on the imperialistic conquest of western Anatolia (Cahill et al. 2018). Besides enriching the Lydians, however, the regional geology of Sardis was responsible for natural disasters that befell the city. Fault III passed directly through the city. The eastern continuation of this fault produced Alaşehir earthquake (28 March 1969; M = 6.1). A major urban and cultural transformation seems to have followed the catastrophic annihilation of the city by an earthquake in 17 AD. Tacitus (Annals 2.47) describes the earthquake: “That same year twelve famous cities of Asia fell by an earthquake in the night, so that the destruction was all the more unforeseen and fearful. Nor were there the means of escape usual in such a disaster, by rushing out into the open country, for there people were swallowed up by the yawning earth. Vast mountains, it is said, collapsed; what had been level ground seemed to be raised aloft, and fires blazed out amid the ruin. The calamity fell most fatally on the inhabitants of Sardis, and it attracted to them the largest share of sympathy. The emperor promised ten million sesterces, and remitted for 5 years all they paid to the exchequer or to the emperor’s purse” (Pedley 1972; Rautman 2011). The archaeological remains of this earthquake are attested in a massive new building programme that followed the disaster; its epicentre and geological effects are unknown. The remainder of the first century AD after the earthquake,

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Fig. 28.8 Rapid erosion of the Sart Formation that undercuts the Byzantine acropolis wall

however, seems to have been a time of intense building activity throughout the city, with the construction or modification of major temples, work on the theatre, a new (?) stadium, the beginning of a new Bath–Gymnasium complex, new houses throughout the city and other projects. This is probably only one of many earthquakes that befell Sardis, but historical and archaeological evidence of other earthquakes is limited until late antiquity. The last major phase of urban occupation, however, seems to have been affected by one or more earthquakes that destroyed various

parts of the city. Parts of the superstructure of the temple of Artemis were apparently destroyed by an earthquake, leaving columns and architraves broken on contemporary ground level. A hoard of coins, the latest of which dates to 615 AD, was found under fallen blocks of the north wall of the building, showing the earthquake must date to near that date. Evidence of the same or a closely contemporary earthquake is visible at other sites in the city. Excavation on a terrace belonging to an early Roman sanctuary of the imperial cult revealed at least two faults. These faults broke through the

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Table 28.1 Major events in the history of Sardis ca. 5000–4000 BC

Earliest known artefacts found at Sardis

ca. 1500–1300 BC

Earliest known occupation layers excavated

ca. 680 BC

Gyges finds new Mermnad dynasty; expands Lydian power into west and north-west Anatolia

ca. 630–615 BC

Earliest known Lydian coins dedicated at the Artemision at Ephesus

ca. 580–547 BC

Croesus, the last independent Lydian king

547 BC

Conquest of Sardis by Cyrus of Persia

ca. 520 BC

Sardis becomes a Persian satrapal capital under Darius

334 BC

Alexander the Great conquers western Anatolia

189 BC

Battle of Magnesia; Antiochus III defeated; Sardis under Pergamene control

133 BC

Pergamene king Attalus III wills his kingdom to Rome

17 AD

Earthquake destroys Sardis

Fig. 28.9 Plan of Sardis (Drawings courtesy of Archaeological Exploration of Sardis, Harvard University)

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Fig. 28.10 View of terraces (Drawing by Philip Stinson, courtesy Archaeological Exploration of Sardis, Harvard University)

latest occupation phase on the terrace, dating to the fourth or fifth century AD, and penetrated at least 9 m beneath the modern surface, the deepest level reached in excavation. The

earthquake surface ruptures may also have been responsible for the destruction of a marble building of uncertain purpose on the edge of a Roman terrace, leaving its blocks fallen and

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Fig. 28.11 Artemis temple, and Sart and Kurşunlu Formations in the background, supporting different landforms. Note that steep slopes of the hill, where the Acropolis is located, are created due to semi-lithified nature of Sart Formation

stacked like fallen dominoes. The date of this event is not yet established with certainty, but is likely in the sixth or seventh century. Structures in the north-west part of the city also collapsed in late antiquity, perhaps due to an earthquake, leaving brick vaults and walls collapsed in articulated masses. Like the temple of Artemis (Fig. 28.11), the latest coins under the collapsed structures indicate a date in the early seventh century. In both those sectors, however, occupation and particularly the burning of the fallen marble blocks for lime seems to have continued for some time thereafter; one cannot point to a single event as the cause of a final decline and abandonment of Sardis, but rather a complex series of interlocking processes.

28.6

Conclusion

Numerous examples in Anatolia demonstrate how active tectonics shaped the morphology and provided natural resources and fertile plains that attracted human settlements to these regions. At the same time, this active tectonics causes destruction by earthquakes, as in the case of Sardis in the Alaşehir Graben. Many ancient cities in the Aegean region shared similar histories. Today this circle of events

still continues. The fertile Alaşehir plain still attracts people to this area. The population benefits from natural resources such as hot springs and geothermal energy, and even gold mining, which continues to operate just west of Sardis. On the other hand, they live under the constant threat of earthquakes. The latest major seismic event occurred on 28 March 1969 (M = 6.1), and no major earthquake has happened since then. Archaeoseismological studies are therefore critical to determine the recurrence interval of earthquakes in the region.

References Ambraseys NN (2009) Earthquakes in the Mediterranean and Middle East—a multidisciplinary study of seismicity up to 1900. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Ambraseys NN, Tchalenko JS (1972) Seismotectonic aspects of the Gediz, Turkey, earthquake of March 1970. Geophys J Roy Astr S 30:229–252 Arpat E, Bingöl E (1969) The rift system of the western Turkey; thoughts on its development. Bull Min Res Explor Inst Turk 73:1–9 Çağatay A, Arda O (1980) Altın içerikli Salihli-Sart konglomeralarının ağır mineralleri. Jeol Mühendis 10:49–63 Cahill ND (2008) Mapping Sardis. In: Cahill ND (ed) Love for Lydia: a Sardis anniversary volume presented to Crawford H. Greenewalt Jr. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA and London, pp 111–127

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Cahill ND (2010) The city of Sardis. In: Cahill ND (ed) The Lydians and their world. Yapı Kredi Kültür Sanat Yayıncılık, İstanbul, pp 74–105 Cahill ND, Hari J, Önay B, Dokumacı E (2018) Depletion-Gilding of Lydian electrum coins and the sources of Lydian gold. In: van Alfen P, Wartenberg U, Fischer-Bossert W, Gitler H, Konuk K (eds). White Gold: studies in early electrum coinage. New York and Jerusalem: American Numismatic Society and Israel Museum Eyidoğan H, Jackson J (1985) A seismological study of normal faulting in the Demirci, Alaşehir, and Gediz earthquakes of 1967–70 in western Turkey: implications for the nature and geometry of deformation in the continental crust. Geophys J Roy Astr S 81:569–607 Gitler H (2018) White gold: revealing the world’s earliest coins. In: van Alfen P, Wartenberg U, Fischer-Bossert W, Gitler H, Konuk K (eds). White Gold: studies in early electrum coinage. New York and Jerusalem: American Numismatic Society and Israel Museum Greenewalt CH Jr (2010) Gold and silver refining at Sardis. In: Cahill ND (ed) The Lydians and their world. Yapı Kredi Yayınları, İstanbul, pp 135–142 Hanfmann GMA (1983) Sardis from prehistoric to Roman times. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA Işık V, Seyitoğlu G, Çemen İ (2003) Ductile-brittle transition along the Alaşehir shear zone and its structural relationship with the Simav detachment, Menderes massif, western Turkey. Tectonophys 374:1–18 Kappelman J, Alçiçek MC, Kazancı N, Schultz M, Özkul M, Şen Ş (2008) First Homo erectus from Turkey and implications for migrations into temperate Eurasia. Am J Phys Anthropol 135:110–116 Lockley M, Roberts G, Kim JY (2008) In the footprints of our ancestors: an overview of the hominid track record. Ichnos 15(3–4):106–125 Luke C, Roosevelt CH (2009) The Central Lydia archaeological survey: documenting the prehistoric through Iron Age periods. In: Manning SW, Bruce MJ (eds) Tree-rings, kings, and old world

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archaeology and environment: papers presented in honor of Peter Ian Kuniholm. Oxbow Books, Oxford, pp 199–218 Ozansoy F (1969) Pleistocene fossil human footprints in Turkey. Bull Min Res Explor Inst Turk 72:146–150 Pedley JG (1972) Ancient literary sources on Sardis. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA and London Ramage A, Craddock P (2000) King Croesus’ gold. Sardis Monograph 11. Cambridge, MA and London Rautman ML (2011) Sardis in Late Antiquity. In: Dally O, Ratté C (eds) Archaeology and the cities of Asia minor in Late Antiquity, vol 6. Kelsey Museum Publication, pp 1–26 Roosevelt CH (2010) Lydia before the Lydians. In: Cahill ND (ed) The Lydians and their world. Yapı Kredi Kültür Sanat Yayıncılık, İstanbul, pp 37–74 Şen Ş, Seyitoğlu G (2009) Magnetostratigraphy of early–middle Miocene deposits from E-W trending Alaşehir and Büyük Menderes grabens in western Turkey, and its tectonic implications. In: Van Hinsbergen DJJ, Edwards MA, Govers R (eds) Geodynamics of collision and collapse at the Africa-Arabia-Eurasia subduction zone, vol 311. Geological Society, London, Special Publication, pp 321–342 Seyitoğlu G, Scott BC (1996) Age of Alaşehir graben (west Turkey) and its tectonic implications. Geol J 31:1–11 Seyitoğlu G, Çemen İ, Tekeli O (2000) Extensional folding in the Alaşehir (Gediz) graben, western Turkey. J Geol Soc London 157:1097–1100 Seyitoğlu G, Tekeli O, Çemen İ, Şen Ş, Işık V (2002) The role of the flexural rotation/rolling hinge model in the tectonic evolution of the Alaşehir Graben, western Turkey. Geol Mag 139:15–26 Seyitoğlu G, Işık V, Çemen İ (2004) Complete Tertiary exhumation history of the Menderes massif, western Turkey: an alternative working hypothesis. Terra Nova 16:358–364 Seyitoğlu G, Işık V, Esat K (2014) A 3D model for the formation of Turtleback surfaces: The Horzum Turtleback of western Turkey as a case study. Turk J Earth Sci 23:479–494

The Büyük Menderes River: Origin of Meandering Phenomenon

29

Alper Gürbüz and Nizamettin Kazancı

Abstract

The Büyük Menderes River is the longest river that discharges into the Aegean Sea, with a length of 615 km. It is one of the main rivers dominating in the geomorphology of western Turkey, with its drainage basin that reaches to 24,000 km2. The river is also very important because of its meandering channel patterns. The term ‘meandering’ in geomorphology, architecture and art originates from the ancient name of this river: Maiandros. Its catchment area mainly consists of three courses located in the main grabens of the region. The upper course of the Büyük Menderes River is located in the Baklan-Dinar Graben, while the middle and lower courses are in the Denizli and Büyük Menderes grabens, respectively. The aim of this study is to describe the meandering channel features of this river in its current course from its source to its mouth, and related landforms and landscapes. Keywords











Fluvial geomorphology Sinuosity ratio Maiandros Ulubey Canyon Western Anatolia Turkey

29.1




Introduction

A meandering river is one of the most common river types in nature, but also, it is formidable by its morphodynamics. It is encumbered with neither the sterile order of its straight A. Gürbüz (&) Niğde Ömer Halisdemir Üniversitesi, Mühendislik Fakültesi, Jeoloji Mühendisliği Bölümü, 51240 Niğde, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] N. Kazancı Ankara Üniversitesi, Mühendislik Fakültesi, Jeoloji Mühendisliği Bölümü, 06830 Gölbaşı, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

cousin, nor the undecipherable disorder of its braided relative (Ikeda and Parker 1989). However, it is the most mysterious type due to its esthetical elegance and richness in pattern diversity. Albert Einstein was one of the scientists concerned about dynamics of this physical phenomenon as he published a theory explaining meandering on the basis of physical laws (Einstein 1926). The process has ever since been an interesting subject in different platforms, from simple physics to complex mathematical models. In geosciences, it has been one of the most interesting topics for decades, especially in geomorphology and sedimentology (e.g., Leopold and Wolman 1960; Langbein and Leopold 1966; Xu et al. 2011). Outside terrestrial rivers, meandering patterns are also observed in submarine fans (e.g., Babonneau et al. 2010) and in other planetary environments (e.g., Weihaupt 1974; Howard 2009). An interest in meandering river patterns is not limited to research in fundamental sciences. The topic includes concerns related to applied sciences such as river engineering and management (e.g., Jansen et al. 1979), petroleum engineering (e.g., Swanson 1993) and landscape ecology and river restoration (e.g., Kondolf 2006). The name of the ‘meandering’ phenomenon originates from the Büyük Menderes River, which flows in western Turkey (Fig. 29.1). Its spring is located in west-central Turkey and it flows into the Aegean Sea on the western coast of Anatolia. This river was known as the Maíandros River during Antiquity (e.g., Strabo). However, the attracting channel pattern of the Büyük Menderes River has subsequently evolved to describe any winding form as ‘meandering’, including decorative patterns in art and architecture (Güneralp et al. 2012; Fig. 29.2). Although there are several geomorphic, morphometric, sedimentological and hydrodynamic studies in the literature that have been carried out on the physical bases of this channel pattern, the meandering features of the eponymous Büyük Menderes River are not widely known. The aim of this study is to delineate the meandering pattern and related landscape and landform features of this ancient Anatolian River.

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_29

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Fig. 29.1 a Location of the Büyük Menderes River basin in the Aegean extensional province. BMG—Büyük Menderes Graben, DG—Denizli Graben, BDG— Baklan-Dinar Graben, GE—Gulf of Edremit, BG—Bakırçay Graben, SiG—Simav Graben, GG—Gediz Graben, GöG— Gökova Graben, NAFZ—North Anatolian Fault Zone. b Ancient cities in the drainage basin of the Büyük Menderes River are shown with stars. Only major city names are written here

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29.2

Historical Background

The drainage basin of the Büyük Menderes River (Maiandros) hosted several civilizations and their important settlements within the cultural wealth of ancient Anatolia (Fig. 29.1b). Phrygia, Caria, Lydia, Ionia and other kingdoms that date back to second millennium BC were hosted in the fertile lands of the river. Therefore, there are numerous descriptions in the ancient documents about historical geography, and there is a wealth of archaeological data from these lands. Here, we present some ancient arguments directly related to the Büyük Menderes River and its meandering character. Additionally, several historical and geoarchaeological data focusing on the lowest course of the river around the ancient city of Miletus will be discussed below. One of the oldest written documents related to the mythological character and meandering geometry of the Büyük Menderes River could be found in the Theogony of Hesiod. Hesiod (also known as Hesiodos) was a poet who lived between 750 and 650 BCE (there is no consensus between scholars about his exact dates of birth and death).

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The Theogony is considered as his earliest work. The poem describes the origins and family tree of the Greek Gods. In this work, Maiandros is referred to as one of the many sons of Tethys and Okeanos and the God of the winding river in Phrygia and Caria. According to ancient Greek mythology, the Gods of the rivers and streams of the Earth were depicted in three forms: as a man-headed bull; or as a bull-horned man with the body of serpentine-fish from the waist down; or as a man reclining with an arm resting upon an amphora jug pouring water. Maiandros was usually personified by the last one (Fig. 29.3). Herodotus (484–425 BC) mentions the attractive meandering features of the Nile River through citing the winding character of the Büyük Menderes River (i.e. IInd Book, 29). He points out that due to this geometric feature the total length of the river course is much longer than its length due to this geometric feature. In another famous historical source, Geographica, Strabo (64/63 BC–AD 24) presents the most detailed descriptions of the historical geography of the Büyük Menderes River. About the origin of the term meandering and ancient physiographic features of the Büyük Menderes River Strabo gives some important details in the XIIth Book of Geographica:

29

The Büyük Menderes River: Origin of Meandering Phenomenon

511

Fig. 29.2 Examples of ‘meandering’ patterns in the details of different art and architectural works. A tondo of a kylix from Altes Museum Berlin (a kind of drinking cup in ancient Greece) on the top, a pillar on the left and a mosaic floor on the right

Fig. 29.3 ‘Maiandros’ as represented on a coin of Tripolis (an ancient city of Lydia, see Fig. 29.1b for location) on the left (ancients.info). A ‘Maiandros’ statue from ancient city Miletus on the right (livius.org).

On both depictions, Maiandros is represented as in mythology; reclining left, holding reed and cornucopia, resting on an overturned amphora from which water flows

“…Apameia is situated near the outlets of the Marsyas River, which flows through the middle of the city and has its sources in the city; it flows down to the suburbs, and then with violent and precipitate current joins the Maeander. The latter receives also another river, the Orgas, and traverses a level country with an easy-going and sluggish stream; and then, having by now become a large river, the Maeander flows for a time through Phrygia and then forms the boundary between Caria and Lydia

at the Plain of Maeander, as it is called, where its course is so exceedingly winding that everything winding is called “meandering.” And at last it flows through Caria itself, which is now occupied by the Ionians, and then empties between Miletus and Prienê. It rises in a hill called Celaenae, on which there is a city which bears the same name as the hill…” “…In fact, the soil is not only friable and crumbly but is also full of salts and easy to burn out. And perhaps the Maeander is winding for this reason,

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because the stream often changes its course and, carrying down much silt, adds the silt at different times to different parts of the shore; however, it forcibly thrusts a part of the silt out to the high sea. And, in fact, by its deposits of silt, extending forty stadia, it has made Prienê, which in earlier times was on the sea, an inland city.”

In his Elegie poetry book, Propertius (c. 50–15 BC) describes the Büyük Menderes River with its salient channel form that obscures the direction of its flow. Similarly, both Publius Ovidius Naso (better known as Ovid; 43 BC–AD 17/18) in his Metamorphoses and Nonnus of Panopolis (ca. end of the fourth or fifth century AD) in his epic poem Dionysiaca mention the mythological role and meandering features of the river.

29.3

also for differentiating fluvial and lacustrine deposits (e.g., Erol 1996). Another way to understand the spatial and lithological variations of Quaternary deposits can be subsurface seismic imagery and coring campaigns. According to facies analyses of the Quaternary successions using the latter approaches, the upstream part of the river basin contains a well-developed fluvio-lacustrine sequence, while the downstream part shows a sequential infilling of the graben basin induced jointly by both sea level changes and tectonism (e.g., Kazancı et al. 2009, 2011). However, the sediment thicknesses of the Quaternary formations are not so much in contrast with the underlying Neogene units. On the other hand, the Büyük Menderes River has discharged a considerable amount of clastic load into the graben infill and to the sea, continuing to do so even today (Kazancı et al. 2009).

Geological Setting

Western Turkey is one of the most seismically active extensional provinces in the world. Pervasive crustal extension since the Neogene led to the development of grabens trending E-W and N-S (e.g., Şengör 1987; Sözbilir and Emre 1990; Seyitoğlu and Scott 1992; Yılmaz et al. 2000; Gürer et al. 2001, 2009; Bozkurt 2003; Koçyiğit 2005; Purvis and Robertson 2005; Rojay et al. 2005; Kaymakçı 2006; ten Veen et al. 2009; Gürbüz et al. 2012; Ocakoğlu et al. 2014). These grabens are parts of a broad complex of horsts and grabens (Fig. 29.1a). The Büyük Menderes River drainage basin hosts some of these grabens. The Baklan-Dinar Graben is located in the upper course, the Denizli Graben in the middle course and the Büyük Menderes Graben in the lower course of the river (e.g., Kazancı et al. 2009, 2011). The sedimentary basins (grabens) along the path of the Büyük Menderes River generally contain similar Neogene sequences dominated by fluvio-lacustrine deposits intercalated with volcanoclastics. Also, their Quaternary evolution involved similar erosional and depositional processes along the Büyük Menderes River on a large scale, except small temporal and palaeoenvironmental differences. The Neogene units and other bedrock, which belongs to the Menderes Massive and Muğla Nappes within the drainage basin, are well exposed, particularly on the sides of the incised valleys (Fig. 29.4). The regional stratigraphy is confidently defined by palaeontological, palynological, magnetostratigraphic and radiochronological data (e.g., Ünay et al. 1995; Akgün and Akyol 1999; Sarıca 2000; Saraç 2003; Şen and Seyitoğlu 2009). Quaternary formations within the Büyük Menderes River Basin are so similar that it is sometimes difficult to differentiate them visually. Remote sensing studies from satellite images and/or air photographs are useful for mapping and

29.4

The Büyük Menderes River: Physiography and Sediment Load

With a length of 615 km, the Büyük Menderes River is the longest river that discharges into the Aegean Sea (Fig. 29.5). The river originates from near the Sandıklı town (Afyon province) in central-western Anatolia. The mean gradient of the streamline is 2‰. Its channel meanders during most of the river course except for some short discontinuities caused by 5–10 m high steep steps when crossing graben-connections (Kazancı et al. 2011). The drainage basin of the river covers about 24,300 km2 in which two lakes are present. With the construction of two major dams, the area drained into the main riverbed has recently decreased to 11,900 km2 (Kazancı et al. 2009). In the upper course, the major tributaries are the Küfi, Dinarsuyu, Banaz and Ulubey streams. The Çürüksu stream that flows in the Denizli Graben constitutes the middle course. The Akçay, Çine and Vandalaz streams are the main tributaries located in the lower course of the Büyük Menderes River (Fig. 29.5). Interestingly, a large part of these streams also presents meandering channels, as they drain local depressions. With the number of artificial small dams and ponds on streams increasing in recent years, the water discharge of the main river has gradually decreased in the last 25 years, also because of increases in intensive use of water for irrigation purposes and temperature rise between 1998 and 2005. As a result, annual discharges were 154, 90 and 40 m3/s in 1984, 1990 and 2005, respectively (e.g., EİE 2006; Kazancı et al. 2009). Meanwhile, the sediment load has also decreased. According to the records at the monitoring station near Söke district, the suspended sediment load of the river was 13,046.45 ton/day in the late 1960s,

29

The Büyük Menderes River: Origin of Meandering Phenomenon

Fig. 29.4 Simplified geological map of the catchment area of Büyük Menderes River. See text for further explanations about the units (modified from Kazancı et al. 2011)

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decreased to 7671.24 ton/day in the late 1970s (at station 707; EİE 1986). In 1990, this station had to move closer to the Aydın city because water discharge decreased too much (Kazancı et al. 2009). According to three sediment monitoring stations of the EİE (Electric Works of Turkey) which have been operating on the river recently, the mean sediment load of the Büyük Menderes River in sediment observation station near Aydın city (station 706), reached a value of about 1089 ton/day with a mean water discharge of only 59.9 m3/s between 1950 and 1996 (Kazancı et al. 2009).

29.5

40

80

Meandering Channel Features of the Büyük Menderes River

Meandering rivers generally consist of a single, highly sinuous channel responding to erosion sedimentation processes. The channels are smooth in plan view, and stream velocity is relatively high (e.g., Twidale 2004). When the sinuosity becomes too large, the river intersects itself leading to the formation of a ‘short cut’ and forming a cut-off lake or oxbow. This is one of the most characteristic features of a

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A. Gürbüz and N. Kazancı

meandering river (Meakin et al. 1996). There are some sophisticated approaches to analyse meandering phenomenon that use mathematical functions (i.e. sinegenerated curves, parabolas, Van Shelling, Fargue spirals and piecewise linear interpolation to represent the form of bends (see Güneralp and Rhoads (2008) for a detailed review of these methods and further contributions). These approaches are generally based on some geometric parameters (Fig. 29.6) of the arcuate forms of meandering belts. However, the simplest method for defining the winding feature of a river is its meandering ratio. The meandering ratio (i.e. sinuosity ratio or index) reports the length of the sinuous channel between two points to the straight distance between these same points. A straight river, which has the same length as its valley, has a meandering ratio of 1, while this ratio is higher than 1 when the river meanders more (Fig. 29.5). According to our measurements using Landsat and Quickbird images (Fig. 29.7), the Büyük Menderes River presents a mean sinuosity ratio (K) of 1.42 in its upper course, 1.34 in its middle course and 1.71 in its lower course. However, from the source (Sandıklı town) of the main course to the mouth (Aegean Sea), the average sinuosity is 1.42. Along the whole length, the highest meandering values are found in the Baklan-Dinar (K = 1.74) and in the Büyük Menderes Grabens (K = 1.71) (Fig. 29.5). But these measurements are calculated for today’s river channel, which has many artificial channels along the river course, to prevent flood events and save space for farming, and cannot represent the natural meandering ratio of the river. Especially in the middle course and in some parts of the upper and lower courses, it is remarkable to see the smoothed line of the river course through the satellite images. However, due to the aforementioned artificial channelization processes in some reaches of the river course discrepancies between these two parameters can be seen. According to the traceable

Wr

A Lr  Lm

Lr Wb

Rc Lm

 Fig. 29.6 Geometric elements of a meandering channel pattern that are generally used in mathematical calculations and formulations of the meandering ratio, curvature or other approaches (modified from Güneralp and Marston 2012). Lr—Straight length, Lm—Sinuous channel length, a—Arc angle, Rc—Radius of curvature, Wr—Width of river, k—Linear wavelength, A—Meander amplitude, Wb—Belt width (2A)

meander belts of the abandoned river channels, it is clear that the ‘natural’ meandering ratio of the Büyük Menderes River should be higher than the currently measured values. Because of these recent modifications of riverbeds, any measurement attempts should thus be checked by field-based studies using trenching and drilling in key areas.

29.6

The Büyük Menderes Delta

The Büyük Menderes River has a large, wave-dominated delta with a surface area of 530 km2 and a 35 km progradation during the last 4 millennia. This area is ornamented by abandoned meandering channels and ancient floodplains of the lowest course of the river (Fig. 29.8). The shoreline is formed by a coastal barrier island system, which extends over the entire width of the delta. It is developed by the reworking of channel mouth coarse clastics by waves and longshore currents (Aksu et al. 1987). Eastward from this island system, there are extensive lagoons, lakes, swamps and marshes. Although the current delta is made up of one lobe, fed by a single channel, several abandoned channels on the delta backplain record the development of several sub-deltas (Aksu et al. 1987). According to seismic studies performed offshore, the Büyük Menderes River has developed a complex delta formed by four superimposed delta formations built during the Late Pleistocene; a fifth one, dated post-Last Glacial is still developing (Aksu et al. 1987). During this last delta stage, the Aegean coast of the Büyük Menderes Graben has gained its present morphology and landscape which result from the combined effects of tectonism, climate and sea level changes (e.g., Göney 1973; Erol 1976; Erinç 1978; Özgür 1982–83; Schröder and Bay 1996; Brückner 1997; Hakyemez et al. 1999; Kayan 1999; Brückner et al. 2002; Ergin et al. 2007; Kazancı et al. 2009, 2011; Yönlü et al. 2010; Sümer et al. 2013), with the additional factor of continental erosion and sedimentation processes driven by the hydrodynamics and morphodynamics of the Büyük Menderes River. As previously mentioned, several historical and geoarchaeological data concern the ancient geography of the Büyük Menderes Delta plain and its progradation. Strabo, in his Geographica’s XIVth Book, describes geographical features related to the relationships between many ancient cities (Fig. 29.8) and meandering channels (Fig. 29.9) on the plain: “The island Ladê lies close in front of Miletus, as do also the isles in the neighbourhood of the Tragaeae, which afford anchorage for pirates… Next comes the Latmian Gulf, on which is situated “Heracleia below Latmus,” as it is called, a small town that has an anchoring-place.”… of the gulfs, is a little more and one hundred stadia, though that from Miletus to Pyrrha, in a straight course, is only

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The Büyük Menderes River: Origin of Meandering Phenomenon

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thirty—so much longer is the journey along the coast.”… “After the outlets of the Maeander comes the shore of Prienê, above which lies Prienê, and also the mountain Mycalê …”. Possible former positions of the Aegean shoreline are presented in Fig. 29.8 after Göney (1973) and Müllenhoff et al. (2004). At 1500 BC, the coastline was located 30 km inland. By the beginning of Common Era, it had prograded 5 km, to a line near Mysu. About AD 1000 westward

(L

progradation of the shoreline pushed the harbour around Miletus, which was one of the most important ancient cities in western Anatolia and became a cradle for natural philosophy and mathematics by the contributions of Thales, his pupil Anaximander and again the pupil of the latter, Anaximenes (Strabo, Geographica, Book XIV). Lake Bafa was a marine embayment formerly known as Latmian Gulf during the Hellenistic and Roman times, the western part of which has been infilled by sediments of the Büyük Menderes

516

A. Gürbüz and N. Kazancı

Fig. 29.9 Engraving dated 1782 in the ruins of Miletus and the meandering channels of the Büyük Menderes River (J.B. Hiliard, J.B. Tilliard)

River. As a result of this process, the Latmian Gulf finally lost its connection to the open sea and turned into today’s Lake Bafa at around AD 1500 (Knipping et al. 2008).

29.7

The Ulubey Canyon

The Ulubey Canyon is one of the most impressive landscapes formed by the meandering dynamics of the Büyük Menderes River (Fig. 29.10). This canyon is an incised

Fig. 29.10 Ulubey Canyon formed by the incision of the meandering channel of the Büyük Menderes River

fluvial landform 100 km long, 1000 m wide, with a mean depth of 180 m. However, the depth on the final 25 km of the upper course of the Büyük Menderes River reaches 700 m after the Adıgüzel Dam, before it enters to the Denizli Graben (Fig. 29.5). As noted above, the main course of the Büyük Menderes River is located within graben floors, which are filled by Quaternary fluvial and fluvio-lacustrine deposits (Fig. 29.4). In the upper part of the drainage basin, the Banaz and Ulubey tributaries drain the Neogene (and partially

29

The Büyük Menderes River: Origin of Meandering Phenomenon

517

Palaeozoic) units isolating the Baklan-Dinar Graben from the Denizli Graben. The region drained by these streams is a plateau topped by an erosional surface representing an unconformity between the Neogene and Quaternary sedimentary formations. Between the Baklan-Dinar and Denizli sedimentary basins, the river is confined in a canyon, which gives place only to a narrow floodplain and follows deeply incised meanders imprinted in the landscape. The occurrence of this landscape is related to the base level of erosion, the river downcutting into its channel faster than it can change its course. The Ulubey Canyon was formed concurrently with the differential tectonic movements, which resulted in the subsidence of graben floors and uplift of horsts, in the context of the extensional tectonic regime in western Anatolia. Also, the Aegean Sea level changes during Quaternary and stream captures have effectively driven the incision process.

and 60–80 km since the late Pleistocene (e.g., Kazancı et al. 2009). This progradation results both from sediment input by the Büyük Menderes River and from sea level changes in the Aegean Sea. As a matter of fact, the Aegean region is known as one of the most rapidly prograding delta complexes, which have buried several ancient cities and their harbours (e.g., Marriner and Morhange 2007). In the upper course of the river, the Ulubey Canyon is an impressive landscape feature formed by the incision of the meandering channel patterns. The canyon is approximately 100 km long and 1000 m wide. It has a mean depth of *180 m, with a maximum valley depth of 700 m in the downstream part of the upper course. Further studies should focus on the understanding of the meandering features of the Büyük Menderes River using more quantitative means (i.e. morphometric) to demonstrate the forces (hydrodynamic, sedimentation, tectonic, etc.) that drive its channel patterns.

29.8

Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to editors Attila Çiner, Catherine Kuzucuoğlu and series editor Piotr Migoń for their valuable comments that improved the quality of the manuscript significantly, and to Kevin McClain for revising the English of the text.

Conclusions

The Maiandros of ancient times, called today the Büyük Menderes River, is characterized by fascinating features regarding its geomorphologic, morphodynamic and historical backgrounds. It is the longest influent river of the Aegean Sea with a course of 615 km. The river originates in the east, around the Sandıklı district of Afyon in central-west Turkey, outflowing on the western coasts of the country. During its trip, the river draws a complex winding route from the upper course to the lower course. The river’s name is the same as one of the River-Gods in mythology; Maiandros. This name is the eponym of the term ‘meandering’ pattern, which is used particularly in geomorphology, art and architecture. In this study, the meandering channel pattern of the Büyük Menderes River is analysed through its geometric forms. The results indicate a mean sinuosity ratio (K) of 1.42 for the main bed of the river from spring to mouth, while the thalweg profile presents a 1.90‰ gradient. The most winding parts of the river are located in the Baklan-Dinar (K = 1.74) and in the Büyük Menderes (K = 1.71) Grabens (Fig. 29.5). The floor of these basins also has the lowest gradient values with 0.41‰ and 0.51‰, respectively. It is, however, surprising to evidence a low sinuosity ratio (1.29) on the Dinarsuyu stream part of the river, in contrast to its low gradient value (1.3‰). As expected, this is related to the rectification of the geometry of the original meandering belt, which has been implemented to reduce the flood risk in the basin. The lowest course of the river developed a wavedominated delta, which progradated approximately 35 km since the first millennia BCE (e.g., Müllenhoff et al. 2004)

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A. Gürbüz and N. Kazancı Leopold LB, Wolman MG (1960) River meanders. Geol Soc Am Bull 71:769–794 Marriner N, Morhange C (2007) Geoscience of Mediterranean harbours. Earth Sci Rev 80:137–194 Meakin P, Sun T, Jossang T, Schwarz K (1996) A simulation model for meandering rivers and their associated environments. Phys A 233:606–618 Müllenhoff M, Handl M, Knipping M, Brückner H (2004) The evolution of Lake Bafa (Western Turkey)—sedimentological, microfaunal and palynological results. Coastline Rep 1:55–66 (In: Schernewski G, Dolch T (eds) Geographie der Meere und Küsten) Ocakoğlu F, Açıkalın S, Özsayın E, Dirik RK (2014) Tectonosedimentary evolution of the Karacasu and Bozdoğan basins in the Central Menderes Massif, W Anatolia. Turk J Earth Sci 23:361–385 Özgür R (1982–83) Aydın-Germencik-Ortaklar dolayında genç tektoniğe bağlı jeomorfolojik gelişme. MTA Dergisi 99–100: 142–147 Purvis M, Robertson AHF (2005) Miocene sedimentary evolution of the NE-SW-trending Selendi and Gördes Basins, western Turkey: implications for extensional processes. Sediment Geol 174:31–62 Rojay B, Toprak V, Demirci C, Süzen ML (2005) Plio-Quaternary evolution of the Küçük Menderes graben (western Anatolia, Turkey). Geodin Acta 18:241–255 Saraç G (2003) Türkiye omurgalı fosil yatakları. Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü (MTA) Raporu, No: 10609, 208 p, Ankara, Turkey Sarıca N (2000) The Plio-Pleistocene age of Büyük Menderes and Gediz grabens and their tectonic significance on N-S extensional tectonics in west Anatolia: mammalian evidence from the continental deposits. Geol J 35:1–24 Schröder B, Bay B (1996) Late Holocene rapid coastal change in western Anatolia-Büyük Menderes plain as a case study. Zeitschrift für Geomorphologie, N.F. 102:61–70 Şen Ş, Seyitoğlu G (2009) Magnetostratigraphy of early-middle Miocene deposits from EW trending Alaşehir and Büyük Menderes grabens in western Turkey, and its tectonic implications. In: van Hinsbergen DJJ, Edwards MA, Govers R (eds) Geodynamics of collision and collapse at the Africa–Arabia–Eurasia subduction zone, vol 311. Geological Society of London, Special Publications, pp 321–342 Şengör AMC (1987) Cross-faults and differential stretching of hanging-walls in regions of low-angle normal faulting: example from Western Turkey. In: Coward MP, Dewey JF, Hancock PL (eds) Continental extensional tectonics, vol 28. Geological Society of London, London, Special Publications, pp 575–589 Seyitoğlu G, Scott BC (1992) The age of the Büyük Menderes graben (west Turkey) and its tectonic implications. Geol Mag 129:239–242 Sözbilir H, Emre T (1990) Neogene stratigraphy and structure of the northern rim of the Büyük Menderes graben. In: International earth sciences congress on Aegean regions (IESCA–1990), proceedings, İzmir, Turkey, pp 314–322 Sümer Ö, İnci U, Sözbilir H (2013) Tectonic evolution of the Söke Basin: extension dominated transtensional basin formation in western part of the Büyük Menderes Graben, Western Anatolia. Turkey J Geodynamics 65:148–175 Swanson DC (1993) The importance of fluvial processes and related reservoir deposits. J Pet Technol:368–377 ten Veen JH, Boulton SJ, Alçiçek MC (2009) From palaeotectonics to neotectonics in the Neotethys realm: the importance of kinematic decoupling and inherited structural grain in SW Anatolia (Turkey). Tectonophys 473:261–281 Twidale CR (2004) River patterns and their meaning. Earth Sci Rev 67:159–218

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Geomorphic Response to Rapid Uplift in a Folded Structure: The Upper Tigris Case Sabri Karadoğan and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu








Abstract

Keywords

The River Tigris is one of the most significant rivers in the Middle East. All the landscapes drained by the river from Hazar Lake and neighbouring mountains down to the Iraqi–Syrian border in the Cizre region are mainly characterized by folded structures, often faulted, widely affecting limestone series. In this structural context, the incision of rivers shaped Jura-type and Appalachian-type morphologies. Meanwhile, tectonics has also generated rapid changes in the river network. The rapidity of post-Mio-Pliocene uplift caused deep incision of canyons into rising and thrusting folds, and preservation of a few remarkable Mio-Pliocene and Pliocene topographies. The chapter presents a geomorphological survey of the headwaters of the River Tigris, which is formed of two branches. The meeting of these branches (Maden and Birkleyin streams) downstream Eğil city forms the proper River Tigris. The paper examines the landscapes in the Euphrates–Tigris divide area where Hazar Lake is located. Landscapes in both the Maden and Birkleyin basins record the Eastern Anatolian Fault Zone activity during the Pleistocene, with epigenic canyons and meanders, dry valleys resulting from captures, and karstic systems deepening during uplift. Dams (constructed or under construction) have a profound impact in the Tigris and tributary valleys. The end of this programme will provoke the drowning of almost half the main river valley floor down to the Turkish–Syrian/Iraqi border (from Bismil to Cizre) and the loss of ancient settlements, towns and historic heritage that are located along the Tigris floodplain.

River Tigris Rapid uplift Jura-type landscapes Karstic underground network Canyons

S. Karadoğan (&) Ziya Gökalp Faculty of Education, Department of Geography, Dicle University, 21280 Diyarbakır, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] C. Kuzucuoğlu Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, Meudon, France e-mail: [email protected]

30.1




Headwaters Region of the River Tigris

Together with the Euphrates, the Tigris is one of the most important rivers of the southeastern Turkey. In Turkey, the length of the river is 1900 km and its recharge basin has a surface of 57,600 km2 (Fig. 30.1). The fluvial regime is pluvio-nival, the annual discharge being dominated by seasonal effects of (i) abundant snowfall during winter in the upper mountainous part of the basin and (ii) extremely dry summer in the lower part of the basin which opens south (Fig. 30.2). In the mountains, the snow coverage on the ground lasts at least four to five months each year. In springtime, the conjunction of snowmelt and seasonal rainfall on the Taurus Mountains slopes generates large floods, sometimes quite impressive in the valleys of the Tigris and its left bank tributaries (Fig. 30.2). These valleys have been occupied very early by civilizations succeeding since the Younger Dryas (ca 11.500 years) with, for example, the Pre-Pottery Neolithic sites of Çayönü, Körtik Tepe, Hallan Çemi (Özdoğan et al. 2011). For this reason, human settlements (caves, mounds, cities, ruins) are exceptionally numerous in these Taurus-fed valleys (Algaze et al. 1991). During the last decades, the magnitude of floods has decreased both because the river water is being retained in large reservoirs and because the yearly snow amount is variable. Summer discharges in the lower reaches of the River Tigris, and its tributaries downstream Diyarbakır city are also lower today than in the 1960s. In addition to climate, lithological characteristics (e.g. wide outcrops of thick limestone series) and the activity of tectonic structures have constantly affected the drainage of the River Tigris. Meanwhile, the river-related processes (e.g. incision, flood

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_30

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Fig. 30.1 River Tigris Basin in southeastern Anatolia region

regimes) played an important role in the geomorphological evolution of the valley. In the northwestern part of the Tigris Basin in Turkey, the proper River Tigris starts only some kilometres downstream from the confluence of two oppositely flowing streams: the Maden stream (flowing from NW) and the Birkleyn stream (flowing from NE) (Fig. 30.1). Consequently, the description of the landscapes in the River Tigris headwaters starts below with the examination of the water divide area, followed by that of the watersheds of both these upper branches of the Tigris, down to their confluence near Eğil.

30.2

Geological Setting of the Headwaters of the River Tigris

The upper reaches of the River Tigris take their source in the Southeastern Taurus which, like all other parts of the Taurus Range in Turkey, reaches altitudes higher than 3000 m a.s.l., while only a few deep gorges succeed in crossing it. This orogenic system belongs to the Tertiary Alpine orogeny that deformed the area from the northern Mediterranean to the Iranian plateau and to the more recent thrust pressures

caused by the Arabian plate rotary displacement along the Anatolian plate (Şengör and Yılmaz 1981; Sandvol et al. 2003). Starting during the late Miocene along the southern borders of Lake Van in the metamorphic massif of Bitlis, a regional thrust line extends westward from Lake Van (the Bitlis–Zagros suture zone, e.g. Nicoll 2010). Along this arched zone (Fig. 30.3), the structural context constrained by tectonics (faulting, thrusting, uplift) as well as lithology (karstic limestone formations) has generated the multiplication of river diversion and capturing continuous river capturing (Fig. 30.3). The NW rotational movement of the Arabian plate causes the sliding of the Anatolian plate along two major thrust fault zones in Turkey: the North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ), and the East Anatolian Fault Zone (EAFZ: Altınlı 1966; Şaroğlu and Yılmaz 1987; Şengör et al. 2008) (Fig. 30.3). In the process of this plate tectonics, allochthonous units were compressed south of the EAFZ, pushed and packed one above the other, forming nappes, while intense folding affected the thick marine sediment units pertaining to the Arabian plate (Karadoğan et al. 2009). Crustal shortening led to the formation of major anticlines, with folding magnitudes and fold ruptures increasing

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Geomorphic Response to Rapid Uplift in a Folded Structure …

523

Fig. 30.2 Increase in discharges of the River Tigris and tributaries downstream confluences. Discharges values are in m3/s. Mean monthly values at monitoring station between 1940 and 1996. Source EIE (National Office for Electric Researches)

Fig. 30.3 Tectonic setting of the River Tigris Basin (modified from İmamoğlu and Çetin 2007)

524

Fig. 30.4 Headwaters of River Tigris in the Southeastern Taurus Range. Red circles: towns; white stars: sites recording stream/river captures; large black octagon: the bow of the “Boğaz Çayı”, a dry

northwards. The highest folding intensity corresponds to regions today drained by the Upper Tigris and mid-Euphrates rivers (Barazangi et al. 2006; Fig. 30.4). During and following the compression, a continuous uplift (Şengör et al. 2008) added major impacts on the geomorphological landscapes in this region, especially with regard to the incision of streams cutting canyons and deep valleys in thrusted anticlines. Backward erosion of streams, also stimulated by uplift and lateral movements of faults, was favoured at places by lithologic contrasts and fault ruptures. As a result, numerous river captures and diversions are remarkably evident in the river network in the area (Fig. 30.4). The geomorphic evolution of the upper basin of the River Tigris thus responds to the interplay of (i) the structure inherited from the time when the southern part of the Neo-Tethyan Ocean closed and formed the Bitlis–Zagros suture zone, (ii) lithospheric deformations and relief changes controlled by tectonic movements related to plate collision and the EAZF activity, which have been continuous since the late Miocene and (iii) fluvial processes on the surface, which obey to tectonism, climate and local to regional physical constraints.

S. Karadoğan and C. Kuzucuoğlu

valley recording the capture of a former course of the Tigris through the Ergani plain (see Figs. 30.7 and 30.9): large blue octagon: position of the Birkleyn caves (see Figs. 30.10 and 30.11)

30.3

The Source of the Maden Stream: The Hazar Lake

The source of the Maden stream, the northwestern branch of the upper Tigris, is the Hazar Lake (1240 m a.s.l.) (Figs. 30.1 and 30.4). Positioned only 25 km southeast of the city of Elazığ, which is located in the Euphrates drainage basin, the lake occupies a depression in the divide zone that separates the uppermost Tigris Basin from the Euphrates River Valley. This depression is 20 km long and 3–5 km wide. The highest mountains around Hazar Lake are ca 1530 m a.s.l. Considering that the area gives birth to such an important river as the Tigris, this altitude is rather low. Along the divide, springs directed towards the Euphrates (northwards) and the Tigris (southwards) are only 1 km apart. Hazar Lake depression is a tectonic basin belonging to the Eastern Anatolian Fault Zone (EAFZ) system (Şengör et al. 2008; Fig. 30.5). It is part of the Sivrice Fault Zone, a master element of the EAFZ. The Sivrice FZ is a 32 km long, 5 km wide and lens-shaped depression which is bounded by a series of curved fault segments with a considerable amount

Geomorphic Response to Rapid Uplift in a Folded Structure …

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Fig. 30.5 Tectonic setting of Hazar Lake. 1. Lateral fault; 2. Fault track under water; 3. Past extension of Hazar Lake during Plio-Pleistocene; 4. Overflow pass; 5. Energy plant tunnel; 6. Lake.

3D drawing modified from Aksoy et al. (2007). Curves in the background are from SRTM data model. Photograph by S. Karadoğan

of normal-slip component, particularly on its southern margin (Aksoy et al. 2007; Fig. 30.5). Here, the master fault of the EAFZ bifurcates into two sub-strands in the east, then running in a southwest direction across Hazar Lake. Doing so, two sub-parallel lens-shaped depressions are separated by a horst. One of these grabens is occupied by the 220 m deep Hazar Lake itself (Moreno et al. 2010). The level of the Hazar Lake has changed several times during the lake life, as evidenced by terraces above its shores (Günek and Yiğit 1995; Tonbul and Yiğit 1995; Fig. 30.6) and below the present level of the lake (Eriş 2013; Eriş et al. 2016). The terraces preserved above the shores form a step descent from 120 m to 95 m, 80 m, 75 m, 70 m and 30 m. To date, neither chronological nor sedimentary evidences are available about the relationships between these terraces and (i) climatic transgression/regression cycles (how many terraces and which ones for which climatic cycle?) and (ii) the impact of uplift and slip movements which must have affected the sedimentation processes in and around the lake. Paleolimnological researches by Eriş (2013) and Eriş et al. (2016) evidence, however, climatic records dated LGM to Holocene (the last 40 kyrs). These climatic reconstructions are based on the chronostratigraphic analyses of six cores retrieved from the lake sediments and on high-resolution seismic profiles through the lake basin. The authors identify

two low stands of the lake level at −95 m depth and −73 m (below present lake level) that they attribute to the LGM and the end of the Younger Dryas, respectively. Other still stands at −63 m, −56 m and −46 m are interpreted as steps during an early Holocene lake-level rise. According to Günek and Yiğit (1995), Hazar Lake extended into the Behrimaz plain in the south during the Pliocene (Fig. 30.5). Erinç (1953) suggested that, during periods of very high lake levels, this large paleolake formed by the Behrimaz paleolake and Hazar Lake may have flown into the Elazığ plain (today in the Euphrates Basin) through an outlet today abandoned and located at the NW corner of Hazar Lake. During the Quaternary, with a decrease of the lake-level altitude (responding most probably to some dynamic of the tectonic structure), Hazar Lake was captured by the Maden stream at the Tigris’s benefit. If this hypothesis is correct, a tectonic collapsing south of the lake may have helped the diversion. As a matter of fact, Hazar Lake seems to have a complex recharge/discharge system and hydrologic balance. Between 1965 and 1974, for example, the water withdrawal from the lake for an energy power plant in Elazığ (Fig. 30.5) first provoked a 10 m level decrease in 5 years (1970–1974) from 1248 to 1238 m (Günek and Yiğit 1995), followed by a slow recovery of 4 m within 18 years.

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Fig. 30.6 Two distinct levels of Pleistocene accumulation terraces of Hazar Lake. The photography is taken looking south over the western part of Hazar Lake. Photograph by S. Karadoğan

30.4

The Maden Stream (Tigris Upper NW Branch)

30.4.1 Antecedence of the Maden Stream in the Southeastern Taurus Folds Between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, the Maden Mountains form a SW-NE elongated highland about 50 km long and 30 km wide, with altitudes descending eastward from 2230 m to 2000 m. These highlands are crossed by the Maden stream that, springing as the outlet of the Hazar Lake, gives birth to the NW headwaters of the Tigris. The stream crosses the range in a 200 m deep valley incised in a 1400 m high horst that constitutes the southern water divide of Hazar Lake. The mountains are formed by Cretaceous ophiolites containing abundant copper ores associated with intrusions of middle Miocene-aged volcanic and volcano-sedimentary formations (Yiğitbaş and Yılmaz 1996; Barazangi et al. 2006). These ores have been mined since Prehistory (Ergani Maden: Yener 2000). Southward and after draining the Kralkızı narrow lowland, the Maden stream incises another horst (Ergani-Dicle) whose altitudes rapidly reach 2000 m, a value similar to those of the Maden Mountains highest surfaces. These observations point to occurrences of a

possible Appalachian-like relief developed from a Mio-Pliocene erosion surface, the remains of which still truncate faulted and thrusted folds which formed since the late Miocene, and were deformed again and uplifted during the Quaternary (Figs. 30.7 and 30.8). The antecedence of the paleo-Maden and Maden streams over this surface led to the incision of gorges through the folds corresponding to “cluses” and to the occurrence of elongated depressions which are “val” (Fig. 30.7) at the same time as they are grabens (Fig. 30.8).

30.4.2 An Abandoned Valley of the Maden Stream in the Ergani Plain and Devegeçidi Valley West of Ergani town, dry canyons arrive in a wide and flat plain (Figs. 30.3 and 30.9) filled by alluvium and lake terraces. Petrology of these deposits indicates connections with parts of the Maden Mountains which are today out of the Ergani plain drainage basin (Karadoğan et al. 2008). Interestingly, one of the dry canyons forms a sharp bow towards the Maden stream to which it connects at Kralkızı. This field evidence shows that, in the past, Maden stream used to flow into this canyon, discharging its alluvial load in the Ergani

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Geomorphic Response to Rapid Uplift in a Folded Structure …

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Fig. 30.7 Jurassian type relief, with fossil landforms abandoned after the diversion of the River Tigris by one of its tributaries east of Ergani. DEM and cross-section by S. Karadoğan

plain—possibly filled by a lake?—, and ultimately flowing through the Devegeçidi Valley to the Tigris north of Diyarbakır (Figs. 30.3 and 30.7). The dry canyon between Kralkızı and Ergani (Fig. 30.9) is a remnant of the paleo-Maden course before its capture at Kralkızı (Karadoğan et al. 2008). The deep incision of today’s Maden stream, which was necessary to drive the capture, suggests that the landscapes in the Ergani plain are partly composed of landforms inherited from a time previous to the major uplift in the area. The Ergani plain fill may thus correspond to a “fossil” remnant of a Mio-Pliocene lake and its surrounding fans. In the Ergani plain, very old Neolithic populations settled during the Pre-Pottery period. These populations developed very early plant and animal pre-domestication practices (e.g. Çayönü: Özdoğan 2001). In addition, Bronze Age reliefs and inscriptions in Sami language have been found in rock-carved burial chambers near Ergani (Çambel 1973).

These confirm the high attractiveness of this region during the Chalcolithic to Iron Ages.

30.5

The Birkleyn Stream Valley (Tigris Upper NE Branch)

The northeastern upper tributary of River Tigris, the Birkleyn stream, takes its source in the Birkleyn caves in the Korha Mountains (Kusch 1993; Fig. 30.3). These caves have always bore an important cultural heritage dimension and significance, as shown by several historical events and stories, as well as by their symbolic meanings, which are usually attached to caves. For example, reliefs and inscriptions belonging to the Assyrian Kings Tiglath I (1114–1079 BC) and Shalmaneser III (BC 858–824) are carved on the walls of one of the caves (Halliday and Shaw 1995; Schachner 2009; Fig. 30.10). The “tens of thousands of Alexander the Great’s

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Fig. 30.8 A typical view of the Jura-type relief in the folds and thrust belt forming the Maden Mountains (looking NW from Ergani). The structural relief exhibits evolution with (i) an almond-shaped “combe” (= a depression carved on the top of an anticline), (ii) between two “crests” facing each other (= ridges with cliffs cut reverse to the structural dip), (iii) with several “cluses” (river gorges incised Fig. 30.9 “Boğaz Çayı”: a dry valley oriented towards the Ergani plain: a “cluse” incised in an old Plio-Quaternary karstic landscape (view looking from north to south). The riparian vegetation in the dry valley bottom is fed by karstic springs. There is no flowing water in the valley. Photograph by S. Karadoğan

S. Karadoğan and C. Kuzucuoğlu

perpendicularly to the anticline axis, indicative of the hydrographic response to the uplift formative of the anticline), and with (iv) “ruz” (ravines on the anticline slopes). The Pliocene erosion surface truncating older formations is preserved on top of the crests. Photograph by S. Karadoğan

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correspond to a cluse (Atalay et al. 2010). As is expected in a Jura-type relief,1 the today’s spring of the Birkleyn stream at the western end of the cluse is a resurgence (Fig. 30.11). The superposition of three distinct suites of caves, where the two upper ones are dry while the lowest one still contains water, is a beautiful example of adaptation of karstic features and underground drainage to uplift. The vertical succession of these three cave systems may also record that the uplift intensity was not uniform and occurred through accelerations during “critical” periods. Such stepping of karstic systems in response to rapid uplift is a rather frequent underground landscape in the whole Taurus (Atalay et al. 2010).

30.6

Fig. 30.10 Bas-relief carving of the Assyrian King Shalmaneser. This carving positioned the middle-level karstic tunnel of the Birkleyn cave system. Note the cuneiform text carved in front of the King. Photograph by S. Karadoğan

Army” are also said to have spent a winter here in one of the enormous chambers of the same cave. The Birkleyn caves form three distinct and superposed karstic systems (Fig. 30.11). On the surface of the ridge in which the caves developed, a dry valley remains from an old superficial drainage system. This valley dried when the stream draining it infiltrated some karstic ruptures from which an alternative, underground, riverbed formed, with a profile parallel to that of the original stream. Afterwards, three underground passageways formed one below the other, in the same E-W direction as the dried valley on the surface (Fig. 30.11). While the longitudinal profiles accentuate the original profile of the valley preserved on the surface, the direction of the three systems is perpendicular to an anticline axis. Accordingly, the passageways formed by the four sets of surface and underground valleys

Towards the Maden–Birkleyn Confluence

The two streams forming the Tigris headwaters meet some tens kilometres south of the Eğil old city (Fig. 30.2). Downstream the Dicle Dam, which has been built at the exact location of the confluence, the Tigris rapidly flows down to the Diyarbakır city region (Fig. 30.1). The Eğil city and its castle date back to the Assyrian period. The castle is well preserved, and the city contains many architectural remains of various periods, from the Roman Empire until the Seljuk period (Fig. 30.12). Between the plains fringing the ridges of the Maden Mountains downstream to Eğil area, the magnitude of the thrusted folds decreases, so that the impact of uplift on the morphology becomes dominant in the landscapes, mainly through the profound incision of wide meanders into an uplifted limestone plateau (Fig. 30.12). Here, karstic landforms prevail everywhere. On the slopes of the canyons, features such as lapiez, chimney-like rocks, caves and cavities are frequently encountered. The surface of the plateau is part of the Mio-Pliocene erosion surface evidenced north in the Appalachian relief of the highlands. The altitudes of the surface in the Eğil area show that the uplift generated a regional slope tipping southwards.

The following definitions of “Jura-like” and “Appalachian-like” morphologies are from Strahler A.N. (1978)’s “Modern Physical Geography” (John Wiley, NY).

1

• “Jura-like” landforms are developed in eroded folded beds. They comprise anticlinal mountains and synclinal valleys, trellis drainage pattern on folds, and water-passes crossing folds, as well illustrated in Jura province of France and of Switzerland. • “Appalachian-like” landforms are developed in eroded folded beds, where folds have been first levelled, then eroded again, with resistant layers forming a second-generation ridges revealing the initial folded pattern, as well illustrated in the Appalachian mountains (USA).

530 Fig. 30.11 Three step descent of the Birkleyn cave system into the Eocene limestones. The section records three adaptation stages of the karstic system to the uplift, from the Pliocene abandoned valley at the surface in the uppermost graph) to the present resurgence (the lowest graph). Photographs and graph by S. Karadoğan

S. Karadoğan and C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 30.12 Incised meander of the Maden stream (Upper Tigris western branch) at Eğil city. The Assyrian citadel is on top of the meander cliff. Photograph by S. Karadoğan

30.7

Conclusion

The Upper Tigris relief corresponds partly to an Appalachian relief on top of which a Mio-Pliocene Jura-type landscape has developed. Such a geomorphological landscape is unique in Turkey. The erosion surface forming the highest flat areas truncates thrusted and faulted folds mainly SW-NE oriented (in the north), which deform series composed of Mesozoic limestones as well as in other rocks pertaining to the Bitlis–Zagros suture zone. In the south, the Mesozoic limestone units are the only ones that outcrop; they are also less deformed and correspond to a plateau deeply incised by antecedent meanders. Located south of the Eastern Anatolian Fault Zone (EAFZ), the folds caused by the compression which accompanied the collision of the Arabian and Anatolian plates correspond to typical landforms developed in karstic Jura-type systems, such as “dry hanged valleys”, “monts”, “combes”, “cluses”, “yaz”, resurgences. The high intensity of Quaternary uplift and

corresponding stream incision triggered captures as well as the fossilization of old landscapes. Some remains of these Mio-Pliocene landscapes are still untouched in the north of the region, where they occur as flat erosion surfaces truncating anticlines and uplifted small lake basins (e.g. parts of the Ergani plain). In the Birkleyn region (NE of the Maden– Birkleyn streams confluence), the dry valley and three superimposed caves systems result from the rejuvenation of the karst. The disposition of these geomorphological features evidences the formation of an underground “cluse” crossing an anticline. It also shows that the river, which was initially flowing on the uplifting anticlines, did not incise the anticline once the uplift started but slowly penetrated underground where three later uplift phases are thus recorded. In 1997, two dams were constructed: the Kralkızı Dam on the upper reach of the Maden stream and the Dicle Dam at the Maden–Birkleyn streams confluence. Figure 30.12 illustrates and suggests some of the changes generated by dams in the region. These changes concern the variety and access to resources, landscapes and people’s life in the

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region, e.g. (i) loss of valley floors and terraces, (ii) disturbances of routes and activities necessary for the local population, (iii) flooding of karstic caves and underground karstic systems, (iv) departure of population from the area which turns poorer in activity. In 1997, another dam was also constructed on the Batman River (Fig. 30.1). Today, two other dams are under construction on the Tigris: Devegeçidi Dam upstream from Eğil (Fig. 30.4) and the Ilısu Dam upstream the Cizre plain near the Iraq border. With the completion of all these dams and other ones completed or under construction on the tributaries, most parts of the largest valleys in the Upper Tigris Basin will be drowned (from Ilısu to Bismil and at four other locations at the foot of the Taurus slopes in the basin). The achievement of the Ilısu Dam will provoke the flooding of well-known exceptional sites belonging to archaeology (e.g. Körtik Tepe and too many Neolithic to Iron Age sites to be cited here), history (e.g. Hasankeyf) and natural environment (e.g. the Tigris gorges, the Batman–Tigris confluence springs, the collapsed dolines between Bismil and Batman).

References Aksoy E, İnceöz M, Koçyiğit A (2007) Lake Hazar Basin: a negative flower structure on the East Anatolian Fault System (EAFS), SE Turkey. Turk J Earth Sci 16:319–338 Algaze G, Brueninger R, Lightfoot C, Roosenberg M (1991) The Tigris-Euphrates archaeological reconnaissance project: a preliminary report of the 1989–1900 Seasons. Anatolica 17:175–240 Altınlı IE (1966) Doğu ve Güneydoğu Anadolu’nun Jeolojisi (Geology of Eastern and Southeastern Anatolia). MTA Bull I(67) (Ankara) Atalay I, Karadoğan S, Yıldırım A (2010). Karstification and Ground River System in SE Anatolia: a key study from Birkleyn Cave System. In: Proceedings 7th Turkey-Romania geographical academic seminar, Antalya, Turkey, 1–9 June Barazangi M, Sandvol E, Seber D (2006) Structure and tectonic evolution of the Anatolian Plateau in eastern Turkey. In: Dilek Y, Pavlides S (eds) Postcollisional Tectonics and Magmatism in the Mediterranean Region and Asia, vol 409. Geological Society of America Special Paper, pp 463–473 Çambel H (1973) Güneydoğu Anadolu Tarihöncesi Araştırmların Kültür tarihi Bakımından Önemi (The importance of prehistory in Southeast Anatolia in cultural researches). Conferences Atatürk IV, TTK Ed., Ankara Erinç S (1953) Doğu Anadolu Coğrafyası (Geography of Eastern Anatolia), no 15. Geography Institute of Istanbul Publ., Istanbul Eriş KK (2013) Late Pleistocene Holocene sedimentary records of climate and lake-level changes in Lake Hazar, Eastern Anatolia, Turkey. Quatern Int 302:123–134 Eriş KK, Akçer Ön S, Çağatay N, Nagihan Aslan T, Damcı E, Ülgen UB (2016) Deciphering paleoclimatic responses for the evolution of Late Pleistocene to Holocene sedimentary records of Lake Hazar, Eastern Anatolia, Turkey. In: Geophysical Research Abstracts, vol 18. EGU2016-1674-1

S. Karadoğan and C. Kuzucuoğlu Günek H, Yiğit A (1995) Hazar Gölü Havzasının Hidrografik Özellikleri (Specificity of the Lake Hazar Basin hydrography). In: 1st Symposium on Lake Hazar and its environment. Sivrice-Elazığ, pp 91–103 Halliday WR, Shaw TR (1995) The Iskender-i Birkilin caves in the 9th and 12th centuries BC. NSS Bull J Caves Karst Stud 57:108–110 İmamoğlu MŞ, Çetin E (2007) Güneydoğu Anadolu Bölgesi ve Yakın Yöresinin Depremselliği (Earthquakes in the Southeastern Anatolian Region and its close surroundings). DÜ Ziya Gökalp Eğitim Fakültesi Dergisi 9:93–103 (In Turkish) Karadoğan S, Çağlıyan A, Durmuş E (2008) Ergani (Diyarbakır) Çevresinde Kuvaterner’de Meydana Gelen Drenaj Değişiklikleri ve Bölge Jeomorfolojisine Etkileri (Impacts of changes in drainage during the Quaternary on the geomorphology and environment of Ergani region). In: National symposium of geomorphology, Çanakkale University, pp 5–18 (In Memory of Prof. Dr. M. Ardos) Karadoğan S, Çağlayan A, Durmuş E (2009) Ergani-Çermik (Diyarbakır) Arasındaki Kenar Kıvrımları Kuşağı ve Çevresinin Jeomorfolojik Özellikleri (Geomorphologic characteristics of side folded zone between Ergani and Çermik). E-J New World Sci Acad 4(4) (Art no 4A0016) Kusch H (1993) Die Tigrishöhlen in Ostanatolien (Türkei). Die Höhle 4:27–33 Moreno DG, Ferrari AH, Moernaut JG, Boes X, Daele MV, Avşar U, Çağatay N, Batist MD (2010) Structure and recent evolution of the Hazar Basin: strike-slip basin on the East Anatolian Fault, Eastern Turkey. Basin Res 10:1–17 Nicoll K (2010) Landscape development within a young collision zone: implications for post-Tethyan evolution of the Upper Tigris River system in Southeastern Turkey. Int Geol Rev 52(4):404–422 Özdoğan M (2001) Southeast Anatolia joint project and excavations at Çayönü. In: Belli O (ed) Istanbul University’s contributions to archaeology in Turkey (1932–2000). Istanbul Univ. Rectorate Publ., pp 12–17 Özdoğan M, Başgelen N, Kuniholm P (eds) (2011) The Neolithic in Turkey. New excavations and new research, vol 1. The Tigris Basin. Archaeology and Art Publications, Istanbul, 271 p Sandvol E, Türkelli N, Barazangi M (2003) The eastern Turkey Seismic Experiment: the study of a young continent-continent collision. Geophys Res Lett 30. https://doi.org/10.1029/2003gl018912 Şaroğlu F, Yılmaz Y (1987) Geological evolution and basin models during neotectonic episode in the eastern Anatolia. MTA Bull 107:61–83 Schachner A (2009) Assyriens Könige an einer der Quellen des Tigris: Archäologische Forschungen im Höhlensystem von Birkleyn und am sogenannten Tigris-Tunnel. Tübingen Şengör AMC, Yılmaz Y (1981) Tethyan evolution of Turkey: a plate tectonic approach. Tectonophys 75:181–241 Şengör AMC, Özeren MS, Keskin M, Sakınç M, Özbakır AD, Kayan İ (2008) Eastern Turkish high plateau as a small Turkic-type orogen: implications for post-collisional crust-forming processes in Turkic-type orogens. Earth Sci Rev 90:1–48 Tonbul S, Yiğit A (1995). Pleyistosen’den günümüze Hazar Gölü’ndeki seviye değişmeleri, çevresel etkileri ve Hatunköy kapması (The Hatunköy capture and its impacts on the lake levels of the Lake Hazar, during Pleistocene until the present). In: 1st symposium on Lake Hazar and its environment. Sivrice-Elazığ, pp 41–69 Yener KA (2000) The domestication of metals: the rise of complex metal industries in Anatolia. Brill, Leiden Yiğitbaş E, Yılmaz Y (1996) New evidence and solution to the Maden complex controversy of the Southeast Anatolian orogenic belt (Turkey). Geol Rundsch 85:250–263

Part VII Volcanics

A Fascinating Gift from Volcanoes: The Fairy Chimneys and Underground Cities of Cappadocia

31

Attila Çiner and Erkan Aydar

Abstract

Cappadocia, at the heart of the Central Anatolia Plateau in Turkey, is famous for its unusual volcanic landscape and rock dwellings. The formation of this landscape dates back to the late Miocene epoch (  10 Ma) (Ma = Million years) when ignimbrites and pyroclastic deposits started to spread out from a few volcanic centres over an area of 20.000 km2 centred on the plateau. The volcanism continued for several millions of years and laid down thick and colourful ignimbrite layers. The evolution of the Cappadocian landscape is governed by the uplift of the plateau since late Miocene times. Gently sloping plateaus formed by the surface of volcanic pyroclastic flows are later dissected, usually along fractures of soft-unwelded ignimbrites, to form mushroom-like, cone-shaped structures known locally as “fairy chimneys”. Ancient populations also used the ignimbrites to carve their houses, churches and even underground cities. This unique cultural and morphological heritage site was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985 and today is one of the most visited regions of Turkey. Keywords









Cappadocia Fairy chimneys Hoodoos Volcanoes Ignimbrites Tourism

A. Çiner (&) Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences, Istanbul Technical University, 34469 Maslak, Istanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] E. Aydar Geological Eng. Dept, Hacettepe University, 06800 Beytepe, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

31.1

Introduction

Situated in the Central Anatolian Volcanic Province (CAVP) in the middle of the Anatolian Plateau in Turkey (Fig. 31.1), Cappadocia with its strange and spectacular landscape looks like another planet. Peculiar landforms called fairy chimneys, vast plains, smooth hills, gorgeous valleys and rising volcanoes exposing an amazing harmony of colours and shapes, man-made troglodyte settlements, painted churches and monasteries and underground cities all make this vast region unmatched worldwide. Cappadocia was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985 and since then millions of tourists have visited the area to appreciate its unique cultural and morphological heritage.

31.2

Geological and Geomorphological Setting

The CAVP is composed of Upper Miocene-to-Holocene ignimbrites, volcanic ash deposits and lava flows alternating with fluvio-lacustrine sediments that cover  20.000 km2 (Le Pennec et al. 1994; Aydar et al. 2012) (Fig. 31.1). The Tuz Gölü Fault to the west and Ecemiş Fault to the east as well as two Quaternary stratovolcanoes, namely Hasandağ (3267 m) to the west and Erciyes (3917 m) to the east, delineate the Nevşehir plateau where the average altitude reaches 1400 m above sea level (Aydar et al. 2012). Morphologically the CAVP is formed of plateaus cut in places by valleys on the slopes of which fairy chimneys are most common (Fig. 31.2). To the north, the Kızılırmak River, which is the longest river (1355 km) within the borders of Turkey, flows within these ignimbrite sequences and finally reaches the Black Sea. Channel deposits of this river are also often found lying unconformably on these ignimbrites and their intercalated lacustrine deposits. From a geological standpoint, the pre-volcanic basement of the CAVP is composed of plutonic rocks (mainly granite

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_31

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A. Çiner and E. Aydar

Fig. 31.1 Digital elevation model of the Central Anatolian Volcanic Province (CAVP). TGF: Tuz Gölü Fault, EF: Ecemiş Fault

and gabbro) of Cretaceous age (Aydar et al. 1995, 2012) and metamorphic rocks of the Central Anatolian Crystalline Complex (Aydar et al. 1995; Dilek and Sandvol 2009). The convergence of the Afro-Arabian continent with the Eurasian plate since late Miocene times is responsible for initiation of the widespread and intense continental volcanic activity, which started in Cappadocia ca. 5 Ma (Innocenti et al. 1975; Aydar et al. 1993, 1995; Piper et al. 2002). Subcrustal detachment–delamination of lower crust is thought to be responsible for the volcanic activity that ultimately formed the Cappadocian plateau under the influence of extensional tectonic regime (Aydar et al. 2010). As a result, numerous large-volume ignimbrite deposits, Quaternary stratovolcanoes and monogenic centres characterize the CAVP.

31.3

Volcanic Succession

31.3.1 Ignimbrites The ignimbrites and lava flows in the CAVP were first described by Pasquarè (1968), and the stratigraphy was

further refined by numerical ages obtained using various dating techniques (Innocenti et al. 1975; Pasquarè et al. 1988; Le Pennec et al. 1994, 2005; Mues-Schumacher and Schumacher 1996; Temel et al. 1998; Viereck-Götte et al. 2010; Aydar et al. 2012; Agrò et al. 2014). Aydar et al. (2012) recently published 40Ar/39Ar plagioclase eruption ages and 206Pb/238U zircon crystallization ages, refining the stratigraphy by defining a total of ten ignimbrite sequences following the terminology outlined in Le Pennec et al. (1994) and respecting mostly original names given by Pasquarè (1968) (Figs. 31.3 and 31.4). These ignimbrite sequences present ages ranging from 10 Ma to Quaternary. They are named, in stratigraphic order from the oldest to the youngest: Kavak, Zelve, Sarımadentepe, Sofular, Cemilköy, Tahar, Gördeles, Kızılkaya, Valibabatepe and Kumtepe Ignimbrites. Several independent pumiceous air-fall deposits, often named after the closest village names or hills, are also found in the region (Aydar et al. 2012; Çiner et al. 2015a) (Fig. 31.1). The Kavak Ignimbrites are the oldest pyroclastic deposits (40–50 m (e.g., the Derinkuyu underground city), peaking at *80 m (Ihlara Valley), with an average thickness of 15 m. The Kızılkaya Ignimbrite generally consists of two distinct flow units that are often strongly welded with well-developed columnar jointing with cliffs and deeply carved canyon walls (Aydar et al. 2012). The Valibabatepe Ignimbrite (2.5 Ma) reaches a maximum thickness of 40 m covering 5200 km2 around Talas at the base of Erciyes Volcano from which it originated (Pasquarè 1968; Le Pennec et al. 1994; Şen et al. 2003).

540

It has red and black layers in the proximal facies and becomes pinkish and grey in the distal facies. The Kumtepe Ignimbrite is the youngest ignimbrite of Cappadocia. It erupted during the late Pleistocene in two successive eruptions (Lower and Upper Acıgöl or Kumtepe phases) separated by paleosols or cinder cone deposits (Druitt et al. 1995). Main outcrops are found along the Acıgöl-Nevşehir highway where they cover all older ignimbrites. The zircon ages of these deposits are 206 ka and 163 ka (ka: 1000 years) for the lower and upper units, respectively (Schmitt et al. 2011).

31.3.1.1 The Morphological Expression of the Ignimbrite Succession in Today’s Landscape Among the ignimbrite units defined in the CAVP, fairy chimneys are extensively developed in the Kavak, Zelve, Cemilköy Ignimbrites, easily observable from Avanos towards Mustafapaşa villages, and to some extent in the Kızılkaya and Gördeles Ignimbrites. Lacustrine deposits made up of carbonate and mudstone together with fluvial deposits frequently alternate with the ignimbrite units. This relationship is well observed at the entrance to the Zelve Valley where several tens of metres thick subhorizontal and continuous white lacustrine sediments overly the Zelve Ignimbrites indicating quiescence periods in the volcanism that normally characterizes the region. The strongly welded Kızılkaya Ignimbrite, which covers most of the underlying deposits, forms today a large plateau from Soğanlı Valley to the east until Ihlara Valley to the west. Near Ihlara and Kızılkaya villages, well-preserved cooling cracks presenting typical hexagonal-like designs are widely dispatched over the surface of the Kızılıkaya ignimbritic plateau. This structural design evidences the

A. Çiner and E. Aydar

correspondence of the surface of the plateau with the original surface of the volcanic flow. Later during the Quaternary, erosion transformed the flow into separate mesas, which now dominate over fluvial corridors and the rivers.

31.3.2 Quaternary Volcanoes and Monogenic Centres Cappadocia hosts two Quaternary stratovolcanoes: Hasandağ and Erciyes (Fig. 31.5). Both volcanoes have their own evolutionary history. As they are Quaternary in age they are much younger than the ignimbrites and form an obvious and spectacular contrast with their heights. Additionally, several hundreds of monogenetic vents, such as cinder cones, maars and lava domes decorate the landscape of Cappadocia.

31.3.3 Source Areas For a long time, it has mistakenly been believed that Cappadocian tuffs or ignimbrites were produced by the dominating volcanoes (Erciyes and Hasandağ) and rhyolitic massive of Göllüdağ volcanoes. However, late MiocenePliocene ignimbrites are now known to be the product of calderas that have collapsed and are barely visible (Le Pennec et al. 1994; Froger et al. 1998; Aydar et al. 2012).

31.4

Fairy Chimneys

The so-called fairy chimneys are mushroom-like structures where harder volcanic rocks are underlain by softer rocks. They are probably the most peculiar features of Cappadocia. Fairy chimneys are unique landforms composed of different

Fig. 31.5 Erciyes Volcano, view from South Photograph by Hakan Gün; Atlas Magazine

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Fig. 31.6 a Fairy chimneys near Paşabağ area. While the chimneys on the background to the right of the picture are not fully separated from their cooling fractures, the chimneys in front stand-alone. Once the harder top will fall, the chimneys will erode much faster as is the case for the chimney at the centre of the picture. b Another case where completely fairy chimneys start to develop (background), stand-alone (with heads) and heads eroded. c “Love Valley” fairy chimneys. Photographs by A. Çiner

ignimbrites, which present variable resistance to erosion (whether by wind abrasion or by run-off incision). Typical fairy chimney forms evoke pillars, columns, towers, obelisks

and needles that can reach 50 m in height (Figs. 31.6 and 31.7). Recently paleo-fairy chimneys, observed on a road cut, were also described by Doğan et al. (2018).

542 Fig. 31.7 Fairy chimneys types: a “Camel” as is locally known is developed within Zelve Ignimbrite. b Fairy chimneys can also develop within lacustrine sediments. c Cemilköy Ignimbrite forms the base of this fairy chimney, while a rock fallen from overlying Kızılkaya Ignimbrite forms the top. Several other fallen “fairy chimneys heads” are present on the background. d Twin fairy chimneys near Zelve. Soft Kavak Ignimbrite is overlain by 1-m-thick lacustrine white mudstone that is in turn overlain by harder Zelve Ignimbrite, which constitutes the top. e “Family” as is locally known is developed in Kavak Ignimbrite near Ürgüp village. Photographs by A. Çiner

A. Çiner and E. Aydar

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Fig. 31.7 (continued)

31.4.1 Formation and Erosion

31.4.2 Effect of Climate

The formation and degradation of the fairy chimneys are controlled by spacing, aperture and strike and dip of discontinuities initially formed by thermal stress (Topal 1995; Topal and Doyuran 1995, 1998; Aydan and Ulusay 2003; Ergüler 2009). The structure of the deposit (lithological differences, uneven grain-size distribution of the powder-to-block-sized elements and the slope gradient on which fairy chimneys are developed) also plays a role. The evolution of this landscape started with gently sloping plateaus, which have been later differentially eroded, as a response to the continuing uplift of the Central Anatolia Plateau since late Miocene times (Schildgen et al. 2013; Yıldırım et al. 2013; Çiner et al. 2015b) and distinctive physical characteristics of successive ignimbrite layers. The dissection of the plateaus often started from cooling fractures and ended in fairy chimney formations. When soft layers, such as lacustrine deposits and/or air-fall deposits, are occasionally present between more resistant ignimbrite flows, the chimney’s caps are formed in the harder ignimbrite layer overlaying any softer formation. During a limited time span, the caps protect the fairy chimneys from erosion, giving rise to the development of extensive mushroom-like morphology. When the hard cap falls down or is eroded away, a sharp-pointed chimney is formed, and eventually the remaining cone is quickly destroyed by ongoing erosion. In the frame of similar processes, several types of fairy chimneys are formed depending on the nature of the ignimbrites (Figs. 31.6 and 31.7).

The climate (amount and intensity of precipitation, freeze– thaw cycles, drought and winds) also plays an important role in the development of the fairy chimneys. Today, hot and dry summers, and cold and wet winters characterize climate in Cappadocia. At Nevşehir (1260 m above sea level), average summer temperature is 19 °C and average winter temperature is 0 °C. Except in valleys where tree gardens are widespread, the region is poorly vegetated and hence the rainfall and snowmelt accentuate the erosion, especially in the softest volcanic units. The Quaternary Period (2.58 Ma) is typically defined by the cyclic growth and decay of continental ice sheets and the associated climate and environmental changes (Denton et al. 2010). Even though these cycles are known to affect the formation and erosion of landforms, quantitative data from Anatolia are mostly concentrated on the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) (*20 ka ago) and onwards (for Cappadocia see Roberts et al. 2001, 2016, 2017; Woldring and Bottema 2003; Bayarı et al. 2003; Berger et al. 2016; Çiner and Sarıkaya 2017; Jones et al. 2007; Sarıkaya et al. 2009, 2011; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015, 2017; Dean et al. 2015; Zreda et al. 2011; Ulusoy et al. 2014; Oliva et al. 2018). Data from Anatolia, therefore, indicate that the climate since the LGM has been characterized by a general increase in temperature and precipitation at the onset of the Holocene (  11.5 ka ago). After the mid-Holocene, precipitation decreased as it did in all regions of central Anatolia. According to data obtained by Sarıkaya et al. (2009) in Erciyes Volcano,

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the climate during the LGM was 8–11 °C cooler than today, while precipitation values were similar to modern ones. During the Late Glacial period (  14–12.5 ka ago) climate was by 4 °C cooler and up to 50% wetter. During the early Holocene it warmed to 2–5 °C cooler and up to twice as wet as today, while the late Holocene was 2–3 °C cooler with precipitation amounts similar to those of today (Sarıkaya et al. 2009). The precipitation and temperature contrasts from the LGM onwards, together with changes in densities/types of vegetation cover, probably generated differences in the intensity of erosion of the Cappadocian chimneys. Furthermore, it is most probable that this erosion may have increased greatly during the rather short-transition phases between these contrasting periods. It is well known that instability generated by the tectonic uplift of the plateau together with vegetation and soil degradation (whether due to climate or land use or cultural practices) favours erosion processes in areas sensitive to differential erosion.

31.4.3 Erosion Rates Obtained from Cosmogenic Nuclides Although erosion controls the formation of fairy chimneys, it also has a destructive effect, which eventually threatens their future existence (Çiner et al. 2013). In addition to natural processes, anthropogenic effects induced by increasing touristic influence on vegetation, land-use and frequent stepping around the landforms play an increasingly important role in their progressive or sudden disappearance. To better understand the processes forming the fairy chimneys and appreciate their vulnerability, Sarıkaya et al. (2015) conducted a study for quantifying the rates of their erosion. To achieve this aim, they used in situ-produced cosmogenic isotopes for the first time in the Cappadocian landscape and obtained quantifiable long-term erosion rates for fairy chimney development stages. Their results show that the apparent ages of samples (i.e., of the start of incision which will lead to the chimney carving) vary between 148.4 ± 8.0 and 26.7 ± 2.8 ka while the plateau surfaces are eroded at a low averaged ablation rate of 0.6–0.9 cm/ka. The average incision rate increases to 2.3–3.3 cm/ka when the landscape is dissected to form fairy chimneys. The caps of chimneys have average incision rates of  3.1 cm/ka. Once the chimney caps disappear and softer rocks below are exposed, average erosion rates increase significantly, by an order of magnitude or more. Additionally, the erosion/incision patterns of volcanic rocks provide excellent markers for dating phases of landscape evolution. Cappadocia is formed mostly by

A. Çiner and E. Aydar

horizontally emplaced Neogene-Quaternary ignimbrites intercalated with lava flows and epiclastic continental sediments that have been uplifted to  1–1.5 km above the sea level since late Miocene (Schildgen et al. 2012). According to Aydar et al. (2013), morphological/palaeoaltimetric features constrained by radiometrically dated volcanic units indicate that there was neither major erosion nor incision between 10 and 5 Ma. According to these studies, the morphology, uplift rate, and incision rates of the CAVP reveal that the onset of uplift is posted 8 Ma and that major incision started after 5 Ma. Between 5 and 2.5 Ma, the incision rate is computed as 0.12 mm/year, whereas, in the last 2.5 Ma, the average incision rate slowed down to 0.04 mm/year. Furthermore, studies by Doğan (2011) and Çiner et al. (2015b) on the Kızılırmak River terraces also indicate an average incision rate, equated to surface uplift, of *0.06 mm/year since *2 Ma. Using the base of a basalt fill above the modern course of the Kızılırmak, to the west of Avanos village, Çiner et al. (2015b) also calculated a similar mean incision and hence rock uplift rate (0.05–0.06 mm/year) for the last 2 Ma.

31.5

Human Interaction

The name “Cappadocia” probably comes from Persian “Katpatuka” meaning “Land of Beautiful Horses”. Alternatively, the name might have been derived from Cappadoxe River (present Delice River), which is a tributary of the Kızılırmak River, described in Geographika of Strabon. The earliest large village (sedentary settlement) in Anatolia outside the Fertile Crescent was founded by Pre-Pottery Neolithic populations about 10.500 years ago at Aşıklı Höyük near the village of Kızılkaya, in western Cappadocia. During the following millennia, all Anatolian civilizations present in various sites dispatched over the plateau, its valleys and its margins including Hittites, Assyrians, Mongols, Persians, Arabs, Armenians, Greeks, Romans and Turkic tribes from Central Asia, Selchukids, Ottomans and modern Turks. According to historic conditions and cultural needs, each civilization took advantage of the soft character of the ignimbrites for carving numerous troglodytic habitations such as houses, barns, pigeon houses, wine caves and hospitals within the ignimbrites.

31.5.1 Underground Cities Since Antiquity, several periods of military instability caused the carving of so-called underground cities to serve as protection refuges capable of hosting large populations hiding below the ground surface. These “cities” are

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Fig. 31.8 a There are hundreds of troglodyte churches in Cappadocia. Kubbeli Church in Soğanlı Valley. Indurated Kızılkaya Ignimbrite in the foreground. b Paintings within the “Buckle Church” (ninth century) in Göreme Open Air Museum. Photographs by A. Çiner

composed of several levels of underground dwellings making Cappadocia as one of the world’s largest cave dwelling complexes. Even though underground cities exist below many villages of Cappadocia, the most well-known ones are located at Kaymaklı and Derinkuyu villages. The largest underground city is in Derinkuyu and has a depth of approximately 55 m accommodating 6 floors. The entrances to these underground cities were discrete. Cleverly designed subterranean systems with rooms and connecting tunnels, air and waste shafts, wells, chapels and even kitchens were carved to accommodate several thousands of people in case of enemy invasions.

31.5.2 Troglodyte Churches and Monasteries In the first centuries of Christianity, Cappadocia attracted many hermits who lived apart in solitary troglodyte hermitages. In the Christian era, numerous monastic communities with their own churches existed in the region (Fig. 31.8a). These communities were already well established in the iconoclast era (725–842 AD), as observed from paintings in several sanctuaries where the decoration is held to a strict minimum of symbols, mainly composed of sculpted or tempera painted crosses. After 842 AD, many rupestral churches, with richly decorated and brightly coloured painting were

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Fig. 31.9 Pigeon houses carved within Kavak Ignimbrites. Different figures painted in various colours underlining each entrance of pigeon nest hole allow their easy recognition by pigeons and owners. Photograph by A. Çiner

carved in Cappadocia. Among the best-preserved monasteries in Cappadocia is the Eskigümüş Monastery in Niğde. The main church is spacious and its well-preserved frescoes are considered to be the best example of Byzantine art in Cappadocia. The “Open Air Museum” and the “Buckle Church” (ninth century) in Göreme village are also perfect examples of this cultural heritage (Fig. 31.8b).

31.5.3 Pigeon Houses Local people used pigeons as a source of fertilizer for centuries. Several valleys in Cappadocia are well known for thousands of pigeon houses that have been carved into the abandoned caves and walls of collapsed churches, using different outside paintings for easy recognition (Fig. 31.9). Although the advent of chemical fertilizers reduced the use of pigeon fertilizer for decades, some farmers still maintain this tradition.

31.5.4 Troglodytic Hotels and Tourism With the development of tourism in the area in the early 1970s the inhabitants first rented their troglodytic houses. As the demand grew, troglodytic hotels also grew in number (Fig. 31.10). Contrary to what is unfortunately seen in other touristic regions of Turkey, Cappadocia is relatively well preserved thanks to the strict rules on restorations. Many hotels with unique architectural character often result from old buildings or caves restored by the few people who really appreciate the region not for what it can bring financially but as a way of life. Today this trend is changing with the arrival of new “five-star” hotels into the market. The development of tourism industry is expected to grow here as in the rest of the country in the coming years and it seems that only a change in the mentality for a sustainable use of the troglodytic habitations can save this unique area.

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Fig. 31.10 a A troglodyte hotel (Kayadam Cave House) in Ürgüp. b Restoration of a cave room carved into the soft Kavak Ignimbrite. Photographs by A. Çiner

31.6

Conclusions

Cappadocia constitutes a spectacular example of the effects of differential erosion of ignimbrites by wind, water and gravity. The resulting landscape is a mixture of flat-topped mesas, smoothly weathered surfaces, valleys and gorges and different

types of fairy chimneys. Together with their historical setting, rock-hewn churches and troglodytic houses a mix of cultural and natural landscapes formed in harmony with their surroundings. Negative impacts of the growing pressure from contemporary tourism threaten this unique UNESCO World Heritage landscape, which can only be preserved by sustainable use that is still to be defined and implemented.

548 Acknowledgements Several TÜBİTAK projects financially supported our long-lasting research in the region. We thank numerous colleagues (İnan Ulusoy, Evren Çubukçu, Erdal Şen from Hacettepe University; Orkun Ersoy from Niğde University; Marek Zreda from University of Arizona; Catherine Kuzucuoğlu from CNRS; Alain Gourgaud from Université Blaise Pascal) with whom we exchanged knowledge and observations. We appreciate M. Akif Sarıkaya’s (Istanbul Technical University) help during the fieldwork and in drawing the map. We are grateful to Kısmet Çiner, the manager of Kayadam Cave House in Ürgüp, who kindly hosted us during our work in Cappadocia.

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Quaternary Volcanic Landscapes and Prehistoric Sites in Southern Cappadocia: Göllüdağ, Acıgöl and Hasandağ

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Damase Mouralis, Erkan Aydar, Ahmet Türkecan, and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu

Abstract

The southern Cappadocia shows a large variety of Quaternary volcanic landscapes, offering the opportunity to observe beautiful and generally fresh morphologies. These landscapes include two rhyolitic complexes (Göllüdağ and Acıgöl), a huge composite volcano (Hasandağ) and numerous monogenic vents, with scoria cones, domes and maars. Natural and anthropogenic sections show a large variety of lava flows and tephra layers. The precise study of this volcanic material allows reconstructing the volcanic and geomorphologic evolution of this area during the Quaternary, including modes of emplacements, chronology of the volcanic successions, morphological impacts on the landscapes. In addition, archaeological excavations in southern Cappadocia testify for the presence of ancient populations since the Middle to Upper Palaeolithic. During the Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods, the southern Cappadocia has been intensively occupied with permanent sites (Aşıklı Höyük, Musular, Tepecik Çiftlik, Köşk Höyük, etc.) as well as

D. Mouralis (&) Rouen-Normandie University & CNRS, Laboratoire I.D.E.E.S, UMR 6266, Rouen, France e-mail: [email protected] D. Mouralis
C. Kuzucuoğlu Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, Paris, France e-mail: [email protected] E. Aydar Department of Geological Engineering, Hacettepe University, 06800 Beytepe, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] A. Türkecan General Directorate of Mineral Research & Exploration, MTA, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

non-permanent sites devoted to mining and chopping of obsidian associated with some of the volcanoes. Keywords










Quaternary volcanism Obsidian Volcanic complex Cinder cone Composite volcano

32.1




Introduction

The substratum of southern Cappadocia is formed by Tertiary volcanic rocks (Fig. 32.1). The morphologies developed on the Miocene–Pliocene ignimbrites show flat surfaces often deeply incised by the hydrographic network forming mesa and residual hills (Fig. 32.2), while the landscapes associated with Early Quaternary andesitic volcanism present eroded lava massifs (Erdaşdağ, for example). Later Quaternary volcanic activity has partially destroyed and fossilized these previous morphologies. Being active from the Middle to Upper Pleistocene with highly probable Holocene eruptions, the volcanoes located in southern Cappadocia present well-preserved morphologies. We show in this chapter the high variety of volcanic landscapes associated with these volcanoes. Göllüdağ and Acıgöl rhyolitic complexes are associated with eruption of large volumes of pyroclastic materials, whereas Hasandağ is an outstanding composite volcano, which rises ca. 2000 m above the Cappadocian Plateau. The southern Cappadocia also provides an opportunity to observe a large variety of monogenic vents (cinder cones, acidic domes, maar, etc.) (Figures 32.1, 32.3 and 32.4). These southern Cappadocian volcanic massifs host ancient populations since the Middle Palaeolithic and the area has been intensively occupied at permanent and not permanent sites during the Neolithic and Chalcolithic times. During this long period, the volcanic landscapes of Southern Cappadocia have provided resources, especially obsidian, for these populations.

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_32

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Fig. 32.1 Geomorphological map of the Southern Cappadocia. 1. Lithology: 1.1 Tertiary formations; 1.1.1 Metamorphic and plutonic formations; 1.1.2 Sedimentary formations; 1.1.3 Volcanic formations (ignimbrites and lava flows); 1.2 Plio-Quaternary to Quaternary volcanic formations; 1.2.1 Lavas and pyroclastites; 1.2.2 Quaternary lavas; 1.3 Quaternary lavas and pyroclastites from Hasandağ; 1.3.1 Undifferentiated lavas and domes; 1.3.2 Terminal lavas and domes; 1.3.3 Undifferentiated pyroclastites; 1.3.4 Melendiz debris avalanche; 1.3.5 Yeniköy pumice flow; 1.3.6 Kitreli pumice flow; 1.4 Quaternary rhyolitic complexes; 1.4.1 Main tuff from Göllüdağ volcanic complex; 1.4.2 Main tuff from Acıgöl volcanic complex; 1.4.3 Obsidian outcrops; 1.5 Quaternary alluvial deposit; 1.5.1 Recent alluvial deposits; 1.5.2 Quaternary alluvial deposits; 2. Faults: 2.1 Holocene faults scarp; 2.2 Pleistocene faults (mainly hidden); 2.3 Neogene collapse structures; 3.

32.2

Two Rhyolitic Complexes: Acıgöl and Göllüdağ

32.2.1 The Landscapes Despite similar sizes (10–12 km in diameter), Göllüdağ and Acıgöl complexes show different landscapes (Fig. 32.1). Göllüdağ complex is a massif formed by the coalescence of ca. 10 rhyolitic domes. The highest dome (Büyük Göllüdağ)

Landforms related to erosion and accumulation: 3.1 Plateau; 3.2 Erosion dominated landforms (badlands and fairy chimney); 3.3 Accumulation dominated landforms; 3.4 Main crests (erosion dominated landforms); 3.5 Steeply incised gullies; 3.6 Alluvial fan; 3.7 Gorges; 4. Landforms related to Quaternary volcanic activity; 4.1 Lava flows; 4.2 Big and small Hasandağ terminal cones; 4.3 Hasandağ destroyed terminal cone; 4.3 Volcano-tectonic structure (caldera); 4.4 Monogenic vents: 4.4.1 Maars; 4.4.2 Domes; 4.4.3 Cinder cones; 5. Hydrography; 5.1 Rivers; 5.2 Ancien hydrographic networks destroyed by Quaternary volcanic activity; 6. Elevation; 6.1 Contour lines (500 m); 6.2 Elevation (m); 7. Populated places; 7.1 Main towns; 7.2 Small towns and villages. After Atabey (ed.) (1989), Ayhan (ed.) (1989), Dönmez (ed.) (2005), Froger et al. (1998), Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2013), Mouralis (2003), Pastre et al. (1998), Türkecan et al. (2004)

reaches 2172 m. Two massifs formed by Neogene to Plio-Quaternary lavas and ignimbrites surround Göllüdağ complex: Şahinkalesi Tepe to the west (1989 m) and Melendizdağ to the east (2195 m). Göllüdağ massif is flanked by somewhat flat and poorly drained areas: Derinkuyu Plain to the east (ca. 1300 m), Kayırlı corridor (ca. 1300 m) to the north, showing more than 25 dispersed monogenic vents, and Çiftlik Plain to the south (ca. 1500 m). On the other hand, Acıgöl complex presents the morphology of a plain (1300 m high) where dispersed cinder

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Fig. 32.2 Views of the South Cappadocian Plateau developed over the welded Miocene–Pliocene ignimbrites and eroded during Quaternary. a residual hills north-west of Nevşehir (view looking to north-east). The foreground shows Cappadocian vineyards. Photograph

by D. Mouralis. b Ihlara Valley incised within the Miocene–Pliocene Kızılkaya ignimbrite. Hasandağ appears south in the background. Photograph Aşıklı Höyük Research Project Archives (2013). Courtesy of M. Özbaşaran

cones and rhyolitic domes occur, the highest being Kocadağ (1689 m). The plain is limited to the south by the Neogene andesitic massif of Erdaşdağ (1982 m) and to the east by Kumtepe hills formed by pyroclastic materials emitted during the paroxysmal phase of Acıgöl rhyolitic complex. However, Acıgöl complex is largely open to the west and to the north (towards the Cappadocian Plateau), so that their western and northern limits are unclear.

Acıgöl, Yıldırım and Özgür (1981) have first described a caldera that was limited to the south by Erdaşdağ. However in the field, evidences of a caldera are scarce, both in the present-day morphologies and in the available geological sections. In the case of Göllüdağ, even if morphology is also unclear, some tectonic features point to a collapse: tilted old alluvial series and depressed elevation of the basement in the centre of the complex (Mouralis et al. 2002). The second stage corresponds to the emplacement of vents in and around both complexes. Göllüdağ massif is formed by more than ten coalescent domes, some later ones partially cutting and destroying the earlier ones. In the case of Acıgöl complex, six rhyolitic domes have been extruded. Also, in both complexes, the presence of basaltic cinder cones indicates a second source of magma. The emplacement of the domes generally shows a succession of complementary phases associating phreatomagmatic eruptions and extrusions. Below (part 4 of the paper), we present some of these characteristic successions. In both complexes, the chronological framework is well-constrained thanks to radiometric dating (mainly using K-Ar) of some lava. It shows that the paroxysmal stage may be considered as a “rapid” and continuous event. In the field, it is evidenced by the continuity of the pyroclastic sedimentation. In Göllüdağ, this first paroxysmal stage is dated ca. 1.39 Ma according to the dating of a pumice fall (Mouralis et al. 2002), whereas its age is ca. 180–160 ka in Acıgöl complex (Druitt et al. 1995; Mouralis 2003; Schmitt et al. 2011). In both complexes, the absence of alluvium or colluvium units interbedded with the pyroclastic deposits indicates the continuity of this paroxysmal volcanic activity.

32.2.2 The Volcanic History Sections located in and around both complexes record a similar volcanic history, which may be divided into two main stages. The first stage was paroxysmal, showing an explosive eruption and the emplacement of large volume of pyroclastic deposits. In Göllüdağ, Mouralis (2003) and Türkecan et al. (2004) suggest that they covered first more than 720 km2, including Göllüdağ massif as well as part of Şahinkalesi Tepe, and Derinkuyu and Çiftlik plains. In the case of Acıgöl complex, these authors indicate that the pyroclastic deposits expanded over 450 km2. In both complexes, this paroxysmal phase is responsible for the emplacement of a high variety of eruption products, including pyroclastic density currents, surges and falls. The sections located in and around Kumtepe hill in the eastern part of Acıgöl complex (Fig. 32.5) give the opportunity to observe and to understand stratigraphy associated with this paroxysmal phase (Druitt et al. 1995; Mouralis et al. 2002). This paroxysmal activity is correlated with the volcano-tectonic collapse of the central part of the complex and possibly to the formation of a caldera. In the case of

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Fig. 32.3 Various domes and maars from southern Cappadocia. a Eski Acıgöl maar and Güneydağ dome (see Fig. 32.5). View to the south. b Kaleci Tepe and its tuff-ring (see Fig. 32.5). View to the north.

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c Kocadağ dome. View to the north-east. d Maar of Nargölü to the south. Photographs by D. Mouralis, except b, c Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 32.4 Emplacement of Güneydağ, Eski Acıgöl and Kaleci Tepe volcanoes, exhibiting the alinement of maars and domes

On the other hand, the second stage, mainly characterized by the extrusion of rhyolitic domes, lasted tens to hundreds thousands years. In Göllüdağ, this second stage took place during the Middle Pleistocene over a period of 0.6 Ma (Mouralis 2003; Türkecan et al. 2004), since the oldest dome (palaeo-Kabak Tepe) is dated to 1.1 Ma and the youngest (Küçük Göllüdağ) is only 0.4 Ma old. Within Acıgöl complex, the oldest dome is Kocadağ (ca. 93 ka, Mouralis 2003) whereas the youngest dated volcano is Eski Acıgöl maar, dated 20.3 ± 0.6 ka using zircon growth (Schmitt et al. 2011). Moreover, Kuzucuoğlu et al. (1998) and Roberts et al. (2001) report a scoriae layer interbedded in the sedimentation of Eski Acıgöl maar at 6.5 m depth and dated ca. 9 ka cal BP. This indicates that volcanic activity in the vicinity of Acıgöl complex probably continued during the Early Holocene.

32.2.3 The Geomorphologic Impacts of Volcanic Activity Volcanic activity and the emplacement of both complexes are responsible for three main geomorphologic impacts modifying the regional landscapes: (1) destruction of previous relief; (2) deposition of new volumes of lavas and pyroclastic materials; and (3) disturbance of the hydrographic network.

32.2.4 Relief Destruction Fig. 32.5 Pyroclastic deposits related to Acıgöl volcanic complex (paroxysmal eruption). Section located near Kumtepe hill. Photograph by D. Mouralis

Rocks that formed the relief previous to the emplacement of the Quaternary volcanic complexes can be observed only in

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a few sections because of destruction during the explosive activity followed by fossilization by pyroclastic deposits. In Göllüdağ, an outcrop of basalt to andesite lava uphill above the village of Kayırlı has been dated 1.71 Ma (Mouralis 2003). It indicates an ancient extension of the Plio-Quaternary volcano of Şahinkalesi Tepe. In and around Acıgöl complex, remains of the deep basement are visible as lithic fragments in some of the pyroclastic deposits associated with the emplacement of domes. For example, the surges associated with Kaleci Tepe contain blocks of granite, whereas the surges associated with Güneydağ present numerous large blocks of diabase. These lithics have been blown off from the volcanic conduit during the phreatomagmatic stage. These blocks do not give any information on morphologies previous to the collapse but they release a few hints on the geology of the deep basement. It is remarkable that both Göllüdağ and Acıgöl complexes are located within the probable extension of the Neogene collapsed structures that must have accompanied the emission of the famous Cappadocian ignimbrites as defined by Le Pennec et al. (1994), and located by Froger et al. (1998) near Acıgöl–Nevşehir and Derinkuyu areas, respectively. The geographical superposition of Neogene and Pleistocene complexes in the same areas explains why the oldest morphologies related to the Neogene calderas cannot be identified as they have been either erased or/and concealed below younger (Quaternary) deposits.

32.2.5 Evolution of Palaeogeography Volcanic activity of both complexes is responsible, not only for destruction of previous morphologies during the initial paroxysmic stage, but also for the construction of new relief features mainly formed by domes extruded during the second stage. The emplacement of both complexes has thus involved complete reorganization of regional palaeogeography. Çiftlik Plain is an interesting example studied by Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2013). This round-shaped plain (sometimes suspected to be a caldera) results from a progressive closing related to successive volcanic events. (1) To the north, the Plio-Quaternary Şahinkalesi Tepe lava flows first cover Tertiary andesites and ignimbrites. (2) To the west, basaltic lava flows were emitted by Boztepe cinder cones near the village of Mahmutlu (dated ca. 1.33 Ma: Mouralis 2003). (3) In the meantime, or shortly afterwards (ca. 1.3 Ma), the paroxysmal activity of Göllüdağ complex caused partial destruction of Şahinkalesi Tepe heights. Meanwhile, all the area is covered and filled-in by a large amount of pyroclastic deposits related to this stage. (4) Finally, the domes were extruded between 1 and 0.6 Ma, forming the present-day Göllüdağ massif. With this

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succession of events, the Pleistocene volcanic activity ended in enclosing the Çiftlik Plain completely, where a shallow lake formed before flowing into a gorge carved by Melendiz River (captured by the Ihlara River) along the borderline between Melendiz and Şahinkalesi Tepe massifs (Fig. 32.1).

32.2.6 Disturbance of the Hydrographic Network Many evidences indicate the complete disturbance of the hydrographic network by the volcanic activity. For example, in the area located between Şahinkalesi Tepe and Göllüdağ, the sections show palaeotopography of a south– north-oriented valley. The pyroclastic materials emitted during the paroxysmal eruption of Göllüdağ complex filled-in the valley, fossilizing the palaeotopography. Elsewhere, a large amount of alluvium filling the Kayırlı corridor indicates that this area was partly used by a river network that has been totally interrupted by the emplacement of several cinder cones and associated lava flows. In addition to the edification of these cones, the construction of Göllüdağ massif explains the complete disappearance of the drainage in Derinkuyu Plain and Kayırlı corridor. Only after the end of the volcanic activity, the drainage network began to reorganize (Middle Pleistocene in Göllüdağ area, Late Pleistocene to Holocene in the Acıgöl complex as well as in the Kayırlı corridor). In each area, it is responsible for the origin of large alluvial fans reworking soft pyroclastic material from falls, surges, etc., mixed with eroded lava blocs. These fans blanket slopes all around Göllüdağ massif (Mouralis 2003), Çiftlik Plain (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2013) and Acıgöl complex (Türkecan et al. 2004). The Middle to Late Pleistocene activity of Göllüdağ and Acıgöl complexes have thus deeply modified palaeogeography of southern Cappadocia, destroying previous morphologies, constructing new landscapes and disturbing ancient river networks. The present-day landscapes thus result from volcanic activity (destruction and construction of relief) during the Quaternary and from adjustments by erosional processes (erosion and accumulation) during intervening periods.

32.3

Hasandağ: a Huge Composite Volcano

32.3.1 Emplacement of the Composite Volcano Hasandağ (or Mount Hasan) is a composite stratovolcano with two peaks (Fig. 32.6) named Big and Small Mount Hasan (3253 and 3069 m a.s.l., respectively). The base elevation of volcano is around 1000 m a.s.l. This edifice was constructed in multiple stages identified as Paleo-, Meso-,

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and Neo-Hasandağ by extrusive dome emplacements and intermittent collapse events associated with ignimbrite emissions (Aydar 1992; Aydar et al. 1995; Aydar and Gourgaud 1998; Aydar et al. 2012). Limited geochronological data indicate the emplacement of the oldest lavas at 7.21 ± 0.1 Ma (K-Ar, see Aydar and Gourgaud 1998) and ignimbrites emplacement during an early caldera collapse at 6.31 ± 20 Ma (40Ar/39Ar). These dates are contemporaneous with the widespread Neogene ignimbrite volcanism in Cappadocia (Deniel et al. 1998). Only one K-Ar age for Meso-Hasandağ is published (0.58 Ma: Ercan et al. 1990); it is consistent with subsequent (270 ka: Notsu et al. 1995) ignimbrite activity, dome extrusion with associated block-and-ash flow deposition, origin of peripheral scoria cones and maar eruptions that are collectively attributed to the Neo-Hasandağ stage, responsible for the contemporary form of the volcano. The Neo-Hasandağ comprises two summits. Numerous collapsed andesitic to rhyodacitic lava domes on its flanks generated widespread pyroclastic deposits. The resulting nuées ardentes deposits (i.e. block-and-ash flows) with 10– 20 m thick sequences are today deeply incised, especially on the flanks of the Big Hasandağ. Debris avalanche deposits outcrop to the north of the volcano where they form a wide hummocky surface. The main pyroclastic deposits associated with this activity are biotite-rich pumiceous fall and flow units that are covered by blocky-chaotic mass flows. Their best outcrops are incised by the Güvercin stream south of the Ihlara village and in a road-cut near Belisirma Village in the Ihlara Valley. Rhyodacitic and rhyolitic unwelded ignimbrites are restricted to the lower reaches of the Neo-volcanic edifice in the north, south and west.

32.3.2 Dating the Recent Activity of the Volcano Hasandağ is considered as active–subactive volcano. According to K-Ar ages, volcanic activity occurred during the Holocene with an andesitic lava dome extrusion at the northern flank yielding a maximum age of 6 ka ago (Aydar and Gourgaud 1998), and another andesitic lava flow erupted at the western base of the volcano (near Aşağı Dikmen village) with K-Ar zero-age (±3 ka: Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1998). Two samples from Big Hasandağ summit domes yielded K-Ar ages of 29 and 33 ka (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1998). Recently, pumices collected from the summit of Big Hasandağ were dated by Schmitt et al. (2014) with U-Th/He method measured on zircon crystals to 8.97 ± 0.64 ka and 28.9 ± 1.5 ka ago. The later one matches very well with previously published ages of the summit dome. The Holocene age of the sample dated 8.97 ± 0.64 ka ago is very interesting as it can be linked to an eruption that may have been eye-witnessed by Prehistoric people. During the 1960s,

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British archaeologist James Mellaart excavated the Neolithic settlement of Çatalhöyük in the Konya Plain. The results provided unique insights into the living conditions of humans at the transition from hunter-gatherer to settled agriculture societies. Among the striking discoveries during the excavation were a high number of murals that were photographed and sketched on site. One of them is famously described as depicting volcanic eruption (Mellaart 1967). If this interpretation is correct, the painting is the oldest depiction of a volcanic eruption and is also the first graphical representation in the world of an event or even a landscape (Clarke 2013). This interpretation is, however, much debated among archaeologists who are convinced that it is not possible that men drew 9000 years ago a town plan represented from above and/or a “story-telling” picture. Away from this debate about the painting, the point remains that Schmitt et al. (2014) dated pumices sampled at the summit of the volcano ca. 9.5–8.4 ka ago (7.5–6.4 ka BC), i.e. a period similar to that of the abandonment of Aşıklı Pre-Pottery Neolithic site in the Melendiz Valley (7.4 ka BC: see below), and of the first centuries of the Neolithic occupation at Çatalhöyük in the Konya Plain (starting ca. 7.3 ka ago). No large deposit of a Plinian eruption (as depicted by the mural and as sampled by Schmitt et al. 2014) has still been found elsewhere on the volcano or in the area.

32.3.3 Diversity of Monogenic Vents: Cones, Maar and Domes According to Toprak (1998), the Central Anatolia Volcanic Province (CAVP) consists of more than 820 monogenic vents, comprising accessory vents from rhyolitic complexes and from composite volcanoes. Between Hasandağ to the south and Acıgöl complex to the north, the southern Cappadocia gives the opportunity to observe all the possible forms of monogenic vents from cinder cones to domes and maars, as well as combinations of these elementary forms. Most of these vents are Quaternary in age and show very fresh and clear landforms.

32.3.4 Location and Ages of the Monogenic Vents In the area presented here, the monogenic vents are mainly located to the north of Hasandağ volcano, and between Göllüdağ and Acıgöl complexes in the so-called Kayırlı corridor. These volcanic vents comprise more than thirty cinder cones, maars and scarcer domes. Basaltic cinder cones are organized along N-S, NE-SW and NW-SE lines (Toprak 1998). The cinder cones and some underlying maars

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Fig. 32.6 Hasandağ composite volcano. a Northern flank of the Hasandağ double-cone volcano (looking south). b Southern flank of main cone (Big Hasandağ) showing very fresh lava flows. Photographs by D. Mouralis in 2011

form numerous small clusters rising above the basaltic lava fields. Basaltic maars are mostly covered by cinder cones except Nargölü (also called Sofular-Acıgöl) (Fig. 32.3d). This maar crater filled by a freshwater lake partly impacted by gas inflowing from the substratum was subjected to a geothermal drilling by MTA (Akbaşlı 1992). The coring performed in 2003 in the lake sediments delivered a detailed palaeoenvironmental (England et al. 2008) and palaeoclimatic sequence covering the last 1500 years (Jones et al. 2006). After having been classified as a protected natural site

for many years, the maar hosts now two thermal hotels constructed on the outer rim of the crater. Several cinder cones and their related lava flows are also located at the north-eastern base of Hasandağ and north-west of Mount Keçiboyduran (an old, eroded volcano SW of Hasandağ). Besides, cinder cones, lava flows and maars are also present in the south and west of Hasandağ. The western cluster, located in the north-western part of Hasandağ, comprises at least eight differently scaled cones and a phreatomagmatic maar below Yıpraktepe cone. The fissure

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lava flows cover more than 50 km2 around Karataş Village. These lavas are intercalated with Hasandağ block-and-ash flow deposits around Sultan Ana cinder cone (NW and N slopes of Hasandağ). Radiometric ages show that this volcanism is very young, ranging between 120 ka (Ercan et al. 1990) and 36 ka (Aydar and Gourgaud 1998).

32.3.5 Volcanic Successions in Southern Cappadocia The emplacement of rhyolitic domes associated with Göllüdağ and Acıgöl volcanic complexes took place in the frame of a volcanic succession comprising phreatomagmatism, rhyolitic lava extrusion (with occasional obsidian facies) and explosive eruptions. The sections located in the vicinity of all domes allow one to identify the following emplacement succession (Mouralis et al. 2002; Mouralis 2003). Phreatomagmatic eruptions typically preceded dome emplacement, producing a tuff-ring around a maar (explosion crater). Afterwards, these craters have been partially or totally filled-in by lava domes. Examples of this succession are the Kaleci Tepe (Fig. 32.3b), Güneydağ (Fig. 32.3a), Korudağ (all of them within Acıgöl complex) and most of the domes forming Göllüdağ complex. In the Acıgöl complex, some monogenetic vents are aligned over N-S fissures (e.g. the Güneydağ dome and its underlying maar, with the addition of two other connected maars (Ulusoy et al. 2009). Another example of such a N-S alignment is Obruktepe basaltic maar associated with three adjacent craters. Original maar features (whether or not associated with preserved tuff-ring deposits) (e.g. Eski Acıgöl) prove that phreatomagmatic eruption events were not followed by any further magma ascent, and the maar crater slowly filled with lakes or marsh sediments. In conclusion, the Acıgöl complex exhibits the contemporaneity of bimodal lavas expressed by associations, in the landscapes, of rhyolitic domes, maars as well as basaltic cinder cones and tuff-rings.

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the dome. They are partially fossilized by Güneydağ dome lava. They comprise at least 35 layers of different thickness. Some layers contain non-vesiculated fragments while others present vesiculated ones, a contrast expressing fluctuations in the magma–water interaction rate. The base of the section shows lithics-enriched layers including ultra-basic (diabase) bombs reaching 1 m in size; upwards, the proportion of lithics decreases. Some blocs of Acıgöl ignimbrites are also encountered in the lithics. On its northern edge, the initial maar is partially cut by Eski Acıgöl maar crater. The respective pyroclastic deposits are exposed in a quarry located north-west of Eski Acıgöl maar. These tephras are characterized by the presence of diabase and porphyritic granitic clasts (the granitic clasts are dated 78 Ma by Aydar et al. 2012). With blocs reaching 20 cm in size, their grain size is finer than in Güneydağ surges. A third volcano, Kaleci Tepe, is located 1.5 km north-west of Eski Acıgöl, aligned with the previous two ones. The present-day morphology indicates clearly the succession of a maar partially filled with the extrusion of the dome itself. In conclusion, three successive stages can be reconstructed: (i) Güneydağ maar eruption is probably contemporaneous with Kaleci maar eruption, (ii) a third maar (Eski Acıgöl maar) partially cuts the northern part of the Güneydağ maar, and (iii) both Kaleci Tepe and Güneydağ domes are extruded within the initial maars. Fission-track ages of these volcanic products (Bigazzi et al. 1993) have been specified by ages based on zircon growth (Schmitt et al. 2011). These new results partially validate our field observations. Schmitt et al. (2011) give a 23.8 ± 0.9 ka age for Güneydağ pyroclastic materials (the oldest, according to field observation), and a 23.2 ± 3.0 ka for Kaleci Tepe. As Kaleci Tepe is morphologically and stratigraphically younger than Eski Acigöl maar, the authors suggest that the 20.3 ± 0.6 ka age obtained from the Eski Acıgöl maar products are older in reality, by two to three thousand years.

32.5 32.4

Poly-phased Volcanoes: Güneydağ, Eski Acıgöl Maar and Kaleci Tepe

Güneydağ dome, Eski Acıgöl maar and Kaleci Tepe offer an interesting example of volcanic succession. New data (Mouralis 2003; Türkecan et al. 2004) complete the previous description proposed by Kazancı et al. (1995). This succession (Figs. 32.3a, 32.4 and 32.5) is reconstructed on the basis of observations from quarries open into the pyroclastic deposits of these three vents. In the southern part of Güneydağ dome, a quarry presents materials associated with the ring-tuff of the initial maar of

Prehistoric Sites and Their Relationships to the Volcanoes

In Cappadocia, volcanoes are naturally covered with dense oak forests and juniper forests at higher altitudes, which shelter an abundant game. Populations in these areas also take advantage of the watercourses thanks to the relief favouring precipitations and runoff. Usually, massive volcanic mountains do not attract people because of difficulties to cross them so that contacts, exchanges, communications and transports are scarce. They are not attractive either when soils are poorly developed, organized as patches among rocky outcrops, or developed on acidic rocks. However, the

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South Cappadocian volcanic massifs host several important archaeological sites of which the most striking ones are Prehistoric. With a few exceptions, all these sites are related to the exploitation, processing, exchange and trade of obsidian during Prehistoric times, the obsidian being available for mining in several surface outcrops around the many rhyolitic domes forming the Göllüdağ massif (Fig. 32.1). Kaletepe Deresi 3 is the oldest of the sites known today in the area through excavation and study of the archaeological material (Slimak et al. 2008). Located on the eastern slopes of the Göllüdağ, it contains the longest open-air Palaeolithic sequence excavated in Turkey, as well as the first in situ Acheulean industry documented in Anatolia. The lithic industry at the site illustrates a wide range of technological behaviours and documents changes in raw material exploitation (from rhyolite to obsidian) and artefact manufacturing through the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic. Tephras in the upper Middle Palaeolithic horizons and the rhyolitic bedrock bracket the time span represented (Mouralis et al. 2002; Slimak et al. 2008; Tryon et al. 2009) (Fig. 32.7). Other famous sites of the area provide key references for the Turkish Prehistory. These are obsidian workshops, which have been active all through the Neolithic to the Chalcolithic and Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN) to Chalcolithic

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sites. Central Anatolian obsidian, besides being used locally, begins to spread across long distances (up to 900 km) after 12 ka BC in direction of the Fertile Crescent. From the ninth to the seventh millennia BC (Neolithic), its exploitation became systematic and its distribution organized to reach many sites in the Near East (Balkan-Atlı and Binder 2012). Accordingly, and since the 1990s, the obsidian sources of Cappadocia have been the subject of systematic investigations in order to understand their links with the sites where Cappadocian obsidian is found. Surveys found several extraction and processing workshops outcrops, at Göllüdağ, Nenezidağ and Kayırlı especially (Balkan-Atlı et al. 2011). Compositional analyses and knapping technologies allowed establishing linkages between specific sources on the one hand and artefacts in the Fertile Crescent as well as other regions of Anatolia and Cappadocia on the other hand (Binder et al. 2011). At Kaletepe workshop near Kömürcü, for example, (Figs. 32.1 and 32.8), blades, cores and core reduction related to bipolar blades production strategies are identical with those known in the Fertile Crescent (Balkan-Atlı and Binder 2012) while its obsidian is almost absent at local sites which addressed other Cappadocian workshops (Özbaşaran 2012; Özbaşaran et al. 2012). The obsidian knapping at Kaletepe thus only aimed at

Fig. 32.7 Kaletepe Dere 3 excavation section showing the Lower to Middle Palaeolithic occupation layers overlain by tephras (noted R1 to R5) emitted during the Acigöl paroxysmic phase dated ca. 160 ka ago. Photograph by D. Mouralis in 2003

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Fig. 32.8 Eastern slope of the Kabak Tepe (Göllüdağ massif): Neolithic obsidian workshop of Kaletepe and location of Palaeolithic Dere 3 excavation. The obsidian blocks on the slope in the foreground are mainly chopped. Photograph by D. Mouralis in 2010

distribution in the Fertile Crescent, while PPN populations of central Anatolia used other local sources for their own knapping strategies. On the banks of the Melendiz River, Aşıklı Höyük is the oldest and largest PPN settlement of Anatolia west of the Fertile Crescent (Kuzucuoğlu 2013) (Figs. 32.1 and 32.9). Excavated by Istanbul University since 1989, it is the reference site for the Anatolian PPNB, possibly also for older PPNA (under excavation) (Özbaşaran 2012). Occupied from ca. 8.5 ka BC to ca. 7.4 ka BC, this 16 m high settlement accumulation records the history of animal domestication in Anatolia, as well as the development of plant domestication practices. Next to the site, an Arkeopark exhibits reconstructed PPN houses with their internal and external arrangements, which can be visited and in which cultural events are organized. A Late PPNB site specialized in butchering, Musular, has also been excavated on the other side of the river (Özbaşaran et al. 2012). In Aşıklı as well as in Musular and in Çatalhöyük (Konya Plain), exploited obsidian sources were those in Nenezidağ and Göllüdağ; sources addressed and knapping technologies differ in each site and change with time and industry types (e.g. Özbaşaran 2012; Özbaşaran et al. 2012) During the last centuries of the eighth millennium BC, Aşıklı and Musular were abandoned, and after the eighth–seventh millennia BC turn, agricultural practices expanded and use of pottery became a widespread standard. Other Neolithic sites were founded close to agricultural soil (fertile alluvium) in and around the volcanoes where obsidian workshops continued to be exploited, e.g. Tepecik site in the Çiftlik Plain (Bıçakçı et al. 2012) Köşk, Niğde, Pınarbaşı-Bor sites south of the Melendiz massif, etc., (Figures 32.1 and 32.9). During the Early Neolithic, the value of obsidian far away from its Cappadocian sources is obvious in such objects as the Kaletepe bipolar blades, which spread to Levant and Cyprus.

From ca. 6 to ca. 5 ka BC (Late Neolithic, Early Chalcolithic), obsidian was progressively abandoned as the raw material for tools (for hunting, collecting, cultivating, cooking, household, wood, etc.). After 5 ka BC, objects made of obsidian are replaced by metals. Meantime, obsidian objects of high aesthetic value and indicative of considerable technical skills appear, wearing symbolic and possibly social significance. They were clearly produced for exchange purposes and to enhance social status in terms of wealth, power, wisdom, etc., in a much more restricted cultural area. Such objects have been found at the Neolithic Tepecik–Çiftlik site, buried as a hoar containing beautiful obsidian blades (Fig. 32.9). During the Chalcolithic, new sites appeared, e.g. Güvercin Kayası in a Melendiz River tributary north of Aşıklı (Gülcür and Fırat 2004), Köşk Höyük (Öztan 2007) and Kınık Höyük (d’Alfonso et al. 2010) at the northern edge of the Bor Plain. After the Chalcolithic, population density in a 30 km radius around the volcanic massifs increased to high numbers within specific periods (exploiting fertile soils available around cities close to water resources) while pulsating within others (in relation to the fate of urban development, centralized States, international trade, raids etc.) (e.g. see: https://tayproject.org). During Hittite, Iron Age, Roman, Byzantine and Medieval periods, the location of occupation sites was increasingly different from the previous ones, except for some sites flourishing on important routes (Fig. 32.9) where occupation lasted longer than at other places. In addition, some sites present a specific usage: military, as the Hittite summer royal quarters at the summit of the Büyük Göllüdağ dome; funerary, as Iron Age tumuli at the summits of some cinder cones; for refuge during troubled times, as Byzantine Nora town hidden in a depression circled by lava flows of Hasandağ.

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Fig. 32.9 Location and distribution of the main archaeological sites in southern Cappadocia

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Aydar E, Schmitt AK, Çubukçu HE, Akın L, Ersoy O, Sen E, Duncan RA, Atıcı G (2012) Correlation of ignimbrites in the Central Anatolian volcanic province using zircon and plagioclase ages and zircon compositions. J Volcanol Geoth Res 213:83–97 Ayhan A (ed) (1989). Geologic Map of the Kayseri—I19 Quadrangle (Kayseri—I19 Paftası Jeoloji Haritaları). 1:100.000 Geological map of Turkey. Maden Tetkik ve Arama (MTA), Ankara, Turkey Balkan-Atlı N, Binder D (2012) Neolithic obsidian workshop at Kömürcü–Kaletepe (Central Anatolia. In: Özdoğan M, Başgelen N, Kuniholm P (eds) The Neolithic in Turkey: new excavations and new research (Central Turkey), vol. 3. Archaeology and Art Pub., Istanbul, pp 71–88 Balkan-Atlı N, Kuhn S, Astruc L, Kayacan N, Dinçer B, Balcı S, Erturaç MK, Grenet M (2011) Göllüdağ survey 2010. Anatolia Antiq 19:259–278 Bıçakçı E, Godon M, Çakan Y (2012) Tepecik-Çiftlik. In: Özdoğan M, Başgelen N, Kuniholm P (eds) The Neolithic in Turkey: new excavations and new research (Central Turkey), vol. 3. Archaeology and Art Pub., Istanbul, pp 89–134

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563 Mouralis D (2003) Les complexes volcaniques quaternaires de Cappadoce (Göllüdağ et Acıgöl)—Turquie : évolutions morphodynamiques et implications environnementales. PhD Thesis, Paris 12 University, Paris (Unpublished) Mouralis D, Pastre J-F, Kuzucuoğlu C, Türkecan A, Atıcı Y, Slimak L, Guillou H, Kunesch S (2002) Les complexes volcaniques rhyolithiques quaternaires d’Anatolie centrale (Göllü Dağ et Acıgöl, Turquie): Genèse, instabilité, contraintes environnementales. Quat 13(3):219–228 Notsu K, Fujitani T, Ui T, Matsuda J, Ercan T (1995) Geochemical features of collision-related volcanic rocks in central and eastern Anatolia, Turkey. J Volcanol Geoth Res 64:171–192 Özbaşaran M (2012) Aşıklı. In: Özdoğan M, Başgelen N, Kuniholm P (eds) The Neolithic in Turkey, new excavations and new research (Central Turkey), vol. 3. Archaeology and Art Pub. Istanbul, pp 135–158 Özbaşaran M, Duru G, Kayacan N, Erdoğu B, Buitenhuis H (2012) Musular—The 8th Mill cal. BC Sattelite site of Aşıklı. In: Özdoğan M, Başgelen N, Kuniholm P (eds) The Neolithic in Turkey, new excavations and new research (Central Turkey), vol. 3. Archaeology and Art Pub., Istanbul, pp 159–180 Öztan A (2007) Köşk Höyük. In: Özdoğan M, Başgelen N, Kuniholm P (eds) The Neolithic in Turkey, new excavations and new research (Central Turkey), vol. 3. Archaeology and Art Pub., Istanbul, pp 223–235 Pastre J-F, Kuzucuoğlu C, Fontugne M, Guillou H, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Ercan T, Türkecan A (1998) Séquences volcanisées et corrélations téphrologiques au N-W du Hasan dağ (Haut bassin de la Melendiz, Anatolie centrale, Turquie). Quat 9(3):169–183 Roberts N, Reed JM, Leng MJ, Kuzucuoğlu C, Fontugne M, Bertaux J, Woldring H, Bottema S, Black S, Hunt E, Karabıyıkoğlu M (2001) The tempo of Holocene climatic change in the Eastern Mediterranean region: new high-resolution Crater-Lake sediment data from Central Turkey. Holocene 11(6):721–736 Schmitt AK, Danışık M, Evans NJ, Siebel W, Kiemele E, Aydın F, Harvey JC (2011) Acıgöl rhyolite field, Central Anatolia (part 1): high-resolution dating of eruption episodes and zircon growth rates. Contrib Miner Petrol 162(6):1215–1231 Schmitt AK, Danışık M, Aydar E, Sen E, Ulusoy İ, Lovera OM (2014) Identifying the volcanic eruption depicted in a Neolithic painting at Çatalhöyük (Turkey). PLOSONE 9(1):e84711 Slimak L, Kuhn SL, Roche H, Mouralis D, Buitenhuis H, Balkan-Atlı N, Binder D, Kuzucuoğlu C, Guillou H (2008) Kaletepe Deresi 3 (Turkey): Archaeological evidence for early human settlement in Central Anatolia. J Hum Evol 54:99–111 Toprak V (1998) Vent distribution and its relation to regional tectonics, Cappadocian volcanics, Turkey. J Volcanol Geoth Res 85(1–4):55– 67 Tryon CA, Logan AV, Mouralis D, Kuhn S, Slimak L, Balkan-Atlı N (2009) Building a tephrostratigraphic framework for the Paleolithic of Central Anatolia, Turkey. J Archaeol Sci 36(3):637–652 Türkecan A, Kuzucuoğlu C, Mouralis D, Pastre J-F, Atıcı Y, Guillou H, Fontugne M (2004) Upper Pleistocene volcanism and palaeogeography in Cappadocia (Turkey). MTA-CNRS-TÜBİTAK 2001–2003 research programme. Tübitak Project No. 101Y109. M.T.A., Ankara, pp 180 Ulusoy I, Labazuy P, Aydar E, Yürür T, Artuner H, Torleif D (2009) Multisource geophysical investigation of the Acıgöl Caldera structure (Central Turkey): preliminary results. In: EGU General Assembly: 7746 (Vienna, Austria) Yıldırım T, Özgür R (1981) Acıgöl Kalderası (The Caldera of Acıgöl). Jeomorfol Derg (J Geomorphol) 10:59–70

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In the Footsteps of Strabon: Mount Erciyes Volcano—The Roof of Central Anatolia and Sultansazliği Basin Erkan Aydar, Erdal Şen, Mehmet Akif Sarıkaya, and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu





Abstract

Keywords

Mount Erciyes is a majestic stratovolcano (3300 km2) dominating Central Anatolian landscape. Its summit is 3917 m high from its base, located at around 1000 m from sea level (e.g., Sultansazlığı basin). The name of Mount Erciyes derives from ancient Greek (Argyros), cited also by Strabon the well-known geographer of Antiquity, who gives a detailed description of it in his famous “Geographika”. According to geological researches performed mainly during the last four decades, the Pliocene and Quaternary evolution of the volcano exhibits two distinct stages: (1) Koç Dağ and (2) Erciyes. Results from cosmogenic as well as 14C dating show that several eruptions occurred during the Early Holocene (ca. 10–8 ka ago). During the Last Glacial Maximum (20,000 years ago), glaciers developed in several valleys of Mount Erciyes, mainly on the northern and eastern sides of the mountain. Today’s landforms at the summit are deeply related to these glacial and periglacial events (Oliva et al. 2018). The beauty of the volcano is also enriched at its foot by the presence of a worldwide known wetland system that Turks call the “Bird Paradise” or the “Marshes of the Sultan”. The plain occupied by these wetlands also contains the sediment archives of climate changes and tectonic impacts during the Pleistocene.

Erciyes Volcanism Glaciation Strabon

E. Aydar (&)
E. Şen Department of Geological Engineering, Hacettepe University, 06800 Beytepe, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] E. Şen e-mail: [email protected] M. A. Sarıkaya Eurasia Institute of Earth Sciences, İstanbul Technical University, 34469 Maslak, Istanbul, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] C. Kuzucuoğlu Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, Paris, France e-mail: [email protected]

33.1





Ignimbrite Turkey




Basalt

Introduction

Mount Erciyes is a huge, voluminous stratovolcano (3300 km2), with at least sixty-four monogenetic vents on its flanks (Şen et al. 2003). Its summit reaches 3917 m high (relative height around 3000 m above the Sultansazlığı Basin). Mount Erciyes was already well known in the Antiquity. Its name derives from Mont Argyros (Greek) and Argaeus (Latin) meaning “bright” or “white” (Facaros and Pauls 2000). A geographer of ancient world, Strabon, describes Mount Argaeus and its vicinity in his famous “Geographika” as follows: The metropolis of the tribe (Cappadocians) namely Mazaka (the Caeseria town of Roman period, today Kayseri city) was located at the province of Cilicia. This city is also called as Eusebia and additionally called as Eusebia near Argaeos. Because this city was built up at the flanks of the highest mountain that the snow is never lack off at its summit. People who climb to this mountain can see either Pontos or Issos seas (Actual Black Sea and Gulf of Iskenderun-Mediterranean Sea). The place where Mazaka placed is not suitable for a city, because there is no water and nor naturally protected, due to the negligence of governors, there is no bulwark. Moreover, although the land is flat all around, it is infertile and unsuitable for agriculture. The land is sandy and rocky. Little further, come to the volcanic area that is several stadia length (ancient Greek unit of lenght-1 stadia  157 m) hosting the fire pits…. Although there are no timbers in Cappadocia, the flanks of Argaeos are covered by forests and it is easy to work on timber. Besides, just below the wooded area, fire and fresh water exist but they don’t reach to surface. Somewhere in the area, the land is swampy and during the night rises the fire.

Very impressive in the Cappadocian landscape, the volcano is sketched on tails of Roman provincial coins produced in Caesaria (today’s Kayseri town), where it stands next to

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_33

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heads of gods, Emperors or kings. Following Strabon’s traces, we investigate here the Erciyes Volcano and the Sultansazlığı Basin at its foot where “the land is swampy” and where the reeds may have burned “during the night”. In the recent literature, these words are often interpreted as testifying for eruptions that would have occurred during Antiquity. No Late Holocene volcanic product from the Erciyes has ever been evidenced. On the contrary, Strabon’s evocations of fires during the night could concern more probably the burning of methane gas above marshes (as suggested by the presence of organic oil in the sediments of a maar cored by one of the authors).

33.2

The Roof of Central Anatolia

The Central Anatolian Volcanic Province (CAVP) extends 300 km along a SW-NE direction from Karapınar–Konya to Mount Erciyes, over a wide area (32,500 km2). While the famous Cappadocian ignimbrites form the central part of the CAVP, Mount Erciyes stratovolcano is located in the eastern part of the CAVP. First monographic work on Mount Erciyes is that by Ayrancı (1991) “Magnificient Mount Erciyes Volcano”. Pasquaré et al. (1988) define the volcano as “a very large shield-shaped base upon which an andesitic stratovolcano was built, with radial alignments of latite-andesitic endogenous domes”. For the first time, a detailed volcanological work was realized by Şen et al. (2003). According to Şen et al. (2003), the volcanological evolution of Mount Erciyes from the Pliocene-Quaternary to historical times may be divided into two distinct stages: (1) Koç Dağ and (2) Erciyes (Fig. 33.1).

source area. The cumulative volume of pyroclastics is estimated at 63.3 km3 (16 km3 dense-rock equivalent—DRE), including 62 km3 of Plinian fall and 1.3 km3 pumice flow deposits (area 110 km2, average thickness 12 m) (Şen et al. 2003). The second eruptive phase mainly includes two pyroclastic flow deposits. Those pumice flows (total volume 16.8 km3, 4.2 km3 DRE, area 110 km2 and average thickness 12 m) extended out to 30 km from the inferred source area towards the north and northeast (Şen et al. 2003). The last pyroclastic flows of Phase 2 produced the Valibaba Tepe Ignimbrites (VTI) 2.5 Ma ago. The VTI is a welded ignimbrite, with a volume of 52 km3 (40 km3 DRE, area 3700 km2, average thickness 3 m of non-welded, 4 m of moderately welded and 7 m of well-welded variant). Plinian fall deposits (3 km3 is the total volume for each isopach line, 0.8 km3 DRE) preceded the VTI and are only observed to the east of the volcano. They cover an area of 1500 km2. The VTI belong to famous Cappadocian Ignimbrites and have their maximum thickness (40 m) around Talas town (northeastern flank of Mount Erciyes). This ignimbrite was first recognized by Pasquaré (1968) at Valibabatepe locality (Valibaba Hill) although the ignimbrite is very thin, comparing the other parts of extension. German research groups prefer to call İncesu Ignimbrite rather than VTI due to the presence of very good outcrop at İncesu town, but we prefer to keep and respect the original name of recognition. An elliptical caldera (14  18 km) collapsed after these eruptions and is cut by regional faults. At present day, we can observe the caldera boundary only to the east of the ski station.

33.2.2 Erciyes Stage 33.2.1 Koç Dağ Stage The eastern flank of Mount Erciyes is formed by the remnants of Koç Dağ volcano. Main volcanic products of the Koç Dağ stage are basaltic lava flows. Besides, andesitic lava flows are present. Koç Dağ volcano had also some adventive cinder cones like Kızıltepe and Topakkaya Tepe (Tepe means hill) that produced scoriaceous tephras and basaltic andesite lava flows. While lava flows of Topakkaya Tepe extend for 15 km, Kızıltepe Tepe produced mainly scoriaceous fall deposits, distributed over a wide area. Basaltic tephra deposits are interbedded within the caldera-forming eruption sequence (Şen et al. 2003). The caldera-forming eruptions occurred in two phases, separated by scoria fall, mudflow and reworked deposits. Pumiceous air falls and flows outcropping on the eastern flank of volcano are the main products of the first phase eruptions. Pumiceous air falls exhibiting Plinian style eruptions were deposited in 4 units, 15 layers and extend for 50 km from the

After the caldera collapse, dacitic and andesitic lavas extruded along the caldera boundary and/or within the subsided caldera floor. During the history of the Erciyes stage, several generations of various magma types such as basaltic andesite, andesite, dacite and rhyodacite were repeatedly erupted (Şen et al. 2003). Progressive accumulation and superposition of these products gave birth to the Erciyes Volcano in the western part of Koç Dağ (Fig. 33.2). The evolution of the Erciyes stage includes two eruptive cycles: an effusive–extrusive cycle and an extrusive–explosive cycle. Effusive–extrusive cycle helped to volcano building up with the emplacement of andesitic–dacitic lava domes and flows, basaltic andesite lava flows and cones. Extrusive– explosive cycle comprises summit dacitic lava dome emplacement and block-and-ash flows derived from dacitic to lava rhyodacitic domes. The flanks of Mount Erciyes witnessed spectacular rhyodacitic dome emplacements of Dikkartın Dome (Figs. 33.2 and 33.3), Karagüllü Dome and

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Fig. 33.1 3D Volcanological map of Mount Erciyes. Map is represented on Digital Elevation Model. Map Legend is as follows: Pre-Caldera: Koç Dağ Stage: K1: Alkali basalt, K2: Andesitic lava flows, K3: Basaltic andesitic lava flows associated to scoria cones, K4: Plinian falls and ash flows, K5: Valibaba Tepe ignimbrite. Post-Caldera: Erciyes Stage: E1: Dacitic domes and lava flows (I), E2: Andesite extrusions, E3: Basaltic andesite lava flows (I), E4: Andesitic lava flows (I), E5: Dacitic domes and lava flows (I), E6:

Basaltic andesite lava flows (II), E7: Dacitic domes and lava flows (II), E8: Basaltic andesitic lava flows associated with scoria cones (III), E9: Andesitic lava flows and associated with scoria cones (II), E10: Nuées ardentes, E11: Dacitic dome and lava flow (III), E12: Pyroclastics of Dikkartın Dag, E13: Rhyodacitic domes and lava flows (Dikkartın and Karagüllü) (I), E14: Pyroclastics of Perikartın, E15: Rhyodacitic dome and lava flows (Perikartın) (II), E16: Debris avalanches

Perikartın Dome as very young manifestations of volcanic activity (Sarıkaya et al. 2017). Dating of young rhyodacitic domes on the flank of Mount Erciyes with the cosmogenic 36 Cl nuclides shows that they were exposed around 8.2 ± 1.1 ka ago (Karagüllü Dome), 7.9 ± 0.7 ka ago (Perikartın Dome) and 10.1 ± 0.8 ka ago (Dikkartın Dome).

Radiocarbon ages obtained from charcoal in an ash flow correlated with Perikartın Dome indicate that it was deposited at around 9.5 ± 0.3 ka (calibrated using Calib 5.0) (Sarıkaya et al. 2006). Each dome emplaced at the end of pyroclastic sequence. Those sequences include Plinian fall, surge and pumice flow deposits (Şen et al. 2002).

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Pyroclastics preceding Dikkartın Dome emplacement were found in the Mediterranean Sea, offshore Israel, during a marine drilling programme (Hamann et al. 2010). Mount Erciyes seems to be eroded, having an old volcano aspect due to its carved summit. This erosion is related to

Fig. 33.2 Mount Erciyes volcano. a View from south. Sultansazlığı basin (swampy area) is in the foreground, adventive vents on the flanks are visible, b Closer view of Mount Erciyes, Dikkartın dome is present to the right, c Summit of Mount Erciyes, hydrothermal alterations are obvious with different colouring

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glaciations that deeply affected the northern, southern and western parts of the volcano summit, while the eastern view of Mount Erciyes exhibits a sector collapse related to a horse-shoe-shaped caldera collapse which also underwent important glaciation.

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Fig. 33.3 A view from southern flank. Dikkartın lava dome and its related pyroclastics at the first plan and behind, Mount Erciyes summit (photograph by M.A. Sarıkaya)

33.3

Glaciation

Several valleys of Mount Erciyes were previously occupied by glaciers (Erinç 1951; Güner and Emre 1983; Sarıkaya et al. 2009, 2011; Sarıkaya and Çiner 2015, 2017). The major glacial valleys are located on the northern and eastern side of the mountain. Aksu Valley in the northeast and Üçker Valley on the eastern side have numerous evident moraine ridges and glacial erosional landscapes indicating past glacial activity. The northeast trending Öksüzdere Valley and two small valleys on the southern side were also glaciated. However, glacial deposits in these valleys are less extensive and less preserved than those in the Aksu and Üçker valleys. Mount Erciyes shows four periods of glacial activity during the Late Quaternary. Cosmogenic 36Cl surface exposure dating results obtained from 44 samples in the Aksu and Üçker valleys show that Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) glaciers reached their maximum extents with 6 km in length and descending to 2150 m. They started to retreat 21.3 ± 0.9 ka ago. Glaciers re-advanced by 14.6 ± 1.2 ka ago during the Late Glacial and again by 9.3 ± 0.5 ka ago during the Early Holocene. The latest advance took place 3.8 ± 0.4 ka ago (Sarıkaya et al. 2009). LGM snowline elevation is calculated at 2700 m on the northern and 3000 m on the southern side of the mountain (Messerli 1967). Today, a small glacier, named as the Aksu glacier (Fig. 33.4), is present to the north of the peak with snowline elevation at 3550 m (Sarıkaya et al. 2009). The present-day glacier is a remnant of an older valley glacier and starts with deep crevasses below the peak at the elevation of 3650 m. It occupies an area of about 5.5 ha with

a length of about 260 m. The lower part of the glacier at 3450–3480 m is covered by rock debris. From the eastern side of the mountain, in Üçker Valley, an active rock glacier was also reported (Sarıkaya et al. 2009; Ünal 2013) (Fig. 33.5). It occupies an area of about 94 ha between the elevations of about 2960 and 3350 m, and has about 1.59 km length. Many scientists have visited the Aksu Glacier since the beginning of the last century. In 1902, Penther (1902) reported that the glacier was about 700 m long, descending down to the elevation of 3180 m. Later, Bartsch (1935), Erinç (1952), Klaer (1962), Messerli (1964), Güner and Emre (1983), Sarıkaya et al. (2003a, b, 2009) visited the glacier and reported its length and terminus position. Repeated measurements of glacier length between 1902 and 2008 revealed the retreat rate of about 4.2 m per year (Sarıkaya et al. 2009). If the present retreat trend continues, the glacier is expected to disappear by 2070 (Sarıkaya et al. 2009).

33.4

Marshes and Wetlands at the Base of Mount Erciyes

In many papers and books, the appellation Sultansazlığı marshes address a complex system comprising several wetlands i.e., two lakes and three marshes. All are located in the plain between Yeşilhisar and Develi towns (Fig. 33.6). Only one of the marshes is the Sultansazlığı; the other ones are the Soysallı marshes, the Develisazlığı; the two lakes are the Yay Lake and the Çöl Lake (Fig. 33.6). In order to avoid confusion, we call here the morphologic setting of the flat plain in which the wetlands occur as the Develi plain.

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Fig. 33.4 Aksu Glacier on the northern side of the peak of Mount Erciyes (photograph by M.A. Sarıkaya on 6 August 2008)

Fig. 33.5 Üçker Rock glacier on the eastern side of the peak of Mount Erciyes

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33.4.1 Geomorphology of the Develi Plain and Sultansazlığı Marshes

(Dirik 2001). After the partition, lakes and/or wetlands and lakes appeared in the Develi plain, interfingered with alluvial fans fed by streams incising and draining the surrounding higher ground.

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Surrounded by high and steep mountains, the Develi plain collects surface water running from a topographically closed basin. In addition, a deep underground reserve is fed by karstic water from limestone watershed in the south and from old volcanics in the east. Today, however, a diversion withdraws water from the basin through a tunnel at the northernmost end of the plain. In its natural setting, the geomorphology of the Develi plain is controlled by four main factors.

33.4.1.1 Tectonic Activity of Segments of the Boundary Faults of the Ecemiş Pull-Apart Basin The Develi plain is the southern part of a pull-apart basin called the Ecemiş basin, a NE-trending, active sinistral strike-slip fault zone with normal faults. The activity of the eastern and western boundary faults of the Ecemiş basin (Fig. 33.7) generated two ca. 1000–2000-m high scarps dominating the plain and several stepped flats on the slopes of these scarps (Dirik 2001). These scarps border the Cappadocian plateau (max. height: 1937 m a.s.l.) in the west and the Aladağlar range (limestone, schist, gneiss: 3373 m) and the Develi Pliocene volcanics (2074 m) in the south and east. Recent earthquake epicentres around Kayseri suggest that the boundary faults are still seismically active (Dirik 2001; Sarıkaya et al. 2015a, b; Yıldırım et al. 2016). 33.4.1.2 The Construction of the Erciyes Composite Volcano (3916 m) Starting with the Koç Dağ (Pliocene) phase and during the Erciyes (Pleistocene) phase (Şen et al. 2003), the stratovolcano rested above a sedimentary fill which accumulated during the Mid-Tertiary (the opening of the Ecemiş basin), producing volcanics and reworked sediments which mixed with those transported from the sides of the basin. During the Erciyes phase, Late Quaternary lavas terminated the partition of the Ecemiş basin into two closed basins: the Develi plain segment to the south and the Erkilet segment to the north

33.4.1.3 The N–S Axial Disposition of the Wetlands on the Plain Floor (1070–1085 m) and the Possible Karstic Influence on the Hydrography From the centre of the plain (1070 m), the floor rises with a 2% slope towards the higher ground around, up to 1150 m. The Yay Lake, today a brackish open-water lake, occupies the geometric centre of the plain. When the lake is shallow like today (e.g., 1–2 m during the last two decades), the lake receives water from both the Soysallı and Develisazlığı marshes to the north, and from the southern Sultansazlığı marshes. North, increasingly salty ponds form a link between this continuum and the Çöl Lake sebkha. Erol (1999)’s geomorphological map redrawn with modifications in Fig. 33.7 well illustrates the existence of a topographic and hydraulic trough oriented S–N, linking all wetlands from Sultansazlığı to the Çöl Lake. Occupied by water channels connecting the wetlands to the northern end of the plain at the time of rising water level, this trough is erosive in origin. This disposition and hydrological dynamics suggest the subsidence of the northernmost part of the plain floor where old lake sediments meet the Erciyes lava flows (Fig. 33.6). Such subsidence is comforted by Dirik (2001)’s observation who reports that the thickness of the Ecemiş basin fill is the thickest south of Erciyes (300 m). In the north of the plain, Erol (1999) evidences several swallow holes, also aligned between Yay and beyond Çöl Lakes unto the very foot of the lava dam. These features suggest the existence of a hidden karst or karst-like system that Erol (1999) did not explain. The plain fill, here at least 200 m thick, is composed of lake clay and sand layers deposited since the Mid-Miocene (Dirik 2001), as well as pyroclastites or lavas. This geological setting does not sustain the development of karst. Another explanation could be that tunnels in the lava flows divert water when water level is high in the Develi plain.

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Fig. 33.6 Detailed map of lakes and marshes at the base of Mount Erciyes

33.4.1.4 The Emersion/Immersion History of the Plain During the Pleistocene During the Pleistocene, the plain-trapped sediments discharged by streams, either as coarse-grained alluvial fans at the entrance in the plain, or as sand-to-clay lake deposits which form the impermeable floor of the wetlands and lakes at the centre of the plain (Fig. 33.6). This fill records the history of the Pleistocene climate in the same way as in the Konya plain (e.g., several publications since Erol 1978).

33.4.2 Erol (1999)’s Terraces and Lakeshores of the Sultansazlığı Lake In 1999, O. Erol published the sole geomorphological paper available on the Develi plain. His interpretation is based on detailed analyses of maps and aerial photographs as well as on fieldwork. In addition to pre-Quaternary (?) erosion surfaces surrounding the plain, Erol (1999) identified a series of stepped flat surfaces interrupted by concentric smooth scarps a few metres high. He interpreted these morphologies as

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Fig. 33.7 Geomorphological map of Sultansazlığı Plain

recording a dynamic system based on a “regular” but interrupted descent of a lake level, which caused a succession of seven flat surfaces in lake sediments forming six terraces. Thus, the scarps correspond to episodes of rather sudden lake-level decrease interpreted as climate change; each terrace corresponds to a lake level, becoming younger when the altitude decreases. In the highest terrace, at ca. 1155 m (i.e., 85 m above today’s floor of the plain), O. Erol saw the oldest lake level caused by the lava dam (Fig. 33.7). The water to fill this lake, which covered a 850 km2 surface, was related to melting of glaciers during or shortly after the LGM. Similarly, the second terrace ca. 1125–1110 m was related to

Late Glacial. Comparison with records in the Tuz Gölü and Konya plains, from where a LGM 20-m-deep palaeolake is well known, suggests high probability for the palaeo-Sultansazlığı Lake to be also dated LGM (for references see Fontugne et al. 1999). According to O. Erol, both the 1155- and 1125-m-high palaeolakes were outflowing north through a spillway towards İncesu town. After LGM and Late Glacial, the plain remained hydrologically closed, with the possible exception of an outflow through the swallow holes at the bottom of the northernmost lakes. Early Holocene lake levels receded from a 1105– 1090-m terrace to a 1085–1080-m terrace. During a phase estimated for the Mid-Holocene the lake remained at ca.

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1080 m, three low flats record the lake-level descent during the Late Holocene from 1080–1077 m, to 1077–1075 m, and 1074–1072 m (present situation). This system interprets flat surfaces in lake sediments as lake levels and a few metres-high scarps between the flats as being formed during decreases in lake level (i.e., in lake budget). In this model, no rise higher than the former lake descent(s) occurs, and the age of the lake decreases with the altitude of the terrace. However, there is no outcrop of any fan delta confirming the identification of the Sultansazlığı terraces lake levels, so that terraces have thus more chance to be bottom levels of a lake than lake surface levels. Second, as the border faults are still active, a few metres-high scarp can also have been caused by tectonic movement (subsidence of the plain vs uplift of the border slopes). The latter observation is accurate for the Sultansazlığı terraces since in the Konya plain where the LGM terrace is not tectonically affected, there is no stepped series of decreasing lake floors or levels, while similar stepped terraces occur in other tectonically active lake basins of Turkey: Tuz Gölü (Erol 1978; Fernandez-Blanco et al. 2013; Özsayın et al. 2013; Gürbüz and Kazancı 2014), Burdur Lake, Lake Van (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1999). Thus, if tectonic movement is the cause for a stepped but regular descent movement of the Sultansazlığı lake bottom in the centre of the plain, the attribution of ages decreasing with altitudes is correct, but the relationship between lake levels and climate changes is to be carefully studied, especially with absolute dating. During the recessional phases of the Upper Pleistocene lakes, when both strong winds and bare sands occurred in the plain, dunes formed. Today, their remains occur as eroded dune fields and patches mainly NW and SE of the basin.

33.4.3 Biodiversity Value of the Sultansazlığı Marshes and Lakes Today, wetlands in the Develi plain are of three types (Fig. 33.6): (i) the shallow slightly brackish and permanent lake (Yay Lake: 3650 ha) at the centre of the plain, with a 0.2–0.3% salinity and 1.5-m water depth; (ii) two freshwater lakes 1.5–2.5-m deep, with a 0.1% salinity to the south (Sultansazlığı marshes: 3300 ha) and north of Yay Lake (Develisazlığı and Soysallı marshes: 1900 ha); (iii) a sebkha (Çöl Lake), a salt lake seasonally desiccated and wind-eroded in summer. Lakes and marshes are surrounded by humid meadows flooded in winter. Away from these watered landscapes, a low steppe invades the plain floor in non-irrigated areas (Gramond 1999) (Fig. 33.7).

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Water feeding the wetlands comes from a drainage area of 3190 km2 (DSI 1995). It has three sources, namely rainfall over the plain, mountain streams collecting water from the watershed (rainfall and snowmelt water), springs at the foot of the Taurus (south of the plain) and of the Erciyes lava flows (north of the plain). Within the plain, the water circulation takes two routes. First, streams flood the marshes more or less seasonally from the surface. In winter and spring, floods expand beyond the reed-rich land over the humid meadows belt and overflow in the central Yay Lake. Second, a confined underground water aquifer expands from the eastern side of the plain where it is the thickest (200– 250 m), decreases west to 150–200 m and southwest to 100–150 m (DSI 1995). This groundwater is fed by three interconnected sources: (i) infiltration from rainfall and overland flow, (ii) underflow from tuffs in the NE and from limestone in the south and SE, and (iii) alluvial cones in the west. Although both groundwater and precipitation influence monthly water levels in Yay Lake, the role of groundwater is stronger than that of precipitation. In the long-term, groundwater appears to be the most important factor controlling water levels in Yay Lake.

33.4.3.1 An Exceptional Wildlife and Waterfowl Habitat and Breeding Site Until recent years, these rich and varied environments provided the basis for an exceptional biodiversity. With salt and freshwater systems, lakes marshes, wet and dry steppes etc., the wetlands in the Develi plain (total area = 104,000 ha) supported tremendous diversity of animals and plants. Especially, the wetlands were forming an outstanding site for migrating waterfowl. In spring and summer, bird population used to reach 50,000 flamingos (the largest in Turkey), 10,000 shelducks (Tadorna) and 600,000 other ducks of various species. Total number of bird species breeding and fed in the marshes and lakes are ca. 300 (Magnin and Yarar 1997). Besides, Karadeniz (2000) records 40 species of Hymenoptera, 25 species of mammals, 35 species of molluscs, 5 species of fish, 6 species of Odonata, 3 species of Amphibia, 10 species of Reptilia and 125 species of algae. After drainage in the 1950s to prevent malaria by desiccation and irrigation from the 1960s to develop intensive agriculture, this unique biologic diversity is now threatened (Gürer et al. 2010). Starting in 1971 until 1998, several protection measures were taken, aiming at sustaining both the water permanency and its quality in the marshes for providing feeding and habitat grounds for thousands of migrating birds. An area of 45,000 ha was first declared a Permanent Wildlife reserve in 1971. In 1988, 17,200 ha were granted Nature Reserve status. After being declared 1st

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In the Footsteps of Strabon: Mount Erciyes Volcano …

Degree Site Area in 1993, the site was designated as protected under the Ramsar Convention in 1994, and classified as a Nature Conservation Area (i.e., a National Park, covering 39,000 ha) in 1998 (Gürer et al. 2010). In spite of these protection measures, the biologic richness and quality of the area changed dramatically during the last decades.

33.4.3.2 Recent Evolution The climate at Develi is continental with mean summer temperature of 34.2–35.5 °C, and winter temperature dropping down to −18.3 °C (max). Annual precipitation varies from 265 mm/year (1993–2003) in the centre of the plain to 363 mm/year at Develi on the NE slope. This low precipitation and high temperature respond to the accentuation of the central Anatolian continental climate because of the enclosing impact by the 2000–3000-m high surrounding terrain. The comparison between rainfall and the 1000 mm/year evaporation clearly shows that water budget is a critical life-and-death matter for the wetlands in the plain. Mainly fed by the Soysallı spring at the Erciyes foot and not equipped by any dam nor drainage canals, the Develi marshes respond directly to seasonal rainfall and snowfall on the volcano. They are thus a good indicator of the local and regional humidity trends. On the contrary, the southern area of the plain (Sultansazlığı marshes) is being heavily equipped for irrigation purposes since 1987. Networks use water discharged both by the Yahyalı springs (Taurus karstic water) and by rivers building the alluvial fans inside the western and southern parts of the plain, mainly from reservoirs of three dams built to the south and south-east of the plain (Fig. 33.6). In summer, when evaporation is the highest, water from all sources (streams and some springs using dams; underground using wells) is withdrawn from the natural system for irrigation and drainage. During summer, the 15% drainage water thought by DSI to outflow to the marshes is in reality re-used for irrigation so that no water reaches the wetland (Yıldız and Gürer 2014). Today, the Yay Lake is only fed during winter, and becomes a drying salt lake during summer.

33.5

Conclusions

The Mount Erciyes, the roof of Central Anatolia, much impressed the local people during Antiquity. This huge volcano covering 3300 km2 of surface has at least 64 adventive/satellite vents on its flanks. Its relative height, which is around 3000 m, and its steep slopes give Mount Erciyes an imposing and majestic aspect. Located at the eastern edge of Cappadocia, the stratovolcano emitted the

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Valibabatepe ignimbrites, which contributed to the upper part of the famous, but mostly older Cappadocian Ignimbrites series. Some products of latest activities were found offshore Israel, proving that the volcano witnessed violent eruptions in history. The Mount Erciyes underwent intensive glaciation before taking its present view. The resulting landscape is completed by a rich and diverse wetland exposed at its southern foot, the name of which in Turkish means “Marshes of the Sultan”. Also called the “Bird Paradise”, this wetland is a Ramsar site, subject to several protection statuses since the 1970s. The Sultansazlığı plain possesses also an outstanding geomorphological record of Late Quaternary lake-level variations, as well as imprints of recent tectonic activity. This geosystem is thus a kind of palaeoenvironmental laboratory. Today, all marshes, lakes, salt flats and dunes which build up this system are threatened by alteration or disappearance, mainly because of water diversion for agricultural purposes (dams, underground water pumping and surface water withdrawals).

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576 Gramond D (1999) Present evolution of wetlands in a semi-arid endoreic basin: the case of the Sultansazlığı plain (Central Anatolia, Turkey). Sécheresse 10(3):191–197 (in French) Güner Y, Emre Ö (1983) Pleistocene glaciation on Mount Erciyes and its relation to volcanism. Bull Geomorphol 11:23–34 (in Turkish) Gürbüz A, Kazancı N (2014) Facies characteristics and control mechanisms of quaternary deposits in the lake Tuz basin. Bull Mineral Res Explor Foreign Ed 149:1–18 Gürer I, Yıldız E, Gürer N, Uçar I (2010) Environmental politics— wetland management in Turkey. Case study: Sultansazlığı. AQUA Mundi, Am 02022:197–208 Hamann Y, Wulf S, Ersoy O, Ehrmann W, Aydar E, Schmiedl G (2010) First evidence of a distal early Holocene ash layer in Eastern Mediterranean deep-sea sediments derived from the Anatolian volcanic. Quat Res 73:497–506 Karadeniz N (2000) Sultan Sazlığı, Ramsar Site in Turkey. Humedales Mediterraneos 1:107–114 Klaer W (1962) Untersuchungen zur klimagenetischen geomorphologie in den hochgebirgen Vorderasiens. Heidelberger Geographische Arbeiten 11:1–135 Kuzucuoğlu C, Bertaux J, Black S, Denèfle M, Fontugne M, Karabıyıkoğlu M, Kashima K, Limondin-Lozouet N, Mouralis D, Orth P (1999) Reconstruction of climatic changes during the Late Pleistocene, based on sediment records from the Konya Basin (Central Anatolia, Turkey). Geol J Spec Issue Turk Geol 34:175– 198 Magnin G, Yarar M (1997) Important bird areas in Turkey. Doğal Hayatı Koruma Derneği (DHKD), Istanbul, 146–150 Messerli B (1964) Der gletscher am Erciyes Dagh und das problem der rezenten Schneegrenze im Anatolischen und Mediterranen Raum. Geographica Helvetica 19(1):19–34 Messerli B (1967) Die eiszeitliche und die gegenwartige Vergletscherung in Mittelmeerraum. Geographica Helvetica 22:105– 228 Oliva M, Žebre M, Guglielmin MM, Hughes P, Çiner A, Vieria G, Bodin X, Andrés N, Colucci RR, García-Hernández C, Mora C, Nofre J, Palacios D, Pérez-Alberti A, Ribolini A, Ruiz-Fernández J, Sarıkaya MA, Serrano E, Urdea P, Valcárcel M, Woodward J, Yıldırım C (2018) The existence of permafrost conditions in the Mediterranean basin since the Last Glaciation. Earth Sci Rev 185:397–436. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2018.06.018 Özsayın E, Çiner A, Dirik K, Rojay B, Fernandez-Blanco D, Melnick D, Garcin Y, Bertotti G, Strecker M, Schildgen T, Sudo M (2013) Plio-Quaternary extensional tectonics of the Central Anatolian Plateau: a case study from the Tuz Gölü Basin, Turkey. Turk J Earth Sci 22:691–714 Pasquaré G (1968) Geology of the Cenozoic volcanic area of Central Anatolia. Atti Accad Naz Lincei 9:53–204 Pasquaré G, Poli S, Vezzoli L, Zanchi A (1988) Continental arc volcanism and tectonic setting in Central Anatolia, Turkey. Tectonophysics 146:217–230 Penther A (1905) Eine reise in das gebiet des Erdschias dagh (Kleinasien) 1902. Abhandlungen der k.k. Geographischen gesellschaft in Wien 6(1) Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2015) Late Pleistocene glaciations and paleoclimate of Turkey. Bull Mineral Res Explor (MTA) 151:107–127

E. Aydar et al. Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2017.)The late Quaternary glaciation in the Eastern Mediterranean. In: Hughes P, Woodward J (eds) Quaternary glaciation in the mediterranean mountains, vol 433. Geological Society of London Special Publication, pp 289–305. http://doi.org/ 10.1144/SP433.4 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Zreda M (2003a) Late Quaternary glacial deposits of the Erciyes Volcano. Yerbilimleri 27:59–74 (in Turkish) Sarıkaya MA, Şen E, Çiner A, Zreda M, Aydar E (2003b) Late Quaternary glacial deposits and volcanism in Erciyes Volcano. In: IVth Quaternary workshop, pp 55–61. Eurasian Institute of Earth Sciences (in Turkish) Sarıkaya MA, Zreda M, Desilets D, Çiner A, Şen E (2006) Correcting for nucleogenic 36Cl in cosmogenic 36Cl dating of volcanic rocks from Erciyes volcano, Central Turkey, American Geophysical Union Conference, San Francisco, USA, 11–15 Dec 2006, V21A-0553 Sarıkaya MA, Zreda M, Çiner A (2009) Glaciations and paleoclimate of Mount Erciyes, central Turkey, since the Last Glacial Maximum, inferred from 36Cl cosmogenic dating and glacier modeling. Quat Sci Rev 28:23–24, 23262341 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Zreda M (2011) Quaternary glaciations of Turkey. In: Ehlers J, Gibbard PL, Hughes PD (eds) Quaternary glaciations-extent and chronology; a closer look (Developments in quaternary science, 15). The Netherlands, Amsterdam, pp 393–403 Sarıkaya MA, Yıldırım C, Çiner A (2015a) Late Quaternary alluvial fans of Emli Valley in the Ecemiş Fault Zone, south central Turkey: insights from cosmogenic nuclides. Geomorphology 228:512–525 Sarıkaya MA, Yıldırım C, Çiner A (2015b) No surface breaking on Ecemiş Fault, central Turkey, since Late Pleistocene (64.5 ka); new geomorphic and geochronologic data from cosmogenic dating of offset alluvial fans. Tectonophysics 649:23–46 Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A, Şen E, Ersoy O, Zreda M (2017) Dating young lava flows with cosmogenic 36Cl: an example from the late pleistocene—Early Holocene Erciyes monogenetic lava domes in Central Turkey. EGU General Assembly, Vienna, Geophysical Research Abstracts, vol 19, EGU2017-3937 Şen E, Aydar E, Gourgaud A, Kurkçuoğlu B (2002) Initial explosive phases during the extrusion of volcanic lava domes: example from rhyodacitic dome of Dikkartın Dağ, Erciyes Stratovolcano, Central Anatolia, Turkey. C R Acad Sci Paris 334(1):27–33 Şen E, Kurkcuoglu B, Aydar E, Gourgaud A, Vincent PM (2003) Volcanological evolution of Mount Erciyes stratovolcano and origin of Valibaba Tepe ignimbrites (Central Anatolia, Turkey). J Volcanol Geoth Res 125:225–246 Strabon Geographika (trans: Adnan Pekman) (1991) Arkeoloji ve Sanat Yayınları, 296 pp Ünal A (2013) Geographic distribution of rock glaciers in Turkey: the case study of Erciyes rock glacier. Fatih University, İstanbul, 55 pp Yıldırım C, Sarıkaya MA, Çiner A (2016) Late Pleistocene intraplate extension of the Central Anatolian Plateau, Turkey: inferences from cosmogenic exposure dating of alluvial fan, landslide and moraine surfaces along the Ecemiş Fault Zone. Tectonics 35. https://doi.org/ 10.1002/2015tc004038 Yıldız E, Gürer I (2014) Environmental problems of Sultansazlığı Wetland and determination of surface water and groundwater relation at Sultansazlığı Wetland by using environmental isotopes. J Wetl Biodivers 4:59–72

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Quaternary Monogenetic Volcanoes Scattered on a Horst: The Bountiful Landscape of Kula Erdal Şen, Mehmet Korhan Erturaç, and Erdal Gümüş

Abstract

Kula Volcanic Field hosts unique structures of basaltic volcanism, such as lava flows, scoria cones, maars and pyroclastics. The volcanism took place during the Quaternary, in three stages, where the latest one coincides with human occupation, extending from Late Glacial Maximum towards the Bronze Ages. The fresh looking appearance of the products of this last stage has had direct influence on the cultural development of the ancient societies. Kula stands on an actively tilting plateau in a horst-graben system, in the western Aegean region of Turkey, which is one of the most rapid crustal extensional areas of the Earth. The continuous tectonic activity and erosion processes that affect the region lead to the formation of an inverted topography and many geomorphological monuments in addition to the volcanism. All these geosites have been mapped, identified and organized within the scope of a Geopark, and Kula Geopark is today a certified member of the European and Global Geopark Network of UNESCO. Keywords

Kula volcanoes




Geosite




UNESCO




Turkey

E. Şen (&) Geological Engineering Department, Hacettepe University, Beytepe, 06532 Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] M. K. Erturaç Department of Geography, Sakarya University, 54187 Esentepe, Sakarya, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] E. Gümüş Department of GIS, Manisa Celal Bayar University - Demirci MYO, 45900 Demirci, Manisa, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]

34.1

Introduction

Kula Volcanic Field (KVF) is one of the youngest volcanic regions in Turkey, which remained active during Quaternary and the Holocene. KVF is found on an uplifted and tilted plateau (horst) with an altitude ranging between 500 and 1050 m above sea level. The region is E-W extended rectangle, 10 km in width and 30 km in length, covering an area of *300 km2 (Fig. 34.1). KVF can be regarded as the first documented locality of volcanic processes with a detailed description (Fig. 34.2). Although it is compromised by referring to mythology, Strabo (63 BC–24 AD) successfully describes the scoria cone formation and lava flows of the Catacecaumene (“Burnt Land”) country of the Antiquity and relates the evolution of morphology to eruption processes of a fissure-type volcanism. This definition predates the observation of the explosion of Mount Vesuvius (AD 79), which is believed to be the cause of the death of Pliny the Elder (AD 23–79). After this region, one comes to the Catacecaumene country, as it is called, which has a length of five hundred stadia and a breadth of four hundred, whether it should be called Mysia or Meїonia (for both names are used); the whole of it is without trees except the vine that produces the Catacecaumenite wine, which in quality is inferior to none of the notable wines. The surface of the plains is covered with ashes, and the mountainous and rocky country is black, as though from conflagration. Now some conjecture that this resulted from thunderbolts and from fiery subterranean outbursts, and they do not hesitate to lay there the scene of the mythical story of Typhon …; but it is not reasonable to suppose that all that country was burnt all at once by reason of such disturbances, but rather by reason of an earth-born fire, the sources of which have now been exhausted. Three pits are to be seen there, which are called “bellows (Physæ)”, and they are about forty stadia distant from each other. Above them lie rugged hills, which are reasonably supposed to have been heaped up by the hot masses blown forth from the earth. That such soil should be well adapted to the vine one might assume from the land of Catana, which was heaped with ashes and now produces excellent wine in great plenty. Some writers, judging from places like this, wittily remark that

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_34

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Fig. 34.1 Location map a Tectonic setting and geological history of volcanism at the Aegean Sea, b Morphotectonics of western Anatolia (active faults are from Emre et al. 2012), c Block diagram showing

Kula Horst (tilted plateau), Gediz Graben and Bozdağ Horst (from Seyitoğlu 1997; Bozkurt and Sözbilir 2004; Ersoy et al. 2014)

there is good reason for calling Dionysus “Pyrigenes”. Strabo Geography XIII, Chapter 4, 11 (Jones 1929).

both sides of the Aegean Sea (Aldanmaz et al. 2000; Fig. 34.1a). The present-day morphology of western Anatolia is characterized by repetitive horst-graben structures, with the former resulting from major uplifts (such as Bozdağ Mt; 2420 m) and the latter associated with topographic basins (such as Alaşehir-Gediz Graben; *100 m) (Fig. 34.1b). The Kula Plateau is a former NNE-SSW trending depression (Selendi-Uşak Basin), which was formed during the Miocene and became unlocked after the change of direction of extension at the Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary, which led to the southward migration of active rifting (Seyitoğlu 1997; Bozkurt and Sözbilir 2004; Ersoy et al. 2014). This change in the regional tectonics generated E-W trending normal faults, the formation of the Plio-Quaternary Alaşehir Graben as well as the tilting of the plateau to the north when its southern border uplifted (Fig. 34.1c). Ruptures of these faults generated multiple earthquakes during 1969 (M 5.9) and 1970 (M 6.5) (Eyidoğan and Jackson 1985). Most of the Kula volcanoes occur in relation to the north-west trending main faults of the Gediz Graben-horst system, overlying the sediments of the inactive Selendi Basin and the basement rocks of Menderes Massif (metamorphic and ophiolitic rocks). The region is drained by the Gediz (Hermos) River (catchment area: 17.000 km2).

The geological investigations at the region began with the classical paper by Hamilton and Strickland (1841), which also provided a detailed relief/geological map and also descriptions accompanied with panoramic engravings (Fig. 34.2). The cultural identity of Kula was described by French historian and archaeologist Texier (1862). This study was followed by the dissertation of Washington (1893), who also added the term “Kulait” for the hornblende rich basalts of the region to volcanic rock nomenclature. Alfred Philippson studied the volcanism of KVF and published with a detailed 1/50.000 scale geological map (Philippson 1913a, b) while investigating the geology and tectonics of Anatolia (Philippson 1918).

34.2

Tectonic Settings

The morphotectonic evolution of the region is controlled by the long-lasting collision of the African and Eurasian (the Anatolia block) plates where the southward retreating oceanic slab is responsible for the widespread arc volcanism from the Oligocene to recent, also causing intense extension on

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Fig. 34.2 Illustrated geological/morphological map of KVF (geological map of the Catacecaumene to illustrate a memoir part of ASIA MINOR; Hamilton and Strickland 1841)

34.3

Volcanological and Morphological Context

Volcanism in Kula is entirely alkali basaltic in composition (43–50% SiO2; Borsi et al. 1972; Dyer 1987; RichardsonBunbury 1992 ; Alıcı et al. 2002) representing three main successive eruptive periods which are dated for Middle Pleistocene for the first, Late Pleistocene for the second and Holocene for the last one. These episodes are represented by lava flows and pyroclastic deposits with monogenetic structures composed of 80 cinder cones and eight spatter cones, six tumuli, five maars and nine fracture eruption centres, all of which have alkali basaltic composition (Fig. 34.3). Total dense rock equivalent (DRE) volume of the volcanic products, including the lava flows and pyroclastics (including cinder cones, maars and tephra thrown out the atmosphere), is calculated as *5.9 km3 (Şen et al. 2014). Starting with the first regional mapping studies, these episodes have been identified on the basis of different

styles of eruptive activity (Canet and Jaoul 1946) and formation stages (Ercan 1982a). In this contribution, we will follow a combined nomenclature for the formation labelled “Kula Volcanism” and its stages named as Burgaz (b2); Elekçi Tepe (b3) and Divlit Tepe (b4) volcanics. The initial products of the KVF, namely “Burgaz Volcanics” (b2: Fig. 34.3), only outcrop north of Kula. They consist of basalt flows forming several isolated flat hilltops presenting typical inverted relief such as “mesas” (e.g. İbrahimağa, Sarnıç and Burgaz Plateaus) (Figs. 34.3 and 34.4b, c). The whole b2 flow area is calculated for ca. 35 km2 and the total flow thickness to have ranged from 5 to 25 m. The joint forces of tectonic tilting, subsequent erosion by Gediz River and slope processes formed the plateau morphology. Burgaz stage lava flows display well-developed columnar joint structures (Fig. 34.4d). Radiometric dating of this stage reveals ages ranging from 0.99 ± 0.11 to 1.94 ± 0.16 Ma (Borsi et al. 1972; Richardson-Bunbury 1992, 1996; Westaway et al. 2004, 2006; Maddy et al. 2012, 2015, 2017).

580 Fig. 34.3 Geological map of KVF (modified from Ercan 1982a) showing the products of three stages of Quaternary volcanism draped over a 10 m resolution hillshade of the region

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Second-stage volcanism (Elekçi Tepe Volcanics, b3) emitted the most voluminous lavas of the Kula Volcanism. It occurred between 50 ± 9 ka and 300 ± 3 ka (Borsi et al. 1972; Richardson-Bunbury 1996; Bunbury et al. 2001; Westaway et al. 2004, 2006). The lava flows are weathered and covered with soils of which well-exposed sections can be observed near Kepez (Fig. 34.3). Here, irregular cooling structures oriented in various directions are frequently observed at the lava front (Fig. 34.4e). This stage, which produced most of the scoria cones and also tuff rings and maars, is named after a very distinct scoria cone, Elekçi Tepe Hill (Fig. 34.3). The products of the last stage of the KVF (Divlit Tepe, b4) are very distinct with their fresh appearance, black coloured and lacking vegetation cover. There are at least 28 individual flows within three major clusters originating from scoria cones or NW and NE trending fractures (Fig. 34.3). The extruded low viscous lava mainly flowed downslope on the northward-tilted plateau about 17 km (W), 7 km (N), 3 km (SW) and 7–10 km (NE) invading former valleys and the main Gediz River, thus causing temporary barriers (Fig. 34.3 and 34.4g). The volume of these basalts has been calculated as 0.7 km3 by assuming an average thickness of 8 m and taking into account the surface area of 85 km2. Divlit Tepe lava flows are aa type and characterized by very rough, sharp-edged blocks and broken surfaces due to the high heat loss from the top of the flow. However, they have dense interiors and columnar joint structures due to internal slower cooling rate than at the top of the lava flows (Fig. 34.4f, g). The N-S trending fracture is very distinct, formed inside the flow adjacent to Gediz River and extends about a kilometre (Fig. 34.4f). There is also formation of small-scale lava tunnels (Fig. 34.4m). Radiometric and cosmogenic surface exposure dating of the Divlit Tepe stage revealed ages ranging between 4 ± 2 ka and 25 ± 7 ka (Westaway et al. 2004, 2006) and 0.9 ± 0.2 ka and 13.1 ± 1.6 ka (Heineke et al. 2016), respectively.

34.3.1 Cinder Cones Cinder cones are important elements of the landscape of KVF. Figure 34.3 shows the distribution of 80 cinder cones formed during the Elekçi Tepe and Divlit Tepe stages. There are two types of cinder cone morphology: (i) “typical” cones (Fig. 34.4i, j) and (ii) “breached” cones which are associated with lava flows (Fig. 34.4h). In addition, there is a cluster of 16 individual small cinder cones to the north of Divlit Tepe Hill near Kula town (Fig. 34.4j–m). The growth of cinder cones is often accompanied by effusion of lava flows located either (rarely) over cone slopes or (mostly) at their base. Circular craters (up to 650 m in diameter) are visible on the top of some cones. Some of these craters are probably filled

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with scoria air fall deposits coming from another cone producing tephra. Some cones of b3 stage have no regular craters due to intense erosion (Fig. 34.4k). Every cinder cone has an ejecta facies (tephra/pyroclastics), where the clast size ranges from ash (64 mm). The pyroclastics that form a cone are composed of scoria, massive lava fragments, fusiform showing plastic deformation of spinning partially molten ejecta during ballistic flight and/or spherical bombs, crystals (usually broken free minerals), xenoliths (such as schist, gabbro, diorite, mudstone) and ash matrix containing any type of ejecta, which can be distinguishable under microscope. The heights of the cinder cones range between 10 and 170 m (mean: 59 m), and cone basal diameters from 100 to 1300 m (mean: 553 m). The H/D ratios (height/basal diameter) range from 0.004 up to 0.525 (Şen et al. 2014). The b4 cinder cones usually have steeper slopes (25–32º) than cinder cones of b3 stage (20–28º). This is due to the effects of erosion (rainfall, deflation or gravitational movement) that commenced immediately after cone formation and continued afterwards. This apparent difference, together with the vegetation cover, can be used as a key to distinguish the cones of the last two stages (compare Fig. 34.4i–j with Fig. 34.4k and also Fig. 34.4o with inset profile and Fig. 34.5).

34.3.2 Spatter Cones and Tumuli Spatter cones are small-scale dome structures with steep slopes formed by intense lava fountains and welded by lava spatter formation during eruption processes. They are aligned along fissures parallel to the main fractures forming voluminous cinder cones. Some spatter cones exhibit cyclic lava spattering, scoria and massive lava layers. A tumulus has an appearance of hummocky surface and originates by pressurized injection of molten lava under the lava’s surface crust, which causes the crustal uplift (Fig. 34.4n; Macdonald 1972; Rossi and Gudmundsson 1996). According to their morphology, tumuli in Kula are of lava-coated and upper slope type, characterizing proximal parts of lava flows (Rossi and Gudmundsson 1996). The tilted surfaces provide good exposure of the lava crust showing cooling structures. These structures have been formed only during the Divlit Tepe volcanism phase (b4) and can be observed north of Kula town, close to Divlit Tepe cinder cone.

34.3.3 Maars Hydromagmatic activity occurred only during the Elekçi Tepe stage, which led to the formation of four tuff rings and one maar (Çukurada) (Figs. 34.3 and 34.4p).

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Fig. 34.4 Panorama showing the unique volcanic landscape of KVF; a Oblique aerial view of Kula town expanding through the lava flows (by Hakan Gün, Atlas Magazine), b–c Basaltic plateau morphology of the b2 stage, d Columnar joints observed inside the b2 flows, e Contact of b3 flows with paleosol also showing irregular cooling structures oriented in various directions at Kepez, f Longitudinal fractures developed inside b4 flow, g Surface and interior exposure of b4 flow incised by Gediz River, h Breached b4 scoria cone developed on a b3 cone, and related lava flow, i Aerial view of Karadivlit Tepe (b3) scoria cone, j Aerial view of Divlit

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Tepe (b3) scoria cone and Kula town (by Hakan Gün, Atlas Magazine), k A degraded scoria cone of Elekçi Tepe stage (b3), l Small scoria cone field located north of Divlit Tepe cone (by Hakan Gün, Atlas Magazine), m Divlit Tepe (b4) scoria cone and a basalt cave developed inside the lava flow, n Tumulus structure formed on b4 lava flows, north of Kula town, o Panorama showing Karadivlit Tepe scoria cone with related b4 flow and its correlation with adjacent cones (inset: topographic profile sampled from 10 m DEM), p Çukurada Maar of b3 stage, q Road-cut exposure of base surge deposits formed by hydrovolcanic explosion during b3 stage

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Fig. 34.4 (continued)

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Fig. 34.5 a Panorama and topographic profile (sampled from 10 m DEM) shows the inverted topography of the Kula region and the products of multiphase volcanic activity, b–c Badland topography

developed on the Late Miocene clastics covered by the b2 basalts of the Burgaz plateau, d Close-up of the contact of b2 basalt flow (see text for details)

These structures have a circular morphology above and below the pre-eruption topography. The craters have diameters ranging from 875 to 1200 m, and their depths are between 20 and 110 m. As a result of the hydrovolcanic explosion, base surges form a ring deposit composed of centimetric layers of ash featuring dune and anti-dune structures and bomb sags (Ercan 1982b; Fig. 34.4q). In some cases, these deposits are interbedded with magmatic explosion products (scoria falls). All of the maars occurred with cinder cones (Fig. 34.3) representing the last activity following the hydrovolcanic explosions and formed at the rim of the maar crater.

rates of the underlying strata. The clear stepped morphology in the KVF is related to the continuous uplift of the plateau at its southern rim, which was initiated in the latest Pliocene. Results of recent research, combining the detailed chronology of the volcanism and of buried terrace levels in the Gediz River valley, show that these terrace levels are well correlated with Quaternary climatic cycles (Maddy et al. 2005, 2017). The plateau ledge is formed by *150 m incision in the b1 basalts emitted during the first volcanic phase. New radiometric ages of the top basalts imply a *0.16 mm/yr uplift/incision rate (Maddy et al. 2005). During b2–b3 phases, periodic lava flows forced the paleo-Gediz valley to migrate to the north (Maddy et al. 2007, 2008). Gorp et al. (2013), detailing short-lived volcanic damming of the gorge between the İbrahimağa and Sarnıç plateaus, constrained the latest Kula eruption to *3 ka ago (IRSL). The vigorous outburst after breaching of the dam caused backward erosion (up to 10 m), which formed an epigenetic gorge. Standing on the western edge of the Sarnıç Basalt Plateau (Fig. 34.3), one can observe inverted topography (Erinç 1970;

34.4

Uplift and Erosion

Topographic and geomorphologic inversions are common in active basalt volcanic fields due to (i) the interruption of pre-volcanism incision processes by (ii) basaltic flows fossilizing the valleys, followed by (iii) relatively faster erosion

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Fig. 34.6 a Example of an information spot of one of the trails in the Kula Geopark, b Kula Geopark Visitor Centre, c epigenetic gorge formed inside a b4 lava flow, d prehistoric human footprints located west of Demirköprü Dam, North of Adala town

Ozaner 1992) of the region with morphological discrimination and relative positions of sequential volcanic phases (b2, 3 and 4) by means of the morphostratigraphic relationships between scoria cones and lava flows (Fig. 34.5). Another remarkable landscape at Kula is badland topography developed in the eastern part of the region, near Gediz River. The formation of these badlands is controlled by (i) differential erosion between fluvial clastics of Late Miocene age and the covering Burgaz Volcanics and (ii) the recent and rapid uplift of the area (Fig. 34.5b, c). Below the contact of the two formations, a staircase of 12 terrace levels starting in Early Quaternary is preserved on the erosional plateau surface (Maddy et al. 2005, 2015, 2017). A close-up at the base of basalt flow above the Late Miocene fluvial clastics (Fig. 34.5d) reveals from top to bottom: (I) Gediz terrace levels; (II) paleosol; (III) basaltic ash fall deposits; (IV) lava flows. At sites where level III is absent, a paleosol is burnt by the lava.

34.5

aesthetic appeal or educational value with sustainable territorial development strategy. The Geopark status is an internationally accepted quality certificate in terms of geo-education, geo-conservation and geotourism (Gümüş 2014). The Kula Geopark Project started in 2011. It is certified as the first (and sole) Turkish Geopark that relates volcanic rocks in the European Geoparks Network and in the Global Geoparks Network of UNESCO since September 2013. Kula area is situated on a unique intersection of history, culture and geology, revealing the secrets of co-evolution of our civilization with the Planet Earth. Its main scope is to present the geodiversity of the region. Kula Geopark offers outdoor educational programs at managed geosites with information panels aligned along 20 different thematic geotrails (Fig. 34.6a). The centre of the Kula Geopark, the Visitor Centre, is established at the Kula town (Fig. 34.6b). In addition to volcanic heritage mentioned above, Kula Geopark hosts rich cultural, historical, architectural, archaeological, geomorphological and palaeontological monuments which are presented below (Gümüş 2014).

The Kula Geopark

A Geopark is a new geoheritage protection and site management concept, which was born in 2000 with the establishment of the European Geoparks Network (EGN) and then adapted to UNESCO chart in 2004. A Geopark is defined as a region, which comprises a certain number of geological sites of particular importance in terms of their scientific quality, rarity,

34.5.1 Volcanic Gorge and Waterfalls River incision of lava flows of successive volcanic phases by the Gediz River and its tributaries led to the formation of narrow basaltic epigenetic gorges (Fig. 34.6c). These gorges are formed of three segments. The westernmost gorge, the

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Fig. 34.7 a Traditional vinery south of Karadivlit cone; b statue of Euripides (Musée du Louvre); c Late Roman mosaic of Bacchus from Antioch (Antakya Museum); d Zeus hurling his lightning at Typhon,

Chalcidian black-figured hydria, ca. 550 BC (Staatliche Antikensammlungen, Inv. 596)

Adala Volcanic gorge, also hosts an impressive waterfall where Gediz River falls from a height of 25 m.

(*1280 ka) by constraining with the Ar/Ar age of overlying basalt flow. Şahiner et al. (2017) dated this depositional terrace as 1066 ± 22 ka by using TA-OSL method which coincides with the radiometric age by 88 ± 10%.

34.5.2 Prehistoric Occupation: Fossil Human Footprints and Artifacts Prehistoric inhabitants of the region witnessed the last eruptive period (Divlit Tepe stage). Their presence is demonstrated by their fossilized footprints on volcanic ash and also by prehistoric rock paintings (Akdeniz 2011). The fossil footprints were discovered during the construction of the Demirköprü Dam (1954–1960), imprinted on base surge deposits which cover the metamorphic bedrock. They were protected from erosion by overlying scoria air falls accompanying Divlit Tepe eruptions. A rapid rescue excavation revealed more than 200 fossil footprints; *60 of them were removed from the site for preservation in the Natural History Museum in Ankara (Tekkaya 1976). The age of the fine ash layer hosting the footprints was first dated as 26 ± 5 ka by TL (Göksu 1978) and recently to 11.2 ± 1.1 ka with 10Be cosmogenic exposure dating (Heineke et al. 2016). Today the site is under extreme anthropogenic threat (Fig. 34.6d). A recent study has revealed that higher Gediz terrace sequence also hosts the oldest hominin artefact (stone flake) in Anatolia (Maddy et al. 2015) which is dated to MIS38

34.5.3 Kula Houses Kula town hosts well-preserved monuments of the eighteenth-century Ottoman urban architecture such as mosques, churches and mansions. These architectural remains reflect an overall image of the social life in the Ottoman cities.

34.5.4 Hot Springs There are many individual natural hot springs along the Gediz River in the area. One of these sources is bottled as mineral water and sold nationwide.

34.6

Influence and Impact of Landscape on the Societies

Vine cultivation in the region has a long history starting in Antiquity. The wine of the Kula (Catacecaumenite wine) was cited both by Strabo and Pliny the Elder in the earliest

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first century AD; it is also believed to be mentioned by Virgil (first century BC) (Doğer 2004; Unvin 2005). We do not have much information on the viticulture during the Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman periods, possibly gradual changes in the dominant culture probably confined wine production to domestic usage only. After the first quarter of twentieth century and following the population exchange between Greece and modern Turkish Republic, most of the traditional vineyards of the Kula region were abandoned and converted into dry land farming. But today, as the climate and the soil conditions is perfectly suitable to grape cultivation, new engineered vineyards are spreading rapidly. Traditional vineyards can still be observed around the fresh cones in spite of soil development and water supply that are not efficient (Fig. 34.7a). Euripides (c 480–406 BC; Fig. 34.7b) is one of the most famous tragedians of Classical Athens. His latest work, Bacchae, premiered posthumously at the Theatre of Dionysus at Dionysia festival in Athens, 405 BC. The play is a tragedy, named after the female followers of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and ecstasy (Fig. 34.7c). During the play, Dionysus states that he comes from Lydia of Anatolia and Mount Tmolus (modern Bozdağ). In fact, Dionysus (also known with his Roman name, Bacchus) is believed to be an Anatolian deity transplanted into the Greek Pantheon during the first Millennium BC (Otto 1965). He is described as a demigod, who was born as the son of Zeus and mortal Semele (or Kybele, mother earth god of Phrygia) who died after a fire devastated the surrounding land (Otto 1965). Strabo relates this myth with the most recent volcanism of Kula region and wittily concludes that there is a good reason why Dionysus is properly called Pyrigenes (fire-born). His other comment on the fight between Zeus and Typhoon was also an important inspiration for the ancient Greek art (Fig. 34.7d). In the case of Kula Volcanism, a relation has been proposed between the natural processes and the cult of Pagan deities. This proposal suggests a chain of interactions relating the volcanism at Kula, representing the fierce forces of the nature, with the local societies and their practices. Prehistoric population has inhabited the area at the same time as the eruptions occurred; later, this volcanic deposits produced by this activity have become a terroir suitable for vine cultivation. Viticulture has been dignified in the cult of Dionysus (Bacchus) which led to Dionysia (Athens, 600 BC) and Bacchanalia (Rome, 200 BC) festivals. The cult and festivals are considered as the driving force behind the development of Greek theatre, to which modern drama owes some of its roots. Volcanic rocks continue to affect today’s settlements and construction practices. In the eastern part of the Kula region, villages sit on first-stage basalt plateaus, at the base of mesas scarps, on the edge of a second-stage scoria cone, etc. Two

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towns (Kula and Adala) developed in the vicinity of young flows. Besides, scoria deposits are traditionally quarried for isolation of the houses and road construction. As detailed above, the formation of cultural heritage is inspired by natural processes, where in this case, Quaternary fissure volcanism and related landforms, representing a good example for Cultural Geology (Kazancı et al. 2017) approach.

References Akdeniz E (2011) Some evidence on the first known residents of Katakekaumene (burned lands). Mediterr Archaeol Archaeom 11:69–74 Alıcı P, Temel A, Gourgaud A (2002) PbNd-Sr isotope and trace element geochemistry of Quaternary extension-related alkaline volcanism: a case study of Kula Region (western Anatolia, Turkey). J Volcanol Geoth Res 115:487–510 Aldanmaz E, Pearce JA, Thirlwall MF, Mitchell JG (2000) Trogenetic evolution of late Cenozoic, post-collision volcanism in western Anatolia, Turkey. J Volcanol Geoth Res 102:67–95 Borsi M, Ferrara G, Innocenti F, Mazzuoli R (1972) Geochronology and petrology of recent volcanics of Eastern Aegean Sea. Bull Volcanol 36(1):473–496 Bozkurt E, Sözbilir H (2004) Tectonic evolution of the Gediz graben: field evidence for an episodic, two-stage extension in western Turkey. Geol Mag 141:63–79 Bunbury JM, Hall L, Anderson GJ, Stannard A (2001) The determination of fault movement history from the interaction of local drainage with volcanic episodes. Geol Mag 138(2):185–192 Canet J, Jaoul P (1946) Report on the geology of the Manisa-AydınKula-Gördes area. Unpublished report no. 2068. General Directorate of Mineral Research and Exploration, Ankara (in Turkish) Doğer E (2004) Antik Çağda Bağ ve Şarap, 197 p. İletişim Yayınları (ISBN 9789750502439) Dyer JM (1987) Petrology of the Kula Volcanic Field, western Turkey. Unpublished MSc. thesis, State University of New York at Albany, 241 pp, +xii Emre Ö, Duman TY, Özalp S (2012) Türkiye 1/250.000 ölçekli diri fay haritası. Maden Tetkik ve Arama Genel Müdürlüğü, Ankara Ercan T (1982a) Kula yöresinin jeolojisi ve volkanitlerin petrolojisi. Istanbul Üniversitesi, Yerbilimleri Dergisi 2:77–124 Ercan T (1982b) Characteristic features and «Base Surge» bed forms of Kula volcanics (in Turkish). Bull Geol Soc Turk 25:117–125 Erinç S (1970) Kula-Adala arasında genç volkan röliyefi. İ.Ü. Coğrafya Ens. Derg. 17:148–167 Ersoy EY, Çemen Í, Helvacı C, Billor Z (2014) Tectono-stratigraphy of the Neogene basins in Western Turkey: implications for tectonic evolution of the Aegean Extended Region. Tectonophysics 635: 33–58 Eyidoğan H, Jackson J (1985) A seismological study of normal faulting in the Demirci, Alaşehir and Gediz earthquakes of 1969–1970 in Western Turkey: implications for the nature and geometry of deformation in the continental crust. Geophys J Roy Astron Soc 81:554–569 Göksu Y (1978) The TL age determination of fossil human footprints. Archaeo-Phys 10:445–462 Gorp W, Veldkampb A, Temme AJAM, Maddy D, Demir T, van der Schriek T, Reimannf T, Wallinga J, Wijbrans J, Schoorl JM (2013) Fluvial response to Holocene volcanic damming and breaching in the Gediz and Geren Rivers, western Turkey. Geomorphol 201:430–448

588 Gümüş E (2014) Geoparks: multidisciplinary tools for the protection and management of geoheritage in Turkey [Kula volcanic area (Manisa) and Çamlidere Fossil Forest (Ankara) as case studies]. Unpublished Doctorate Thesis. Aegean University of Greece Hamilton WJ, Strickland HE (1841) On the geology of the western part of Asia Minor. Trans Geol Soc Lond 6:1–11 Heineke C, Niedermann S, Hetzel R, Akal C (2016) Surface exposure dating of Holocene basalt flows and cinder cones in the Kula volcanic field (Western Turkey) using cosmogenic 3He and 10Be. Quat Geochronol 34:81–91 Jones HL (1929) The Geography of Strabo, v. 6 Books XIII–XIV: The Loeb classical library v. 223. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, viii + 397 pp Kazancı N, Özgen-Erdem N, Erturaç MK (2017) Kültürel Jeoloji ve Jeolojik Miras; Yerbilimlerinin Yeni Açılımları; Cultural Geology and Geological Heritage; new initiatives for earth sciences. Geol Bull Turk 60(1):1–16 (in Turkish with extended abstract) MacDonald GA (1972) Volcanoes. Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 510 p Maddy D, Demir T, Bridgland DR, Veldkamp A, Stemerdink C, van der Schriek T, Westaway R (2005) An obliquity-controlled early Pleistocene river terrace record from western Turkey? Quatern Res 63(3):339–346 Maddy D, Demir T, Bridgland DR, Veldkamp A, Stemerdink C, van der Schriek T, Schreve D (2007) The Pliocene initiation and early Pleistocene volcanic disruption of the palaeo-Gediz fluvial system, western Turkey. Quatern Sci Rev 26(22–24):2864–2882 Maddy D, Demir T, Bridgland DR, Veldkamp A, Stemerdink C, van der Schriek T, Westaway R (2008) The early Pleistocene development of the Gediz River, Western Turkey: an uplift-driven, climate-controlled system? Quatern Int 189(1):115–128 Maddy D, Veldkamp A, Jongmans AG, Candy I, Demir T, Schoorl JM, van der Schriek T, Stemerdink C, Scaife RG, van Gorp W (2012) Volcanic disruption and drainage diversion of the palaeo-Hudut River, a tributary of the Early Pleistocene Gediz River, Western Turkey. Geomorphology 165–166:62–77 Maddy D, Schreve D, Demir T, Veldkamp A, Wijbrans JR, van Gorp W, van Hinsbergen DJJ, Dekkers MJ, Scaife R, Schoorl JM, Stemerdink C, van der Schriek T (2015) The earliest securely-dated hominin artefact in Anatolia? Quat Sci Rev 109:68–75 Maddy D, Veldkamp A, Demir T, van Gorp W, Wijbrans JR, van Hinsbergen DJJ, Dekkers MJ, Scahreve D, Schoorl JM, Scaife R, Stemerdink C, van der Schriek T, Bridgland DR, Aytaç AS (2017) The Gediz River fluvial archive: a benchmark for Quaternary research in Western Anatolia. Quatern Sci Rev 166:68–75 Otto WF (1965) Dionysos: myth and cult. Indiana University Press, 288 p Ozaner FS (1992) Detecting the polycyclic drainage evolution in Kula region (western Turkey) using aerial photographs. ITC J. 1992– 3:249–253 Philippson A (1913a) Das Vulkangebait von Kula in Lyden, die Katakekaumene der Alten. Petermann’s Mitteilungen aus Justus Perthes’ Geographischer Anstalt, v 118, pp 237–241

E. Şen et al. Philippson A (1913b) Der Hauptteil des Vulkangebietes von Kula (Lydien) der Katakekaumene der Alten. Nach topographischen und geologischen, scale 1:50000. Petermann’s Mitteilungen aus Justus Perthes’ Geographischer Anstalt, v 118, Karten und Bilder, p 40 Philippson A (1918) Kleinasien, Handbuch der Regionalen Geologie. 183 pp, 4 fig. 3 fold, maps. Heidelberg Pliny the elder, The natural history, Book 14; Chapter 9 John Bostock, MD, FRS, HT Riley, Esq., BA, Ed Richardson-Bunbury JM (1992) The Basalts of Kula and their relation to extension in Western Turkey. PhD thesis, Cambridge University, Cambridge, 174 p Richardson-Bunbury JM (1996) The Kula Volcanic Field, western Turkey: the development of a Holocene alkali basalt province and the adjacent normal-faulting graben. Geol Mag 133(3):275–283 Rossi MJ, Gudmundsson A (1996) The morphology and formation of flew-lobe shield volcanoes. J Volcanol Geoth Res 72(3): 291–308 Şahiner E, Erturaç MK, Meriç N (2017) Dating of geological samples over millions of years by Thermally Assisted Optically Stimulated Luminescence (TA-OSL) technique: Gediz River Terraces, Kula/Manisa (in Turkish with extended abstract). Geol Bull Turk 60(4):489–506. https://doi.org/10.25288/tjb.360609 Şen E, Aydar E, Bayhan H, Gourgaud A (2014) Alkali Bazalt ve Piroklastik Çökellerin Volkanolojik Özellikleri, Kula Volkanları, Batı Anadolu. Yerbilimleri 35(3):219–251 Seyitoğlu G (1997) Late Cenozoic tectono-sedimentary development of the Selendi and Uşak-Güre basins: a contribution to the discussion on the development of east-west and north trending basins in western Turkey. Geol Mag 134(2):163–175 Tekkaya I (1976) İnsanlara ait fosil ayak izleri. Yeryuvarı ve İnsan 1(2):8–10 Texier C (1862) Asie mineure description: géographique, historique et archéologique des provinces et des villes de la Chersonnese d’Asie; Raccolta delle histoire delle vite degl’Imperatori Ottomani sino a Mehemet IV. regnante; Relatione del serraglio degl’imperatori Turchi Ottomani, Firmin Didot Fré́res Unvin T (2005) Wine and vine. Taylor & Francis e-Library, 415 p (ISBN 0-203-01326-3) Washington HS (1893) The volcanoes of the Kula basin in Lydia. PhD thesis, University of Leipzig, Germany Westaway R, Pringle M, Yurtmen S, Demir T, Bridgland D, Rowbotham G, Maddy D (2004) Pliocene and Quaternary regional uplift in western Turkey: the Gediz river terrace staircase and the volcanism at Kula. Tectonophys 391:121–169 Westaway R, Guillou H, Yurtmen S, Beck A, Bridgland D, Demir T, Scaillet S, Rowbotham G (2006) Late Cenozoic uplift of western Turkey: improved dating of the Kula Quaternary volcanic field and numerical modelling of the Gediz river terrace staircase. Glob Planet Chang 51:131–171

Nemrut Caldera and Eastern Anatolian Volcanoes: Fire in the Highlands

35

İnan Ulusoy, H. Evren Çubukçu, Damase Mouralis, and Erkan Aydar

Abstract

Volcanism is one of the main actors in the formation of the Eastern Anatolian landscape. Quaternary volcanism covers a significant area in Eastern Anatolia where Holocene and historical activity have been reported. Nemrut Caldera is one of the youngest volcanoes in the region, with a small-size collapse caldera forming a spectacular landscape. Mount Nemrut is characterized by extension-related peralkaline volcanism in this well-known continental-collisional setting. Following the collapse of the Quaternary caldera, the activity continued within the caldera and at the northern fissure zone. Post-caldera activity shaping the intra-caldera region is represented by domes, lava flows and phreatic/phreatomagmatic explosions. While the products of this activity cover the eastern part of the caldera, the western half of the caldera is filled with a fresh volcanic lake. Hydrothermal activity is marked with fumaroles and hot springs in the caldera. The northern fissure zone produced the youngest effusive activity in Anatolia. Bimodal fissural activity is characterized by successive rhyolite and basalt flows. Historical and mythological records of the Nemrut volcanism are scattered in a wide historical time span. During the Quaternary, Mount Nemrut and Süphan have contributed to the gradual enclosure of Van Lake Basin. They are located on the divide separating the Van Lake Basin from the

Murat-Euphrates drainage basin. Products of explosive volcanism of Nemrut Caldera filled the Bitlis and Güzeldere valleys, separating the Van Lake Basin from the Dicle-Tigris hydrosystem. Keywords

Nemrut volcano Turkey

35.1

H. E. Çubukçu e-mail: [email protected] E. Aydar e-mail: [email protected] D. Mouralis UMR 6266 (IDEES) CNRS Rouen University and UMR 8591 (LGP) CNRS, Paris I University, Paris, France e-mail: [email protected]

Caldera




Van Lake

Introduction

Along with active tectonics, volcanism has played an important role in the formation of the current morphology of Eastern Anatolia. Following the collision between the Arabian and Eurasian plates, volcanism started in the Tertiary and continued until historical times. Quaternary volcanism is marked by the major volcanoes located north of Lake Van: Nemrut Caldera, Mount Ağrı (Ararat), Mount Tendürek and Mount Süphan. Other small volcanic centres such as Bilican, Akdoğan, Akça, Girekol, Meydan and Çıplak (Topdağı) volcanoes present post-collisional volcanism. This young geological history coincided with human history for thousands of years.

35.2 İ. Ulusoy (&)
H. E. Çubukçu
E. Aydar Department of Geological Engineering, Hacettepe University, 06800 Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected]




Volcanism and Eastern Anatolian Landscape

Volcanic structures in Eastern Anatolia with their high peaks constitute the regional landscape and their thick products cover the lowlands. Mount Ağrı (Ararat) is the highest summit of Turkey. The higher peak of the double-peaked stratovolcano, Greater Ağrı, culminates with a 5165-m-summit while the Lesser Ağrı is 3898 m high. It is a polygenetic, composite volcano hosting numerous parasitic domes and cones on its flanks. The volcano is built up predominantly by andesitic, dacitic

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_35

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lavas and the associated pyroclastic rocks; products are typically calcalkaline in composition (Yılmaz et al. 1998). Radiometric ages show that volcanic activity in Mount Ağrı occurred mainly between *1.5 Ma and 1.0) acidic volcanic rocks with respect to basic varieties with evident scarcity of intermediate compositions (Daly Gap), which are partly represented by inclusions in highly evolved rocks (b) characteristic peralkaline accessory mineral assemblages composed of aenigmatite, alkali amphibole (arfvedsonite, riebeckite, ferrorichterite), aegirine, fayalite and REE-Ti silicate chevkinite. Moreover, the existence of a small (diameter < 10 km) collapsed caldera indicates a shallow magma chamber. The overall geochemical and mineralogical affinity of Nemrut volcanism exhibits strong similarities to those of the well-known volcanic rift zones formed by intra-continental extension (i.e., East African Rift System). Nemrut volcanism commenced with metaluminous trachytic lavas (Atasoy et al. 1989; Pearce et al. 1990) and the construction of the central cone was related to effusive/intrusive episodes of peralkaline rhyolites (abundant comendites, scarce pantellerites, nomenclature after Macdonald 1974) and comenditic trachytes. Moreover, the pre-caldera stage is characterized by peripheral silicic doming; the Kirkor Dome Complex and Mazik Dome are two of the largest silicic domes, located southwest and west of the volcano, respectively. During the pre-caldera phase of the activity, rare basaltic trachyandesitic (mugearite) lava flows (c. 100–80 ka; Notsu et al. 1995) are observed on the southern and southwestern flanks. During its construction, the Nemrut Volcano has been calculated to culminate at 4500 m a.s.l. (Aydar et al. 2003). Following the construction of the volcano, explosive eruptions, which occurred in at least two rapid consecutive

stages, produced pyroclastic fall/flow deposits. Two major ignimbritic flows accompanied with plinian deposits have been distinguished. The older Nemrut ignimbrite is separated from the younger Kantaşı ignimbrite by multiple levels of plinian fallback units located on the north of the caldera. According to radiometric data, the latest effusive products just prior to the caldera-forming pyroclastic episode were circa 100– 90 ka old and hence, a younger age of at most 89 ka for ignimbritic flows is suggested (Çubukçu et al. 2012). Thus, the timing of caldera-forming eruptions, which has evacuated the magma chamber, leading to the caldera collapse, has possibly taken place between 90 and 30 ka ago (Çubukçu et al. 2012; Ulusoy et al. 2012). According to their radiometric data, Sumita and Schmincke (2013b) propose that the Nemrut Caldera formed at ca. 30 ka. The Nemrut Caldera collapsed in a piecemeal manner and is constituted of three main blocks (Ulusoy et al. 2008). Products of post-caldera activity are present in the intra-caldera area and on the northern flank where a “rift zone” developed in ca. 1597 AD. Intra-caldera lavas and domes are peralkaline. Rhyolites (comendite) bear benmoreitic enclaves abundantly and date between 30 ka (Matsuda et al. 1990) and 15 ka (Çubukçu et al. 2012). Moreover, intra-caldera phreatomagmatic deposits originating from several explosion craters yield younger ages (i.e., 8 ka, Çubukçu et al. 2012). The fissure eruption mentioned in historical records (Şerefhan 1597; Aydar et al. 2003), produced a spectacular outcrop of bimodal peralkaline rhyolite and basalt, forming a rift zone of 5 km length with an overall width of 50 m. Bimodal rift zone activity commenced with scarce basaltic lavas, which are overlain by comenditic lava flows.

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Nemrut Caldera and Eastern Anatolian Volcanoes …

35.3.2 Historical Descriptions Karakhanian et al. (2002) quote three historical events of Mount Nemrut: (1) The 1441 AD event seems to be related to the eruptions located on the Nemrut fissure zone and is probably linked with the formation of the fissure. According to the Şerefhan’s (1597) observations, the activity of the fissure zone continued until 1590’s: In the year of 1441, Nemrut Mount between the towns of Khlat (Ahlat) and Baghesh (Tatvan) thundered suddenly as a terrific thunder-storm; the entire country shuddered since they saw how a wide crack split the mountain and misty smoke and fetid flame was coming out of the crack. Children fell sick of that smell, and stones boiled of the burning flame, huge stones five kangoun (?) in weight were thrown into the sky; the fire was seen from the two-day travel distance. The town of Ahlat was trembling from that thunder. The mountain split and opened a huge abyss, and stones on the summit boiled and melted, and glued each other, and so this continued for years.

(2) Karakhanian et al. (2006), and Haroutiunian (2004) dispute over the origin of April 13, 1692 AD event. Karakhanian et al. (2002, 2006) propose this event as a volcanic activity rather than Haroutiunian (2004)’s proposal of a sandstorm In the town of Baghesh (Tatvan), on April 13, summer 1692, sunlight dimmed ever since the morning and coloured plumbeous; darkness shrouded the earth so that people could not see each other. Till the very evening, red dust had fallen to the ground and there was an earthquake, many settlements were ruined and many people died (Bolnetsi 1956).

(3) The 18 May 1881 AD event, qualified as weak volcanic activity by Karakhanian et al. (2002), seems debatable. According to the description On 18 May 1881, there was a strong earthquake in Van; everything was destroyed in Terzour Village. A day before the earthquake, one of the villagers heard terrible underground boom on Mount Nemrut. The village of Terzour is built on a lava flow from the Nemrut crater 400 years ago.

However, the “400-year-old” lava flow could not be other than the lava flows on the Nemrut fissure; and there are no traces of remnants of any village along these flows and no village exists nearby. The name Terzour is not found in literature; it is totally unknown or forgotten: The most detailed description of Mount Nemrut and its eruption on the northern fissure zone (Fig. 35.4) has been made by Şerefhan (1597). His “lengthy” descriptions precisely correlate with the present situation. A mythological description given in the introduction of the text is still known as a folkloric tale (with small variations) in Anatolia. Aydar

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et al. (2003) give the translation of the text (see the text below, with the authors’ remarks in parenthesis): (Mythological description) To the north of Bedlis (actual Bitlis City), between the cities of Muş and Ahlat, there is a high mountain called ‘Nemruz’ (actual Nemrut). Natives believe that Nemruz (the king) used to spend the winters around and the summers on this mountain. For this purpose, he had a castle and a palace built on the summit. He used to live and spend lots of time there. He fell victim to God’s wrath and got caught. Consequently, the god let this mountain, the height of which was not less than 2000 zira (ancient length unit: 1 zira = 0.757738 m), collapse and sink 1500 zira (caldera collapse). (Live description of Nemrut) This sinking created a lake of 5000 zira wide. Its water is crystal clear and extremely cool. It is strange that when digging a pit on its banks hot water spouts upward. The land is stony. There is neither much soil nor much mud. Because the black rocks (obsidian flows) lay next to each other. Some of these rocks are of a kind called camel’s eye by Turks. They are hard and do resemble filled honeycombs (spherulitic obsidian). In addition, there is another kind of stone, which is softer than the others, like dark rocks (dark-coloured ignimbrites). (Live description of the eruption, Fig. 35.4) In the northern part of this location there is a canal (fissure) through which flows a dark water (basaltic magma). It resembles the dark water which flows of the blacksmith’s bellows and its weight is heavier than iron. It spouts upward and quickly flows down to the gorge. According to me, each year this water increases and decreases. It jets more than 30 zira (lava fountain), and spreads around longer than 100 zira (ejecta). And here it spouts out from several points (rift zone). Whoever has the intention to separate part of this water will face great difficulties (hard basaltic rock).

35.3.3 Mythology and Speculations Gadjimuradov and Schmoeckel (2005) etymologically linked the word “Nemrut” with an old Assyrian king “Ninurta” (Ninurda, Nimurda, Nimrud and Nemrut). “Nin” (or “nine”) in many Middle East languages means mother and/or grandmother (grandmother in Turkish). “Urda” means “erde” in German, “earth” in English or “yurt” in Turkish (Gadjimuradov and Schmoeckel 2005). Thus “ninurta” is the mother of earth. In present-day Turkish, the word “Nemrut” is literally “merciless, cruel and sulky”. Urartian civilization reigned in the area between the 13th cc–6th cc BC and was repeatedly attacked by the Assyrians. Assyrian Kings Tukulti-Ninurta I (reigned 1244 BC to 1208 BC) and Tukulti-Ninurta II (reigned 890 BC to 884 BC) controlled two Urartian towns (Çilingiroğlu 1997). They may have witnessed the cruelty of the volcano. Gadjimuradov and Schmoeckel (2005) note that, other than the Assyrian king, Ninurta is the hero-god in Mesopotamian civilizations (as Ninurta for the Akkadians and Nimmah or Ninhursag for the Sumerians) and generally

594 Fig. 35.4 Fissure zone (follow the blue arrows) at the northern flank of the volcano where the 1441–1597 AD activities took place. Basaltic lava flows and glassy rhyolitic lava domes and flows representing the bimodal fissural activity (1 m pan-sharpened KOMSAT-2 satellite image draped over Digital Elevation Model, Datum WGS84)

İ. Ulusoy et al.

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illustrated with a bow or spear (of flames). Ninhursag is the “goddess of earth” or “goddess of mountain ranges” and referred to the mother of Ninurta. An older myth describing the battle of Ninurta and the mountain (Karahashi 2004) is also noteworthy. In the Sumerian mythological poem “Ninurta Lugal-e” (Exploits of Ninurta), Asag (or Anzu) was a monstrous demon (Black and Green 1992). Asag, whose name means “demon that causes sickness”, is often associated with the serpent or dragon mythological archetype (Black and Green 1992). There are various descriptions of Asag, who is sometimes symbolized as a dragon (Karahashi 2004). Foster (2000) and Karahashi (2004) suggest that “Asag” is “a demonically personified volcano and its associated phenomena”. Black et al. (1998) give the full translation of Ninurta’s battle with the mountain (Karahashi 2004) from Sumerian: The Lord cried “Alas!” so that Heaven trembled, and Earth huddled at his feet and was terrified (?) at his strength. Enlil (Father of Ninurta) became confused and went out of the E-kur. The Mountains were devastated. That day the earth became dark, the Anuna trembled. The Hero beat his thighs with his fists. The gods dispersed; the Anuna disappeared over the horizon like sheep. The Lord arose, touching the sky; Ninurta went to battle, with one step (?) he covered a league, he was an alarming storm, and rode on the eight winds towards the rebel lands. His arms grasped the lance. The mace snarled at the Mountains, the club began to devour the entire enemy. He fitted the evil wind and the sirocco on a pole (?); he placed the quiver on its hook (?). An enormous hurricane, irresistible, went before the Hero, stirred up the dust, caused the dust to settle, levelled high and low, and filled the holes. It caused a rain of coals and flaming fires; the fire consumed men. It overturned tall trees by their trunks, reducing the forests to heaps, Earth put her hands on her heart and cried harrowingly; the Tigris was muddied, disturbed, cloudy, stirred up. He hurried to battle on the boat Ma-kar-nunta-eda; the people there did not know where to turn, they bumped into (?) the walls. The birds there tried to lift their heads to fly away, but their wings trailed on the ground. The storm flooded out the fish there in the subterranean waters, their mouths snapped at the air. It reduced the animals of the open country to firewood, roasting them like locusts. It was a deluge rising and disastrously ruining the Mountains.

35.4

The Volcanic Activity and the Progressive Damming of the Lake

35.4.1 Present-Day Hydrographic Network in the Western Part of Van Lake Basin The northwestern part of the Van Lake is occupied by Nemrut and Süphan composite volcanoes (Fig. 35.5). During the Quaternary, their emplacement has contributed to the gradual enclosure of the Van Lake Basin. The Süphan and Nemrut Volcano are located on the divide separating the

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Van Lake Basin from the Murat (southern branch of the Euphrates) drainage basin. Moreover, the pyroclastites of Nemrut Volcano fill the Bitlis and Güzeldere valleys and separate the Van Lake basin from the Dicle (Tigris) watershed (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Mouralis et al. 2010; Sumita and Schmincke 2013a, b). Van Lake is located in an endorheic catchment with no seaward outflow. The main tributaries of the lake are located in the north (Zilan River) and eastern parts (Muradiye, Karasu and Engil rivers) of the drainage area. In contrast, the southern and western parts of the catchment do not show any important drainage area or water input. In this southern and western parts, some valleys with poorly organized drainage are morphologically connected to the lake. In the southern part, which is formed by Bitlis Massif highlands rising rapidly above the lake, the heads of some important valleys directed southwards to the Tigris headwaters are hanging above the lake. This morphology suggests a possible impact of tectonics on this shoreline (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010). In the northern part of the basin, east of Süphan volcano, the threshold separating Van Lake Basin from the Murat watershed basin reaches ca. 1830 m a.s.l. (ca +180 m above present-day lake level). In the western part of the basin, the topographic separations between the Van Lake Basin and its adjoining basins (Murat and Tigris) have the lowest elevations. These places constitute the thresholds where the lake may discharge in case of rising water levels. The three successive thresholds are as follows (Akköprü 2011). The lowest is located at 1736 m a.s.l. (+88 m) in the Güzeldere valley, connected to the Dicle basin. The second threshold is located in the southern part of the lake, at 1765 m a.s.l. (+117 m), in the Değirmen valley, also connected to the Dicle Basin. The third one is located immediately south of the Nemrut Volcano, at 1780 m a.s.l. (+142 m). This threshold is located on the pass separating Lake Van from the Muş plain (to the north-west) and leading to the head of the Bitlis Valley (to the southwest), that are connected, respectively to the Murat and to the Dicle Basin. The precise location of the thresholds is unclear in the present day morphology (Akköprü 2011). The former two are located in the middle of wide (mature-like) and poorly drained valleys, so that there is no morphological evidence of the presence of a water divide perpendicular to the axis of the valleys. According to the geology, all thresholds are located in sectors filled-in by pyroclastics, whereas threshold at 1765 m a.s.l. is also located in a karstic area.

35.4.2 Chronology of the Volcanic Activity In the northern part of the Van Lake, the chronology of the emplacement of the Süphan volcano has yet to be constrained. Published data indicate Middle-to-Upper

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Fig. 35.5 Impact of volcanic activity on the hydrographic network and main watersheds (western part of Van Lake)

Pleistocene activity ranging from 0.8 to 0.01 Ma (see reviews in Yılmaz et al. 1998 and more recently in Özdemir and Güleç 2014). The chronology of the emplacement of the Nemrut Volcano is better known thanks to recent research (Sumita and Schmincke 2013a, b). According to Sumita and Schmincke (2013a), the oldest ignimbrites are located in the northern part of the volcano, with ages ranging from 265 ± 4 to ca. 40.9 ± 1.7 ka. However, concerning the Bitlis Gorge, they have not presented any radiometric dating on the ignimbrite filling in the gorge; rather, they simply suggest an age older than 200 ka. In the southern part of the volcano, Sumita and Schmincke (2013b) have dated two ignimbrites. The oldest ones, called Küçüksu Ignimbrite, are 216.4 ± 14.3 ka (also dated 190 ka in Mouralis et al. 2010), whereas the younger, Tatvan Ignimbrite, are dated for 45.1 ± 2.1 ka. Finally, the youngest ignimbrite of the Nemrut Volcano is the Nemrut ignimbrite, dated 33.7 ± 10.9 ka which, being part of a unit comprising fallouts and ignimbrite flows, may be associated with the collapse of the present-day caldera (Sumita and Schmincke 2013b). At the western part of the lake, where the lowest threshold separating the Van Lake Basin from the Dicle watershed is located, it is possible to distinguish at least six successive morphological stages (Fig. 35.6). Stage 1. During an initial stage (Lower-to-beginning of Middle Pleistocene?), an old Van Lake may have been drained into the Murat hydrographic network either northwards

through the present-day Patnos Plain, or westwards to the Muş plain. At an imprecise date (Lower-to-Middle Pleistocene?), the emplacement of Süphan and Nemrut volcanoes has progressively closed these ancient outlets. Stage 2. A dark-coloured ignimbrite covered a very large area, from the Nemrut to the southern flanks of the Bitlis Massif. This ignimbrite filled two of the possible outlets of Van Lake: the valleys of Bitlis and Küçüksu-Güzeldere. This ignimbrite is called “Obuz ignimbrite” by Mouralis et al. (2010), Tuğ ignimbrite by Ulusoy et al. (2012) and Küçüksu ignimbrite by Sumita and Schmincke (2013b) who indicate an age of ca. 216 ka. Stage 3. A later erosion of this black-coloured ignimbrite allowed a reconnection of the Küçüksu–Güzeldere system, as evidenced by erosional features and alluvial deposits in the valley. The ca. 120 ka age by Mouralis et al. (2010) and Sumita and Schmincke (2013b) on the same pumice fallout overlying the Obuz–Küçüksu ignimbrite probably indicates the end of this stage. Stage 4. The emplacement of the Incekaya tuff-cone, associated with the emplacement of the Dibekli cinder cones on top of the Obuz–Küçüksu ignimbrite, contributes to the topographic separation between the Küçüksu palaeo-valley already heading westwards and the Düzcealan bay to the east. This piling accentuates the disruption between two former parts of a palaeo-Küçüksu valley, possibly heading eastwards in an older stage. Landscape in this valley now offers many fossil features, with its small watershed nested into a wide but fragmented river morphology. Because of the

35

Nemrut Caldera and Eastern Anatolian Volcanoes …

597

Fig. 35.6 Chronology of the Nemrut volcanic activity in regards to variation of the Van Lake level. Volcanic activity: (1) Ar39/Ar40 dates of ignimbrites (Sumita and Schmincke 2013b), (2) Ar39/Ar40 dates of fallout units in Sumita and Schmincke (2013b), (3) Ar39/Ar40 dates of fallout units in Mouralis et al. (2010). Lake level changes: (4) High

lake levels according to Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2010), modified by Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2011), (5) 14C dates (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010), with white circles indicating dates at the limit of the method, (6) U/Th dates (green squares) according to Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2010) and OSL dates (orange circles) according to Christol et al. (2013)

fill-in of these two valleys, the lake becomes, at least for a certain time, an endorheic system. Stage 5. A new ignimbrite from the Nemrut Volcano fills the southwestern valleys (Kotum-Küçuksu-Güzeldere). The roof of this formation constitutes the present day topographic threshold of the lake at 1736 m a.s.l. It is called Kotum ignimbrite by Mouralis et al. (2010) and Tatvan ignimbrite by Sumita and Schmincke (2013a, b) who report an age of ca. 45 ka. It fills the Kotum Valley and a part of the Küçuksu-Güzeldere palaeo-valley. Ulusoy et al. (2012) define this ignimbrite as a part of widespread Nemrut ignimbrite, which is responsible for the collapse of the caldera. Stage 4 and 5 are responsible for the definitive closure of Van Lake. Stage 6. After the deposition of the youngest ignimbrite, the local river network is totally disorganized. For example, the Küçüksu valley is drained towards two different directions. Its former upstream part is drained into Lake Van (through the Küçüksu valley flowing into the Kotum valley), whereas its former downstream part is still flowing into the Dicle headwaters.

lake level changes evidenced by Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2010, 2011) and Christol et al. (2013) using the stratigraphic study and dating of the late Pleistocene lake terraces (Fig. 35.6). These authors recognized five main high lake levels since ca. 200 ka. The first high lake level recorded in the lacustrine terraces (High lake level 1) occurred before ca. 130 ka ago, according to OSL dating. It is described as an irregular lake level with fluctuations correlated with volcanic activity and damming of the lake (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2011). This high lake level was thought to have been initiated by the emplacement of the Obuz ignimbrite (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2010; Mouralis et al. 2010). However, the ca. 216 ka date obtained recently by Sumita and Schmincke (2013b) for this ignimbrite indicates that this flow has no relationship with the ca. 130 ka old terrace deposits. It is, however, to be noticed that on a total of 32 radiometric dates published by Sumita and Schmincke (2013b), nine dates range between 190 to 150 ka, indicating an important volcanic event before the high lake level dated by Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2011). According to Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2011), another high lake level (# “2”) occurred at ca. 39–33 ka (14C-dated organic deposits and 40Ar/39Ar dates of tephra material associated with lake terraces). This high lake level may be correlated with various pyroclastics dated by Sumita and Schmincke (2013b), especially with their ca. 45 ka old Tatvan ignimbrite, filling-in the Kotum Valley. Finally, the high lake level # “3”, dated ca. 29.8–25 ka by Kuzucuoğlu et al. (2011), according to 14C and OSL dating, occurred immediately after the so-called Nemrut Depositional Unit (NDU) dated for ca. 30 ka by Sumita and Schmincke (2013b). This NDU corresponds to a very high magnitude eruption that is probably responsible for the formation of the present caldera.

35.4.3 Impacts of Lake Damming By closing the lake during the Middle-to-Upper Pleistocene, the volcanic activity also triggered changes in lake water chemistry and water level. Lake Van is a soda lake and the change of water chemistry from freshwater to present-day soda may be an index of the closure of the lake. Sumita and Schmincke (2013b) propose that the change in the chemistry occurred ca. 400 ka ago. We, however, have no geomorphologic evidence for such an early enclosure of the lake. Concerning the Upper Pleistocene, it is possible to correlate volcanic and morphologic data presented here with

İ. Ulusoy et al.

598

35.5

Conclusion

Our knowledge of the morphology of Eastern Anatolia mountainous region is the result of collaborative research focused on tectonics, volcanism and geomorphology. Formations and landforms of these high plateaus, bounded by rough terrains and ranges surrounding a large central soda lake, testify to the dominating impacts of an active volcanic system in the formative processes of the landscape, as well as for the capacity of this system to provide key information and clues for reconstructing geomorphologic evolution of such a region. Interactions between human societies and this geography have been particularly intense for the last few thousands of years. Regarding past and long-duration archives, archaeological, geographical and geological findings unearthed until now illustrate the long-lasting occupation of the area by Prehistoric societies (e.g., mining, chopping and transporting obsidian) and by Ancient societies (e.g., the Urartians during the first millennium BC, who worshiped the Süphan volcano and established tight and high technology relationships with rivers and the lake). These relationships are everlastingly present. Within a two-year period, between October 2003 and October 2005, 133 seismic events were recorded in the close vicinity of the Nemrut Volcano; 32 of them (magnitudes—Md—ranging from 1.3 to 4.0) were classified as volcanic events (Ulusoy et al. 2008). The possible transport pathways of products of expected volcanic events are unified in three main directions: Bitlis, Güroymak, Tatvan and Ahlat cities (Aydar et al. 2003), with a total population concerned amounting to ca. 235.000. Thus, active tectonic regime, historical eruptions, occurrence of mantle-derived magmatic gases, fumarolic and hydrothermal activity make Nemrut Volcano a real danger for its vicinity (Aydar et al. 2003) and the chief element of the landscape in the area. Acknowledgements The authors are thankful to Kevin McClain for his constructive remarks on improving the English of the manuscript. We are very grateful to Mustafa Sabri Türkay for permitting us to use his Nemrut photograph.

References Akköprü E (2011) Etudes géomorphologiques dans la partie sud-ouest du lac de Van (Tatvan-Göllü). PhD Thesis (Unpublished), Paris 1 Panthéon- Sorbonne University, 187 pp (in French and Turkish) Atasoy E, Terzioğlu N, Mumcuoğlu Ç (1989) Nemrut Volkanı Jeolojisi ve Jeotermal Olanakları, TPAO Arama Grubu Başkanlığı, Rapor no: 393 (unpublished)

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(Turkey): the clue for quantifying deep water renewal. Earth Planet Sci Lett 125:357–370 Koçyiğit A, Yılmaz A, Adamiac S, Kuloshvili S (2001) Neotectonics of East Anatolian Plateau (Turkey) and Lesser Caucasus: implication for transition from thrusting to strikeslip faulting. Geodin Acta 14:177–195 Kuzucuoğlu C, Christol C, Mouralis D et al (2010) Formation of the upper pleistocene terraces of Lake Van (Turkey). J Quat Sci 25 (7):1124–1137 Kuzucuoğlu C, Mouralis D, Dogu A-F et al (2011) Lake Van (Turkey) : geological archives of past high levels, and geomorphological evolution of the Lake Basin. In: ILIC 2011, 5th international congress of limnology (Konstanz), pp 101–102 Macdonald R (1974) Nomenclature and petrochemistry of the peralkaline oversaturated extrusive rocks. Bull Volcanol 38(Special Issue):498–516 (In: Bailey DK, Barberi F, Macdonald R (eds) Oversaturated extrusive peralkaline volcanic rocks) Matsuda JI, Ui T, Notsu K, Nagao K, Kita I, Fujitani T, Çakmak İ, Ercan T, Türkecan A (1990) Geochemical study of collision volcanism at the plate boundary in Turkey (comparison with subduction volcanism in Japan). Initial report on Geochemical data, Turkey-Japan Volcanological Project Part II, p 71 Mouralis D, Kuzucuoğlu C, Akköprü E et al (2010) Les Pyroclastites du Sud-Ouest du Lac de Van: Implications sur la Paléo-Hydrographie Régionale. Quaternaire 21(4):417–433 MTA (1964) Geological map of Turkey (1:500.000). MTA (Institute of Mineral Research and Exploration), Ankara, Turkey Mutlu H, Güleç N, Hilton DR, Aydın H, Halldórsson SA (2012) Spatial variations in gas and stable isotope compositions of thermal fluids around Lake Van: implications for crust-mantle dynamics in eastern Turkey. Chem Geol 300–301:165–176 Nagao K, Matsuda JI, Kita I, Ercan T (1989) Noble gas and carbon isotopic composition in Quaternary volcanic area in Turkey. Jeomorfoloji Dergisi 17:101–110 Notsu K, Fujitoni T, Ui T, Matsuda J, Ercan T (1995) Geochemical features of collision related volcanic rocks in central and Eastern Anatolia, Turkey. J Volcanol Geoth Res 64:171–192 Özdemir Y, Güleç N (2014) Geological and geochemical evolution of the Quaternary Süphan stratovolcano, eastern Anatolia, Turkey:

599 evidence for the Lithosphere-Asthenosphere interaction in post-collisional volcanism. J Petrol 55(1):37–62 Pamir HN (1951) Tendürek dağı. İstanbul Üniv. Fen Fak. Mecm. B, 16:83–88 Pawlewicz MJ, Steinshouer DW, Gautier DL (1997) Map showing geology, oil and gas fields, and geologic provinces of Europe including Turkey. USGS Open file Report, 97-470-I Pearce JA, Bender JF, De Long SE, Kidd WSF, Low PJ, Güner Y, Şaroğlu F, Yılmaz Y, Moorbath S, Mitchell JJ (1990) Genesis of collision volcanism in eastern Anatolia Turkey. J Volcanol Geoth Res 44:189–229 Şerefhan (1597) Şerefname: Kürt tarihi (translated from Arabic to Turkish by M. Emin Bozarslan), 4th ed. (1990). Hasat Yayınları, 544 p Siebert L, Simkin T (2002) Volcanoes of the world: an illustrated catalog of Holocene volcanoes and their eruptions. Smithsonian Institution, Global Volcanism Program Digital Information Series GVP-3 Sumita M, Schmincke H-U (2013a) Impact of volcanism on the evolution of Lake Van I: evolution of explosive volcanism of Nemrut Volcano (eastern Anatolia) during the Past >400.000 Years. Bull Volcanol 75(5):1–32 Sumita M, Schmincke H-U (2013b) Impact of volcanism on the evolution of Lake Van II: temporal evolution of explosive volcanism of Nemrut Volcano (eastern Anatolia) during the Past Ca. 0.4 Ma. J Volcanol Geotherm Res 253:15–34 Ulusoy İ, Labazuy P, Aydar E, Ersoy O, Çubukçu E (2008) Structure of the Nemrut Caldera (Eastern Anatolia, Turkey) and associated hydrothermal fluid circulation. J Volcanol Geoth Res 174(4):269–283 Ulusoy İ, Çubukçu HE, Aydar E, Labazuy P, Ersoy O, Şen E, Gourgaud A (2012) Volcanological evolution and caldera forming eruptions of Mt. Nemrut (Eastern Turkey). J Volcanol Geoth Res 245–246:21–39 Wagner M (1848) Reise nach dem Ararat und dem Hochland Armenien. In: Reisen und Landesbeschreibungen. Widermanna und Hau¡a, Stuttgart, vol. 35, 230 p Yılmaz Y, Güner Y, Saroğlu F (1998) Geology of the Quaternary volcanic centres of the east Anatolia. J Volcanol Geoth Res 85(1–4): 173–210

Part VIII Geoheritage

Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

36

Nizamettin Kazancı and Catherine Kuzucuoğlu

Abstract

Turkey could be subject of a case study for the diversity of risks and threats on landscapes from soil erosion to desertification, from rapid transformation of the nature by waterworks to salinization and to decreasing level of groundwater. Deterioration of the landscapes, particularly of highlands by quarry and mining activities and road-cuts are almost usual results in the country, in spite of intensive conservation efforts of official bodies and volunteers. However, for a proper evaluation of the threats and nature conservation in Turkey, one needs to take into account its geographic position at 26°–45° E/36°–42°N, altitudes differences from sea level to more than 5000 m a.s.l., archaeological and historical past since Göbeklitepe (ca. 12 ka), and its considerable population up to 80 million people. These complex geographic and anthropogenic situations increase the threats on the landscapes. Presently, desertification is a very noticeable risk for Turkey. The significant threats for the nature started in the 1950s by industrialization and expansion of the agriculture. Hundreds of dams built for hydroelectricity and irrigation changed the local climatic conditions and increased land losses. Recently, migrations from rural areas to towns have created new and extra pressure on lands as farmlands are opening for settlements in spite of the presence of conservation rules. On the other hand, growing public awareness on nature conservation seems to be a big hope. Forests, national parks, historical and archaeological sites, biosphere

N. Kazancı (&) Geological Engineering Department, Ankara University, 06830 Gölbaşı, Ankara, Turkey e-mail: [email protected] C. Kuzucuoğlu Laboratory of Physical Geography (LGP, UMR 8591), CNRS, Universities of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and Paris 12 U-Pec, e-mail: [email protected]

reserves, natural monuments and conservation areas that cover around 27% of the country, is now registered for conservation purposes by different protection legislations, although the effectiveness of these conservation measures has yet to be proven. Keywords

Geoheritage Turkey

36.1




Conservation




Landscape degradation

Introduction

In geomorphological and geological terms, landscapes and landforms are highly dynamic entities, which undergo continual change. Their formation and evolution involve many variables, among which a major one is the country’s society and inhabitants. Turkey is a case country for this subject, as prehistoric and historic cultures have succeeded in this land for several millennia. Discussions among scientists enlighten indeed the impacts of agriculture and animal husbandry practices on Anatolian landscapes even at the beginning of the Holocene, evidencing Neolithic man’s selection of forest tree species preferred for extensively domesticated animals and collection of fuelwood (e.g., Assouti and Hather 2001). Another example is the deforestation, which occurred in western and central Anatolia during the 2nd half of the 2nd millennium BC (Akkemik et al. 2012), giving birth to an original agricultural system. This system, mixing fruit and cereal production, tree fields, vineyards, olive and animal production is called the “Beyşehir Occupation Phase”, and lasted from ca. 1300/1100 BC to AD 450/750). Today, a rapid, also human-related, degradation of landscapes is generated by intense exploitation of natural resources, accelerated migration from rural areas to urban centres, intensification of agriculture, industry, tourism, energy, transportation, etc. (Kazancı et al. 2005). As a result, degradation of landscapes and soils is an important problem

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2019 C. Kuzucuoğlu et al. (eds.), Landscapes and Landforms of Turkey, World Geomorphological Landscapes, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03515-0_36

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Fig. 36.1 Erosion map of Turkey (ton.ha-1.yr-1). Note that the main reasons of high erosion in the Black Sea region are mass movements and floods. Source CEM (General Directorate for Combating Desertification and Erosion), 2015

for Turkey and an increasing concern for the population.1 While the deep transformation of the Turkish political and socio-economic system leads to the continuous transfer of rich agricultural land for urban use, it is also accompanied by severe environmental impacts, including spoiling natural landscapes and depleting ecosystems (Okumuş 2002). There is still some need for amelioration concerning the application, control (including independent research) and defence against misuses and illegal pollution, depletion of resources and their negative impacts (e.g., Hydroelectric “micro” power plants (HECS), especially in the eastern regions where old-born forests and hundreds of endemic species still exist; gold mining in the Aegean and Kaçkar range, obsidian, pumice, marble and travertine quarries in all regions of Turkey.

36.2

Threats upon Geomorphological Landscapes

36.2.1 Soil Loss In Turkey, soil untouched by man’s activities represents only 17.5% of the total land surface. The productivity of the rest is limited by topographical, chemical (e.g., high calcium

1

About 80 millions inhabitants in Turkey in 2015, of which 27% live in rural areas (Source: TUİK 2015).

carbonate content and alkalinity, low organic matter, etc.) and physical attributes (Kapur et al. 2003). In addition, 40% of the soils of the country present (A) horizon no deeper than 2 cm, only 30% reach 20–50 cm depth, and 2% of flat lands are infertile because of salinity problems. These characteristics add to other sensitivity factors of soil ecosystems towards erosion (i.e. climate, topography, intensive practices and/or overpressures, etc.), accentuating the difficulties raised by soil loss (Erdoğan et al. 2015; Parlak 2015).

36.2.1.1 Soil Erosion Measures for combating soil erosion appeared quite early in Turkey, as shown by archaeological researches in Çayönü and Çatalhöyük (Özdoğan et al. 2011, 2012). During the Bronze and Iron Ages, cities and temples favoured studying and teaching of preservation techniques to be used in agriculture, honey production, vineyards, olive cultivation, animal husbandry (Akurgal 1997; Yasuda 2002). Conservative measures at these early times aimed already at preserving soil, cultivated land and forest ground. Since antiquity, a good indicator of the amount of soil erosion in the past has been the progression of alluvial deposition at the mouths of large Aegean river valleys. In this region, siltation of antique harbours records an increase of sediment load since ca. 300 BC. Today, with more than 50% of the total land of the country classified as degraded by erosion, erosion heavily threatens the landscapes in Turkey as well as its arable land (36% of the country, i.e. 28 M ha) (Fig. 36.1). Causes involved in the erosion risk (Fig. 36.2) are in a decreasing order:

36

Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

605

Fig. 36.2 Types of land use and erosion intensity in Turkey (www.cem.gov.tr; last access in May 10, 2016)

• the steepness of slopes (62.5% of the country slopes are >15%, while only 8.5% are between 0 and 5%); • land use (especially non-conservatory practices), and its impacts on vegetation density and composition, causing destruction of forest and soil-protecting vegetation cover. In rural and natural areas, such pressures are: over-pasturing, fires, over-exploitation of wood, road-opening, construction of small hydroelectric power plants (HEC), quarrying and mining, land use change from rural to urban and touristic uses. Mountains are more sensitive to these pressures; • climatic factors such as rainfall intensity (e.g., storms) and irregularity (e.g., over-dried soils); • local factors such as rock types (e.g., clay, sand), slope processes (e.g., landslides), increasing impermeability of urban soils (e.g., favouring floods). Combating erosion has been a policy of all Turkish governments. For decades, the “Water and Soil Office” of the Rural Services Institute attached to the Prime Ministry, implemented efficient actions for sustainable practices in rural areas, also performing research on conservation of soil and water resources. In parallel, a private foundation called TEMA became very active with individuals and a few other NGOs, for raising public awareness and combating soil erosion in Turkey. In 2005, a State Bureau (CEM-General Directorate of Combating Desertification and Erosion) replaced the “Water and Soil Office”. It is now part of a new Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs where it is in charge of measures preventing soil erosion. Its main activities are to plant young trees over barren areas (often previously terraced) and to teach farmers about causes and ways to fight soil erosion.

36.2.1.2 Desertification Risk In Turkey, it is generally considered that central and south-eastern Anatolia faces high desertification risk (Fig. 36.3). This risk is defined by the irregularity of precipitation together with a total annual P < 400 mm. These climatic factors cause low density of vegetation cover (steppe), another sensitivity factor that is increasing when overuse occurs. Combining factors capable of provoking soil degradation (Fig. 36.2), i.e. topographic irregularities, soil nature, vegetation cover, land use, agricultural practices and precipitation characteristics, evidence soil sensitivity to rainfall and wind erosion. However, according to countrywide monitoring, climate plays the main role in desertification (CEM 2015) (Table 36.1). Statistical treatments of these data show also a significant relationship between the socio-economic conditions of local populations and the risk of desertification. The desertification risk in central Anatolia finds a fine example in the “Erosion Field” of Karapınar (Konya plain). This area is the driest part of Turkey (P = ca. 280 mm/year). It possesses a dune field (dunes >12 m high) formed during a very arid climate in the past (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 1998). Starting in 1969, strict protection measures were implemented by the Rural Affairs Institute for combating advance of sand dunes towards the city of Karapınar. As enclosures were almost sufficient to stop the sand progression and allowed for vegetation recovery, it became evident that wind erosion was caused by wrong practices in the dune field. Building a fence stopping sheep herds, controlling the strict application of access restriction rules, planting trees adapted to dry conditions and carefully watering them, successfully stopped wind action on the dunes and soils.

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N. Kazancı and C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 36.3 Desertification risk map of Turkey. Risk is classified according to nine levels based on the average soil erosion of the country (ton ha−1 yr−1). Maximum and minimum risk levels in the map Table 36.1 Role of different factors in the desertification risk in Turkey (CEM 2015)

are 2.0 and 1.0, respectively. CEM-General Directorate for Combating Desertification and Erosion, 2015

Rank

Factors

Role %

1

Climate

35.6

2

Water

18.4

3

Soil

17.2

4

Land-cover and land use

11.6

5

Topography, geomorphology, geology

6

Socio-economy

6.2

7

Management

4.7

In other areas of Turkey, however, wind erosion has recently increased because of soil breakdown related to intensive irrigation practices. Since the 1950s, dams and electric pumps in deep wells have allowed for increase in crop production through irrigation techniques. However, insufficient drainage and high evaporation, as well as misuse of water quantity, irrigation timing, and intensive input of nutrients and chemicals, are generating salinization problems in the driest parts of the country (Kapur et al. 2003; Bilgili et al. 2013). Salinization is now increasingly reported in soil surfaces of newly ploughed fields, such as in the Çarşamba alluvial fan (Konya), the Yahyalı fan (Sultansazlığı marshes, Kayseri), the Harran plain (Urfa), etc.

6.3

36.2.2 Rapid Transformation of Landscapes Caused by Development of Waterworks In central and south-eastern Anatolia as well as in the Aegean and Mediterranean coastal plains, urban population grew together with intensive agriculture and tourism explosion. Especially, areas previously devoted to animal extensive pasturing were turned to irrigated land. Doing so, not only the consumption of land but that of freshwater for food, drinking, and irrigation increased, leading to projects of impressive water storage facilities (Fig. 36.4), often accompanied by programmes of energy production, and more recently to projects of river diversion from sea-connected and well-watered basins towards endorheic dry plains (Fig. 36.5).

36

Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

607

Fig. 36.4 GAP (Güneydoğu Anadolu Projesi—South-eastern Anatolia Project) project in south-eastern Turkey. Compiled from various sources (up-dated June 2016)

36.2.2.1 Waterworks in Anatolia: A Long-Time History of Water Taming Along the Anatolian history, construction of dams and/or water reservoirs has been frequent in several civilizations (Akurgal 1997). The Hittites (Late Bronze Age) for example built many water sanctuaries near springs in central Anatolia, e.g., Eflatun spring near Beyşehir, water dams (e.g., Şahinkaletepe in Cappadoccia), irrigation networks on alluvial fans (e.g., Ereğli in the Konya plain) and reservoirs in cities (e.g., Kuşaklı near Sivas; Hattuša near Çorum: Fig. 36.6a). In Eastern Anatolia, the Urartu Kingdom (Iron Age) not only multiplied dams in the mountains of Van, Malazgirt and Doğubeyazıt regions (e.g., Keşiş lake, Meydan lake, etc.) but constructed several water canals for irrigation and transporting drinking water which are still in use today

(Fig. 36.6b). It is, therefore, possible to say that dams are part of the culture in this geography (Fig. 36.6c).

36.2.2.2 Transformation of Landscapes in Relation to the Expansion of Irrigation Practices All around Turkey, irrigation using water from diversion of creeks and from pumping groundwater reserves has extraordinarily increased since the beginning of the 2000s. Using sprinklers, these new practices are oriented towards industrial production of wheat, sugar beets, maize and potato. Irrigation also accompanied the development of plastic greenhouses in the Mediterranean and Aegean coastal plains where intensive production of vegetables developed in terms of output and the surface occupied in the last twenty

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Fig. 36.5 “Blue project” plans to divert some water of the Mediterranean Göksu Basin, for irrigating 235,000 ha in the endorheic Konya plain. Connected to the Çarsamba River, it will transport this new resource to a huge storage (open-air artificial lake) surrounded by concrete walls (under construction) at the location of the dried Hotamış Lake. Compiled from various sources (up-dated June 2016). Natural elements of watersheds: 1. Lakes; 2. Marshes; 3. Divide of Suğla Lake watershed; 4. Rivers draining the Suğla Lake closed basin; 5. Divide of Göksu River watershed; 6. Rivers (large, secondary) in the Göksu

watershed; 7. Çarşamba River (tributary to the closed Konya plain). Equipment of watersheds: 8. Beyşehir Lake regulator (operating since 1905); 9. Canal transferring Beyşehir Lake water to Çarşamba River; 10. Dam in operation. Blue Project: 11. Tunnel transferring forced water from the Upper Göksu to Çarşamba River (operating since May 2015); 12. Dam under construction; 13. Canal diverting Çarşamba River water to desiccated Hotamış Lake (under construction); 14. Open-air storage pool (under construction)

years (Fig. 36.7). These trends have tremendously modified the traditional landscapes of Turkey, and made artificial many natural landscapes, especially in plains all over the country. This development is supported by State Investments in equipment and financial incentives. Since the 1990s, DSI built hundreds of km of irrigation/drainage canals and thousands of deep wells, especially in the endorheic plains of central Anatolia (DSI 2015). Actually, this policy contributes greatly to the farming activities and life of the population in rural areas.

Drying Landscapes Through the Country Because of Water Withdrawals for Irrigation Intense irrigation by pumping of groundwater has, however, resulted in drastic decreases of lake levels and underground water reserves, causing since 20 years the dramatic drying of wetlands and springs (Figs. 36.8 and 36.9). The fall of groundwater and the drying of river courses consequent to the increasing water withdrawal for irrigation also caused the depletion in biodiversity and acceleration of desertification (Gramond 2002). The region of Turkey most affected by the decreasing level of groundwater is central Anatolia

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

Fig. 36.6 Antiquity of water management and water storage facilities in Anatolia. a A Hittite dam 28 km to the World Cultural Heritage Site of Hattuša (Alaca, Çorum). This dam, restored at Alacahöyük (Çorum, Northern Turkey) is dated 1240 BC. It is probably one of the over ten dams that Hittite documents relate to have been built by Tudhaliya IV. Still used for the Alacahöyük village for irrigation, it holds ca. 15,000 m3 of water and has been restored in 2002 by DSİ. b The Urartu

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Şamaran canal in the Engil valley (Edremit, Van). In several valleys around Lake Van, the Urartu canals are recognizable along tens of km. Many of these ninth to seventh centuries BC constructions are still in use. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu (2009), looking west towards Lake Van. c Historical regulator built in 1905, controlling the artificial outflow from Beyşehir Lake to Çumra (Beyşehir, Konya). Photographs by N. Kazancı (a) and C. Kuzucuoğlu (b, c)

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Fig. 36.7 An example of the impact of greenhouses on the Mediterranean coastal landscapes: the Eşen Çayı delta plain (Fethiye, Muğla). Tomato and other vegetable greenhouses cover half of the surface of

the delta. The expansion is stopped only in the east by dunes and in the south-west by karstic spring-fed wetlands. Background image: Google Earth, 2015

(>25–40 m between 1980 and 2000: Kuzucuoğlu and Gramond (2006), reaching today a total of 80–100 m (1980– 2015). In the Obruk Plateau north of the Konya plain, the fall of groundwater in karstic areas has also favoured, since c. ten years ago, rapid formation of suddenly collapsing dolines (up to 70 m in a few minutes). The recent and rapid disappearance of wetlands has raised public awareness about the social, cultural and environmental significance of various types of sites: archaeological and historical, wetlands and valleys, waterfowl-rich ecosystems and natural steppes, etc. It is a pity that in response to governmental actions for providing new land to farming, irrigation, and for combating malaria and other health problems many ponds, marshes, swamps, bogs, fens

and even small lakes have dried since 1950. One of the most important of these wetlands was located in the Sultansazlığı plain in central Anatolia. Composed of freshwater and salted marshes and lakes, it used to be a symbol of both Turkish geomorphological and cultural landscapes, as well as of Turkish waterfowl areas with large breeding populations of migrating birds such as storks and flamingos. Although most of the wetlands are now under official protection, surface and groundwater levels in the wetlands are decreasing regularly, mainly because the creeks feeding them are diverted for feeding irrigation schemes. Such an evolution is also characteristic of the Akgöl wetland near Ereğli in the Konya plain, because of diversion of the creeks. Protection measures did not take into account that lake

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

Fig. 36.8 Akşehir lake contraction since 1925. In summer 2015, the lake dried off completely (Akşehir, Konya)

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Fig. 36.9 Akgöl Lake near Ereğli: A 1994–2014 comparison (Ereğli, Konya). a (1994) and b (2014) photographs are both taken from the same spot, although not exactly from the same height. On c, the panel signed by the Ministry of Forests and Water of Turkey, reads “Akgöl Natural Protected Area (the Ereğli Wetland and Marshes)”. This example illustrates how time discrepancy between evidenced threat and governmental decision, together with failure in identifying the cause of threat, makes the protection measures of a landscape ecosystem inefficient. Here, desiccation of the wetlands and marshes has been

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caused by twenty years of increasing (1) water withdrawal for irrigation purposes, that leaves the downflow marshes and lakes with insufficient or even no water supply, and (2) retainment and storage of mountain stream waters in dams in mountains above the marshes. Together with evaporation rate, and in spite of the good will sustaining the protection decision (c), the Akgöl lake and marshes have completely dried during the 2000s and are now dry yearlong even in the peripheric and previously cultivated parts. Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Table 36.2 Regional distribution of dams in Turkey (dams operating in 2015) (DSI 2015)

Table 36.3 Reservoir lake surfaces of the largest dams operating in Turkey (2015) (DSI 2015)

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Administrative region

Energy dams

Mediterranean

40

Irrigation dams 85

Aegean

48

143

Eastern Anatolia

37

40

South-eastern Anatolia

15

18

Central Anatolia

75

208

Marmara

50

156

Black Sea

54

85

Dam Name

River

Surface area (km2)

Atatürk

Euphrates

817

Keban

Euphrates

675

Karakaya

Euphrates

298

Hirfanlı

Kızılırmak

263

Altınkaya

Yeşilırmak

118

drainage basin had also to be protected for the sake of the wetland survival (Fig. 36.9). Salinization Risk Intense irrigation development goes together with the increasing use of chemicals (mainly nutrients and pesticides) in order to sustain high production rates from soils often not rich enough to face the pressure. When uncontrolled or misused, these practices lead to accumulation of chemicals in soil (salinization) and water (unsuitable for domestic usage), which modify the physics of the soil and the equilibrium of the fauna and flora. This risk is particularly high in endorheic plains (with no outflow) where evaporation leads to concentration of chemicals on the surface and in karstic areas (usually less controlled).

36.2.2.3 Multiplication of Dams Across Small to Large Rivers Since the mid-1950s, the State gives priority to the construction of dams, for which DSI (State Water Affairs) is authorized and responsible. To-date, in different regions of the country 1056 dams have been constructed (319 hydroelectric dams are in use; Table 36.2), 24 large dams are still under construction, and 1079 more dams are planned. With these programmes, Turkey is one of the world’s most active dam-building countries. However, the majority of operational dams (737) are relatively small water reservoirs for irrigation purposes only (www.dsi.gov.tr; last access in May 8, 2016). Others are for both energy and irrigation. Some of them impound large, significant lakes (Table 36.3).

In the 1980s, the largest irrigation and energy production project of Turkey called the GAP (Güneydoğu Anadolu Projesi—South-eastern Anatolia Project) was set up for the construction of 22 dams and 19 hydroelectric power plants (Fig. 36.3). The project quickly oriented towards sustaining rural activities in south-eastern Turkey. With time, its implementation deeply transformed not only the economy of the region and its society, but also several ecosystems, landscapes, natural and historical heritages have suffered transformation, degradation and loss. Operating since 2012, the “Blue Project” is today the second largest irrigation project in Turkey (Fig. 36.5). It organizes the diversion of water from the Göksu River, which flows into the Mediterranean at Silifke, towards the endorheic Anatolian plain of Konya. The 1st phase of the project, operating since June 2016, collects 180 million m3 in Bağbaşı Dam, and pressures the water through a 17 km long “Blue Tunnel”. The water will irrigate 235.000 ha of land in an area receiving today 280 mm/year of rain. The whole project plans to divert 414 million m3/year, after completion of the construction of (i) a 125 km long channel through the Çarsamba fan in the Konya plain towards (ii) a huge artificial lake at place of the Hotamış Lake (desiccated since the 2000s). Impacts of Dams on the Landscapes Dams have two main impacts on geomorphological landscapes: (i) heavy erosion and soil instability are produced around the dams by the construction and use of roads and associated facilities, by the quarrying and storage of construction materials in the neighbourhood, by the nearby

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Fig. 36.10 Construction of the Deriner Dam on the Çoruh River, NE Black Sea region of Turkey (Artvin, Artvin). Deriner dam is the highest dam of Turkey (249 m), and the sixth highest in the world. Aiming at producing electricity, the dam entered in operation in December 2012, flooding the Çoruh and tributary valleys (see location in Fig. 36.11a). Realization of such projects has a large and long-duration impact on geomorphological landscapes at the dam spot and surroundings. Degradation is caused mainly because of truck roads, quarrying for construction material, excavations and construction of housings for families working in the dam project. Photographs by O. Kurdoğlu

disposal of material refusals, etc. (Fig. 36.10); (ii) changes in geomorphological dynamics of the rivers and valleys concerned. These latter changes are related to the inundation of valleys by lake reservoirs, and to the modification of the hydrologic equilibrium of the river system, with enhanced fluvial erosion downstream the dam and sedimentation upstream the dam. Inundations affect (i) either deep, narrow and elongated valleys (e.g., Figs. 36.10 and 36.11) or (ii) wide and shallow areas corresponding mainly to floodplains with Holocene terraces (Fig. 36.12). In the latter case, agricultural soils and land/sites used since prehistory are lost definitely. To-date, most of the GAP project has been completed. Major valleys in south-eastern Turkey are drowned (the

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Euphrates valley) or to be drowned in 2019 (the Tigris valley south of Bismil: Fig. 36.4). In 2019, the Ilısu dam is planned to inundate most of the River Tigris valley from Ilısu upstream to Batman city, flooding the valley floor and gorges as well as culturally meaningful sites such as Hasankeyf and other sites dating back to the earliest Holocene (Fig. 36.13) (Karadoğan and Kozbe 2014; Kozbe et al. 2017). Impacts of dams on the landscapes and cultural heritage in the Euphrates and Tigris valleys were predictable. Although relatively unknown before the 1980s, prehistoric and historic cultural heritage sites were subject to complete archaeological surveys in 1980s and 1990s (Euphrates) and the 2000s (Tigris) (e.g., Algaze et al. 1991). Surveys succeeded in discovering sites of very high value and the list of cultural discoveries and salvage excavations in the Euphrates south of Elazığ (Keban, Atatürk, Birecik and Kerkemiş dams) and in the Tigris south of Diyarbakır (Ilısu dam) and the Batman river (an important tributary of the Tigris today dammed at Çatakköprü Bucağı) is very high (Özdoğan et al. 2011). Salvage excavations financed by the Turkish Government with DSI’s support and by international teams of archaeologists were conducted several years at some sites. In the Euphrates, partly excavated sites are now buried or damaged: Keban dam (Tepecik, Boytepe), Karakaya dam (Cafer), Atatürk dam (Nevali Çori, Gritille), Birecik dam (Zeugma, Apamé, Horum); Karkamış/Kerkemiş dam (Zeytinlibahçe, Şaraga, Mezra), etc. Some have escaped inundation (e.g., Arpaçay, Göbekli Tepe; Arslantepe). In the Tigris valley, where an unexpected amount of major sites, from prehistory to the medieval times, have been identified, some sites have been partly (e.g., Ziyaret, Kavuşan, Salat, Hasankeyf, Hakemi Use, Kenan Tepe, Giricano…), or are still excavated (Çat, Körtik Tepe). All these sites will disappear with the damming at Ilısu dam in 2019. Today, modifications and/or disappearance of landscapes concern not only the whole of the Euphrates valley and whole of the Tigris valley, but also some of their tributaries where the number of smaller dams increases almost every other year (Fig. 36.4). While heavy works realized in watersheds damage the valleys around the site location (Fig. 36.10), valleys downstream the dams suffer also after the dam enter in operation (1) of water shortage in winter (a time of water storage behind the dam) and (2) in summer (a time of increasing water withdrawal by high agricultural and urban demands). Large dams also affect the local climate, the environment and also the plant cover (Yılmaz 2006; Bilgili et al. 2013). Now, climate in eastern and south-eastern Anatolia is becoming chaotic within a trend towards milder winters and abundant rainstorms in springs and summers, while plains are becoming drier. Similar issues concern other valleys and other regions affected by the implementation of similar projects:

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

Fig. 36.11 Threats on geomorphological landscapes in the Çoruh River valley. The figure illustrates the flooded parts of the river, and the risks of further landscape and geomorphological changes due to

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continuation of dam constructions (information on the nearby Kaçkar National Park). Compiled from various sources, and up-dated in June 2016 by C. Kuzucuoğlu

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Fig. 36.12 Risks of landscape losses due to dam lakes, concern both rare cultural and landscape heritages. a The Holocene terrace records of the Euphrates river, today immersed below the Birecik Dam water (location in Fig. 36.4) (Urfa in the left bank of the Euphrates, and of Gaziantep in the right bank of the Euphrates). The Holocene river deposits have strong relationships with archaeological occupation layers of more than ten major other sites ranging from Neolithic (Akarçay, Telleilat, Mezraa), Chalcolithic-Bronze Age-Iron Age (Zeytinlibahçe, Horum Höyük, Şaraga, Şavi, Kerkemiş also known as Karkamış),

Roman Age (Zeugma, Apamée) to the Middle Ages (fortresses of Birecik and Rumkale). All except the high-standing fortresses and a few sites away from the flood plain (Akarçay) and from the dam (Kerkemiş), have been submerged by the reservoir waters of Birecik dam (2001) and Kerkemiş/Karkamış dam (2002). Mapping and study of terraces in the Horum plain and relationships between Euphrates ancient floods (during the 3rd and 2nd mill. b, c from Şaraga-Şavi to Horum have been published in (Kuzucuoğlu et al. 2004). Photographs by C. Kuzucuoğlu

north-eastern Anatolia (where more than half the 438 km length of the Çoruh valley will be soon submerged by reservoir lakes: Fig. 36.11), eastern Anatolia (e.g., eight dams only in the Munzur Range in spite of protection by a 42,000 ha National Park). In central and Mediterranean Anatolia, the withdrawal of water resources from the Göksu River basin (the “Blue Project”: Fig. 36.5) directed to the Konya plain for agricultural production does not only change access to water resources in the Göksu basin, but it also impacts the dynamics of sedimentation and erosion in

the main valley and its delta. This delta is one of the most important breeding areas in the Eastern Mediterranean, e.g. for Loggerhead Sea Turtle and >300 bird species. Awaited erosion will worsen the conservation state of the delta, which already suffers from the development of touristic resorts. At places, touristic activities and sport facilities develop indeed (Fig. 36.14). The growth of this sector will, however, in future, need local implementation of rules for the protection of landscapes.

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

Fig. 36.13 Threats on the landscape, cultural and historic heritages due to the planned completion of the Ilısu dam on the lowest course of the Tigris in Turkey. a Hasankeyf village (Batman) has become the symbol of the loss of archaeological heritage under dam reservoirs in south-eastern Anatolia. Photograph by S. Karadoğan, 2015. After the

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Ilısu Dam becomes operational (location in Fig. 36.4), the lake level will reach only a few metres below the top of the minaret on the photography. b The projected Ilısu dam lake area upstream from Batman City and the archaeological sites concerned by immersion by the lake, classified from Palaeolithic to Iron Age (From S. Karadoğan, 2015)

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Fig. 36.14 Transformation of Halfeti village after the flooding of the Euphrates River Valley and of the lower part of the village (Birecik, Urfa). Halfeti is a typical small city on the Euphrates banks, half-flooded since 2001 under the waters of the Birecik Dam (close

to the Turkish–Syrian border: location in Figs. 36.4 and 36.12a). It turned recently into an attractive place for tourists. Photograph by N. Kazancı

Future Prospects In spite of the risks and negative impacts of dams on landscapes which have been well emphasized in pre- and post-reports prepared by DSI and other state bureaus, the increasing demand for energy in Turkey where economy and urban population growth is rapid and intense, has led governments to invest heavily in energy-producing plants such as hydraulic power plants, thermal plants and HECs. As a result, the Turkish government is still strongly promoting the construction of large hydropower and irrigation dams. The government’s objective of 1738 dams to be completed in 2023 will more than double the present situation. Dams are now highly debated in the Turkish society. While one side insists that there is an economic necessity of these dams, others are opposing them because of salinization effect, climate change, loss of land and high-quality agricultural soil, loss of biodiversity, natural heritage and natural landscapes (Yüksek et al. 2007; Harte 2014).

source, provided that they are well planned. HECs have, however, strong negative effects on landscapes and ecosystems:

36.2.2.4 Small and Micro-hydroelectric Power Plants (HEC, HES in Turkish) HECs are relatively small or micro-power plants for electricity production, constructed on fast running water. These plants need steep and high slope gradients. They are thus built in mountainous areas. In case of water limitation, a storage facility is built near the spring to provide regular running water. Economic advantages of the hydroplants are low cost, no direct emissions and a kind of renewable energy

• Scar-like injuries incised in the (often) dense natural forests below the pasture zone (Fig. 36.15). These scars and their side effects on steep slopes correspond both to (i) the tunnel itself and the two buildings at the top and bottom of the tunnel, and to (ii) the opening, construction and operation of heavy truck-loaded earth roads used for the construction and left half-used after operation starts; • Drying-off yearlong and naturally well-watered streams. According to the law, a minimum of 10% of the original water discharge of the stream must be sustained at all times during the activity of a HEC. However, such a percentage is notably insufficient to sustain, in the bed of highland streams, in steep mountain valleys, any ecosystem and natural landscape; • High impact on the forest and water ecosystems in mountains (fauna, soils and plants), with addition of strong destruction threats on local rural traditions and cultures. As a matter of fact, fights and contests against HES occur increasingly. In Turkey, HECs have been officially encouraged since 2003 because of potential national deficiencies in energy, which DSI claims hydroelectricity will fulfil. Consequently, constructions of HECs have been rapidly undertaken by the

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

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Fig. 36.15 Scars produced by the implementation of HECs in the forested slopes (Uzuntarla, Trabzon)

private sector. With the number of HECs increasing rapidly, the number of fragile areas partly destroyed has also increased. The problem is that suitable localities for HECs are often mountain forests, especially in the Black Sea region. Therefore, these investments are controversial for two reasons: one is damaging of nature by destruction of forest and killing of aquatic species due to the interruption of watercourses. The second reason, even more important than the first, is that the procedure used not only deprives the local people from access to water resources, but it favours indirectly privatization of all the running water of the Turkish highlands during a minimum of 49 years (Islar 2012). Recently, regulations in HEC construction have been renewed upon discussion, particularly because of vigorous opposition of local people in rural areas. However, officials and state authorities still claim that hydroenergy plants can continue their expansion without damaging the environment and the local people’s life conditions. Today, the addition of HECs and dams across rivers and streams for irrigation and

energy purposes, reaches ca. 1000 (TUİK 2015), a figure that makes Turkey a “Dam State” organizing a “Dam boom”.

36.2.3 Threats from Mine and Quarry Activities 36.2.3.1 Mines Mining has always been an important sector in Turkey, not only providing the raw material needed by the industry but also as an employment sector in rural areas. Coal mines are part of the landscape, especially in the Aegean region (Yatağan, Muğla; Fig. 36.16a) and in Zonguldak town along the Black Sea coast. Since the beginning of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN, 10th–9th mill. BC), mines in Anatolia have produced important ore volumes dispatched through the Middle East (Sagona and Zimansky 2009), especially since the Chalcolithic (6th mill. BC: Kaptan 1990). Copper mines have been exploited at Ergani (near Elazığ in eastern

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Fig. 36.16 Threats of mines on geomorphological landscapes. a The Yatağan coal mine (Yatağan, Muğla). Negative impacts here are not only the degradation of the landscape, but also the destruction of forest integrity. In addition, pollution caused by low-quality coal used in the thermic power plant damages population’s health as well as that of the vegetation. b Example of a recovery plantation in a mine: the Küre copper mine (Küre, Kastamonu). Photographs by N. Kazancı

Anatolia) since the PPN and at Küre (Kastomonu, central Pontides) (Fig. 36.16b). Silver mines worked at Gümüş and Maden (Ulukışla, central Taurus: Pelon and Kuzucuoğlu 1999), salt (halite) mines operated at Tuzluca. (Iğdır, north-eastern Anatolia) and around the Tuz Gölü since the Chalcolithic, while tin mines at Kestel (Niğde, central Taurus: Yener 2000) were active since the Bronze Age. It is also noteworthy that metal money was first produced and used in Turkey, with tons of gold produced and processed by Lydians in western Anatolia. Most of these old mines, which have been operating for thousands of years, are still in

operation today. They illustrate very well the long mining history in the country. Mining activities are now private in Turkey and guaranteed by the national and international laws regulating the FDI (foreign direct investment) of mining companies. All mines, however, as well as low-cost marble and travertine quarries, are significant threats to the environment. Another unsolved problem relevant to the mining sector in Turkey is the landscape left after the mine closure. Indeed, the end of the activity should be followed by the recovery of the mined land, as requested by Turkish law (Toprak 2012).

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

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Fig. 36.17 Quarries for extracting marble in the Izmir region. In this region, marble quarries have invaded the landscapes around cities and along roads, emptying hills with no apparent distribution control (Izmir). Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

On this subject, the State is requested by the Law to obtain the rehabilitation funds from the mining company, which has to pay for the recovery of the land after completion of the mining activities. Unfortunately, the money collected from the mining companies is often spent in irrelevant areas. However, it is encouraging to hear that the regulation is going to be renewed by a future proposal in the National Assembly. According to this proposal, recovery of the used land will be under the responsibility of the mining company and the closure procedure will be part of the mining operations.

36.2.3.2 Landscape Degradation and Loss Due to Quarries Two types of quarries, i.e. (i) pits opened for extracting construction materials and (ii) road-cuts, have significant destructive effects on landscapes, soils and forests. Quarries for Construction Material (Rock-Grinding Exploitations) In Turkey, riverbeds are often mined for granulates, with some controlling issues that are still problematic. But the most impressive and rising landscape problem regarding quarries in Turkey is the presence of huge and quite visible openings in all kinds of hard rocks, mainly limestones (Fig. 36.17), but other rock types are quarried too (e.g., scoriae, pumices or basalts). Together with the recent large road construction activity and the impressive building projects in the urban areas, this activity has produced huge scars on bare mountains and in forested grounds, which are quite visible from all roads crossing the country. This problem is

spreading fast, with the increasing capacity of the quarrying enterprises to deliver various grain sizes to their clients. Problems are also complicated by the fact that quarries in Turkey may be non-authorized, especially in remote places (Fig. 36.18). A solution would be a tighter control and more restrictive regulations that could be associated with the quarry opening and activity permits delivered by the State. Landscape protection regulations in the Ministry of Environment and Urbanisation and the General Directorate of Mining Affairs are highly conservative on providing such permissions, but they seem not to be easily applied or controlled. Road-Cuts Turkey traditionally gives priority to motorways; thus construction of double roads (2 by 2 lanes) and other engineering applications have generated a good deal of road-cuts. The common recovery way of such damaged areas in Turkey is to plant trees immediately after the construction. Recently, this “landscape gardening” has been made obligatory in road construction projects. However, forests cannot be generated artificially by tree transformation (Van Holt et al. 2016). In remote forested areas, road-cuts are frequent in spite of the sensibility of the weathered and steep substratum towards erosion when the tree cover is cut. Roads are yet necessary for combating fire and forest maintenance, combating erosion and preventing flooding of fragile areas. These activities generate open road-cuts, the size of which is determined by the size of the bulldozer used (Reis et al. 2007; Öztürk et al. 2009). Thanks to strict rules on that

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N. Kazancı and C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 36.18 Non-authorized quarries often concern construction material (pebbles, sand, clay). The example here is an unauthorized pumice quarry in Eastern Anatolia (Sarıkamış, Kars). Similar examples of small-sized quarries producing material for construction and road

building occur in all volcanic areas of Turkey (e.g., Cappadocia), whether deposits are pumices or scoriae. Similar unauthorized quarries also occur frequently in sediment fills of valley floors, and in dunes and beaches along the coasts. Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

subject and high expertise of the responsible institution (General Directorate of Forestry), damages of road-cuts in the forest areas are limited in comparison with problems evident in all other areas of the country. Regarding road-cuts opened during HECs construction, however, these have a very devastating effect on forested landscapes, because they destabilize both the soil and the forest over large trenches on steep slopes (Figs. 36.10, 36.15 and 36.19).

decade, however, in terms of land use and landscapes, urbanization in Turkey has evoked an “elephant in a glass shop” (Fig. 36.20). In 2001, 64% of the Turkish population lived in urban areas, with a 78% expectation for 2010 (Keleş 2001). Since then, cities over 10,000 inhabitants have been continuously growing and at the end of 2014, TUIK (2015) considered that 91.8% of the total population (ca. 78 millions) is urban.2 There is no simple explanation to this rapid urbanization increase. For sustaining a certain socio-economic development and for providing the construction sector with a high income and rent rate, psychological pressure for migration is being used as a tool for social transformations. Targeting the

36.2.4 Transformation of Geomorphological Landscapes by Explosive Urbanisation From the 1950s on, migration to cities provoked the construction of slum-type unpermitted houses (gecekondu —“built over-night”—in Turkish) in the outskirts of towns. With time and in spite of missing infrastructures, gecekondus turned to pretty houses with well-kept gardens. Since the last

2

Many of the settlements considered by TUIK as urban have a population between 2000 and 5000.

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

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Fig. 36.19 Impacts of road construction on the geomorphological dynamics of the rivers: Destabilization of river banks and mountain slopes in the Çoruh river valley (Artvin) create rapid erosion of slopes

and enormous up-loading of river water with sand/fine sediments changing the dynamics of sediment transport and erosion capacity of the river. Photograph by O. Kurdoğlu

replacement of gecekondus with the construction of higher standard resorts, a State-owned “Housing Development Administration of Turkey” (TOKI) was created in 1982 for sustaining the construction of apartments. In 2001, the TOKI Fund was removed and mixed with other funds, in order to “re-regulate the incomes, expenditures, duties, authorities and responsibilities of the Administration” (https://www.toki. gov.tr/en/). Authorized to plan and seize free land, TOKI realizes projects very quickly (thanks to new technology), using shares from families in advance. To-date, “900.000 individuals have been involved in TOKI’s projects” (https:// www.toki.gov.tr/en/), and TOKI’s multi-layered blocks, colourful and similar to each other, have invaded dramatically the country’s urban landscapes. This TOKI dynamics joined to that of the private construction sector, explains

partly the rapid enlargement of Turkish cities since the 2000s (Fig. 36.20). Until the end of the 1900s, Anatolian villages and towns were dispatched around plains in order to preserve arable lands. This distribution is now changed for the reverse, with 80% of the towns built on or around relatively flat terrains (Keleş 2001). Displacement of villages along roads and the growth of large cities have thus led to the direct loss of soils and arable lands (Gülümser et al. 2009). The general context of the urban growth (especially TOKI’s performances) has not yet produced any significant concern in the society about this type of soil and land loss. This lack of interest may be explained by the disintegration of village and rural society, with individuals escaping from farming activities, which are considered harder and less valuable than life in cities.

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N. Kazancı and C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 36.20 “Elephant in the glass shop”. a Urbanization and concrete landscape rapid expansion on land surrounding large cities (Izmir City). Note that TOKI resorts grow side to side with more or less controlled urbanism expansion over the slopes surrounding the Gulf of Izmir. Slopes, cleared from the Mediterranean forest or maquis vegetation cover are under construction over their whole surface. b The replacement of traditional Anatolian “village-type” houses by TOKI buildings allowing for the standardization of urban housing and lifestyle (Ankara City). Note the colourful multi-stored TOKI buildings in the middle of more traditional housing whose fate is to disappear quickly as shown by the destructions going on the foreground. Photographs by J.-F. Pérouse, 2015

Presently, small and large villages in rural landscapes are almost empty, particularly during fall and winter. There, rural buildings such as stables, barns and houses, which still stand are preserved as heritage from parents, while rural landscapes are often abandoned to speculation. Tourism expansion started in Turkey in the mid-1980s, in coastal areas where natural landscapes changed into recreation resorts and urban landscapes at many places, with a considerable amount of loss of geomorphological landscapes by (i) buildings spoiling these landscapes, especially along some coasts (Fig. 36.21), (ii) construction activities taking away rocks for roads, cities and resorts, (iii) clearing forests and maquis over slopes and hills. At some other places, however, careful application of the law for the protection of the coasts (1986) succeeded in allowing some preservation of natural landscapes.

In a second epoch, which started a few years ago, tourism is expanding in mountains, especially in their highest zones (the “yaylas”) where skiing, hiking and summer resorting are quickly developing.

36.3

Conservation of Landscapes and Natural Heritage

Regulations about conservation in Turkey owe much to reactions against treasure hunting and export of cultural objects during the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries. The claim for cultural property and protection of cultural assets started during the Ottoman Empire with the Antique Art-Work Legislations (the Asar-ı Atika Nizamnameleri, 1864). This evolution opened to conservation

36

Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

Fig. 36.21 Typical degradation of geomorphological coastal landscape due to touristic urbanization pressure (Çesme, Izmir). Degradation of the landscape running parallel to the coastline has considerably increased during the last decade in spite of legal texts ensuring the

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protection of a coastal band that should be left free of construction. Note the tilted geological outcrop below the resort. Photograph by J.-F. Pérouse

Fig. 36.22 Basic threats on landscapes in Turkey particularly on geosites (Kazancı et al. 2005)

measures, which started after the foundation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. Several Offices were created, which had successful and conservative actions in referencing and organizing natural resources. For example, in 1937, the General Directorate of Forestry became in charge of managing the forests, 97% of which were State-owned (Averous et al. 1992). Founded in 1984 within the Ministry of Agriculture and Villages, the Water and Soil Bureau (“Toprak-Su”) much acted also for environmental protection, also leading research on water and soil. In 1991, the creation of a Ministry of Environment acknowledged the

positioning of Turkey in the international networks for the protection of ecosystems and natural areas. However, the adaptation of environmental policies was not able to keep pace with Turkey’s industrial development. Protection and sustainable management of nature and resources were then not considered a priority. Since the mid-2000s, the high urbanization rate and the opening of the country’s resources to international exploitation and trade have increased the pressures on natural sites and landscapes (Fig. 36.22), while the State changed its way of valuing the environmental aspects of economic activities.

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36.3.1 History of Regulations for the Protection of Landscape and Natural Sites in Turkey Turkey started addressing environmental concerns during the 1970s with the foundation in 1978 of the Prime Ministry’s Under-secretariat for Environment. Its charges were to set environmental policy, coordinate and prepare regulations, and cooperate with other ministries. In August 1991, the Ministry of Environment replaced the Under-secretariat. This change led to a diversification of the Ministry’s responsibilities and empowered the administration with authority to implement and enforce policies for the protection and conservation. During the 1990s, the Environmental Law (1982–1983) was endorsed by many specific regulations that aimed not only at preventing and eliminating environmental pollution, but also at organizing management rules for natural resources and land uses. Complementary to the Environmental Law and its regulations, other laws and international conventions governing the protection of the environment have been put into force (Okumuş 2002). Toprak-Su was dismantled in 2005. Responsibility on water and soil was given to the State Water Affairs (“DSI”), also in charge of implementing dams, HECs and irrigation networks. In 2003, the General Directorate of Forestry was joined to the Ministry of Environment to form a Ministry of Environment and Forests, which in 2011 became the Ministry of Forest and Waterworks. The Superior Council for the Conservation of Natural and Cultural Property (founded in 1961, revised in 1983 and in 2005) and the Regional Conservation Council (1961) are today advisory and technical committees of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Ministry of Environment and Urbanisation, respectively. These councils are authorities for such matters as site evaluation, selection, registration and conservation. Their work is mostly concentrated on archaeological sites and immovable cultural objects. In spite of cultural and natural sites to protect being exceptionally numerous in Turkey (Akurgal 1997), they pay much less attention to natural sites (Table 36.4). It is also currently argued that protecting as many different kinds of sites as exist in Turkey is not an option for the Turkish society because of the increasing needs of the population for space. Subsequently, only geomorphological contexts and geological sites in or around registered archaeological sites are fortunate enough to achieve protection, e.g., the Pamukkale travertines near Hierapolis (Denizli) and the fairy chimneys (tuff cones) in Cappadocia (Nevşehir). In 2011, Regional Conservation Council has been reorganized separating into two bodies authorization on cultural and natural properties in the Ministry of Environment and Urbanisation, of which a

N. Kazancı and C. Kuzucuoğlu

representant has been admitted in the Cabinet (https://www. csb.gov.tr). This new Council may open a new chance for the protection of geomorphosites and geosites, natural areas and National Parks in Turkey.

36.3.2 Protected Areas in Turkey The first protected area in Turkey (Yozgat Çamlığı National Park) was established in 1958, in the frame of a newly born Forest Law. Since then, the number of National Parks has increased to 42 (Table 36.4), the majority of which correspond to forested territories. This is because in 1961, when the Constitution of Turkey was reorganized, laws were enforced to maintain and protect the boundaries of forests threatened by the combined pressures of population increase and industrial development. There are many other types of protected areas (Fig. 36.23). Most of them have been initially established for archaeological and historical purposes (Table 36.4: totally 115.569 sites are cultural and/or archaeological). This is not surprising as Anatolia is the birthplace of many civilizations (Akurgal 1997). These cultural sites happen sometimes to present also unique geomorphological landscapes (e.g., Figures 36.6b, 36.13a, 36.14, 36.24 and 36.25). In comparison, the total surface of natural sites protected is only 7.2% of the Turkish territory (Küçük and Ertürk 2013). Many protected areas also aim at recreation and tourism, while only a few of them possess a research aim. The variety of protection status evidenced by Table 36.4 reflects the variety of causes and objectives for protection. Apart from National Parks (42), there are Natural Reserves (31), Specially Protected Areas (15), Natural Monuments, Nature Parks (42), Natural Sites, Nature Conservation Areas, Wildlife Reserves, Wildlife Development Areas, Ramsar Sites (14) (Table 36.4). Such a variety creates confusions between the governmental institutions and the authorities in charge of the application of the protection regulations on the national, regional, and local levels. Regarding international networks for the protection of ecosystems and natural sites, some natural sites of Turkey are integrated in the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, the Ramsar Convention on wetlands and waterfowl (Table 36.4).

36.3.3 Organization and Policy The present administrative system for conservation seems to be very strong, as three ministries (Culture and Tourism, Water and Forestry, Environment and Urbanization) and

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

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Table 36.4 Areas registered for conservation in Turkey (2015) Protected Areas

Number

Legislative guarantee

Responsible institution

World Heritage Sites

15

UNESCO 1972 convention

Ministry of Culture and Tourism

Archaeological sites

14.840

The Law on Conservation of Cultural and Natural Heritage

Ministry of Culture and Tourism

Immovable cultural sites

100.729

The Law on Conservation of Cultural and Natural Heritage

Ministry of Culture and Tourism

National park

42

The Law on National Parks

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Natural Reserve

31

The Law on National Parks

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Nature conservation area

107

The Law on National Parks

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Natural monument

184

The Law on National Parks

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Wildlife development areas

81

The Law on Terrestrial Hunting

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Conservation forest

58

The Law on Forest

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Genetic conservation areas

239

The Law on Forest

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Biogenetic reserve areas

7

The Law on Forest

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Specially protected areas (SPAs)a

16

The Law on Environment

Ministry of Environment and Urbanization

Seed stands

373

The Law on Forest

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

1273

Law on Conservation of Cultural and Natural Heritage

Ministry of Environment and Urbanization

Registered wetlands

135

Ramsar Convention law on Conservation of Wetlands

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Ramsar sites

14

Ramsar Convention law on Conservation of Wetlands

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

Biosphere reserves

1

The Law on National Parks The Law on Forest

Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs

UNESCO Geoparks

1

–

Manisa Metropolis Municipality

Geosites

815

–

JEMİRKO- Turkish Association for Conservation of Geological Heritage

Natural sites

b

a

Some of them are also registered Ramsar site and Nature Parks They were described before 2010 by the Law on Conservation of Cultural and Natural Heritage and now some of them, mostly caves, are registered repeatedly as Geosites. The rest is ordinary natural formations and not evaluated by JEMİRKO. Compiled from websites of relevant institutions

b

many institutes are involved. There are also some many non-governmental organizations for nature protection (e.g., WWF, TEMA, JEMIRKO, ÇEKÜL, ÇEVKO). Some institutions, even when not related directly with nature conservation, are actors of the protection and development of environment. The General Directorate of Forestry and the General Directorate for Combating Desertification and Erosion (CEM) are hidden heroes of nature conservation in Turkey, establishing suitable plants on mountains and in rural areas, and particularly in places burned after fire (www. agm.gov.tr). Another very important actor is the General

Directorate of State Water Affairs (DSI), which is in charge of surface water and groundwater, in addition to water assurance, consumption and management. This high number of relevant institutions, regulations and site status, adds to the social and economic pressures on natural sites to explain the difficulties in implementing protection rules. As a result, it is not possible to say today that geomorphological landscapes, geosites, natural sites and ecosystems are conserved properly in Turkey in spite of the numerous regulations and intimate efforts at all scales of the Turkish society (e.g., Apak et al. 2015).

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N. Kazancı and C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 36.23 Map showing the distribution of the main protected areas of Turkey (Kazancı et al. 2012)

36.3.4 The Geomorphological Heritage and the Protection of Important Geological Sites Established in 1935, the Institute of Mineral Research and Exploration (MTA) stimulated, supported and favoured modern earth sciences throughout the country, with hundreds of geological surveys, reports, maps, articles, books and analyses, an effort which concerned also geomorphological research, mapping and literature (e.g., Erol and Can 1991). This production, first oriented towards the inventory and research on ores and mining in Turkey, has developed to be today the essential basis for research activities on the geomorphology of the country. This role is encouraged also by the increasing number of joint MTA research projects with Turkish (and other) Universities, and with TÜBITAK, a governmental office in charge of the development of scientific and technological researches, as well as of International Conventions in all research fields in the country. In this context, it is remarkable that the terms geomorphosite, geoheritage and geosite have not yet been recognized officially. However, a formal UNESCO geopark (Kula Geopark, designed in 2013) and a project (Kızılcahamam-Çamlıdere geopark project) could be realized (Kazancı 2012; Sen et al. 2014).

Geomorphosite label and valuing have not, indeed, found their way in Turkey, where the notion is mixed with touristic opportunities attached to geomorphological sites (Dowling 2008). This trend is well evoked by favoured terms such as “geomorphotourism” (Aydın 2014), “geotourism”, “ecotourism”, etc. Like in many other countries, earth scientists are the only ones interested by the identification and valorization approaches of geomorphological sites. They yet remain but a few only (e.g., Ekinci 2010; Doğaner and Ekinci 2014). Detailing the geomorphosite analysis of the Letôon temple near Xanthos in the Eşen Çay plain (Fig. 36.7) proposes a full series of panels for visitors of this exceptional UNESCO World Heritage site (Ecochard 2012; Fouache et al. 2012). Regarding conservation of Turkish geological heritage, discussions for protection of geological sites started in 2000 with the impulse of the JEMİRKO (The Turkish Association for Conservation of Geological Heritage) (Fig. 36.26), preceded by deep scientific discussions on the subject. Today, the geosites are in a good position to be recognized by the Turkish authorities, as they are now well identified according to the criteria of ProGEO (The European Association for the Conservation of Geological Heritage) (Kazancı et al. 2012).

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

Fig. 36.24 Protected cultural assets in spectacular geomorphological landscapes: a The protected bridge of Çobandede (AD thirteenth century) at Köprüköy (Erzurum). The River Aras is formed here, immediately upstream the bridge, from the confluence of the Bingöl and Pasinler streams. The River Aras is still a free-flowing river. It is a major Caspian Sea tributary. Photograph by E. Akköprü. b İshak Paşa

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Palace (Beyazıt, Ağrı). Constructed between 1685 and 1784 (Ottoman period), the Palace is positioned on a fault scarp, overlooking a tectonic depression occupied by wetlands at the foot of the Ağrıdağ (Mt. Ararat is not seen from the palace; the volcano is positioned on the back-right of the photograph). Photograph by C. Kuzucuoğlu

Fig. 36.25 Summer resorts in Old Foça (Izmir), surrounding the archaeological remains of Phocea, an Antique Greek harbour from where sailors founded the city of Massalia (Marseille) in the fifth century BC (Foça, Izmir). Photograph by J.-F. Pérouse

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Fig. 36.26 A volcanic Geosite near Kızılcahamam (Ankara). A beautiful example of basaltic columns, in a well-defined stratigraphic superposition, incised by today’s river system. JEMİRKO Association

N. Kazancı and C. Kuzucuoğlu

takes care of the pedagogic and orientation information illustrated with the lower photograph

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Threats and Conservation of Landscapes in Turkey

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