THE MEDITERRANEAN LOWER CRETACEOUS

Dinaric Flysch
The outer zones of the Dinarides and Hellenides contain carbonate facies. The
flysch facies arc in the inner zones, being structurally differentiated at the end of
the Jurassic and mainly at the beginning of the Early Cretaceous.
The flysch in the Bosnsa-Beotian trough is represented by two groups: an
external group which overlies the Triassic or Jurassic, being represented by clayeysandy
flysch with Hedbergella and Orbitolinidae, covered by calcareous flysch
(Middle -Upper Cretaceous), and an internal group situated discordantly over
limestones or Triassic-Jurassic jaspers, covered in some places by red radiolarites.
This second flysch group starts with conglomerates with ophiolitic fragments, alternating
upwards with limestones which reach the Lower Cretaceous. The presence
of the Berriasian is proved in the lower part (Durand Delga, 1980).
In the Ulog region (Dinarides) Blanche! (1966) and Cadet (1978)
have proved the following flysch succession: (1) clayey-sandy flysch (Neocomian-
Barremian); (2) black flysch (Barremian-Aptian and Albian), built of coarsegrained
sandstones with ophiolite fragments, black calcareous argillites with calcareous
breccias and pelagic limestones; (3) light sandy-calcareous flysch (Upper
Albian Cenomanian).
In the south, in the Hellenides, flysch Lower Cretaceous sediments are developed
between the ophiolite zone of Mirditza and the palaeogene from the Find nappe.
This is a continuation of the Gramos zone from Albania.
The Beotian flysch (synonym to the Bosnia flysch) is developed in Greece. It
is revealed in Northern Pind, Othrys, Beolia and in Argolid, south of Corinth
(С e 1 e t, Clément, 1971).
In the north the Dinaric flysch continues into Slovenia.
Flyschoid Lower Cretaceous sediments are developed in the inner zone of the
Dinarides. between the Bosnia trough and the Vardar zone. This is the strip of the
Serbian ophiolites (A ti b о u i n et al., 1970). In the Early Cretaceous palaeogeography
this is the continuation of the Pannonian Depression to the south between
Zagreb and Belgrade, stretching ever, further south into the Pelaconian zone of Greece.
Terrigenous-carbonate flysch is developed to the east of this zone, in Sumadia,
parallel to the Dardanian diagonal.
The flysch in the Apennines
The Lower Cretaceous is developed in pre-flysch facies in the inner zone of the
Northern Apennines over Jurassic ophiolites and radiolarites. The typical flysch
starts at the base of the Upper Cretaceous.
The Maiolica facies (micritic pelagic limestones) is developed in the outer zone.
Lower Cretaceous allochlhonous flysch which overlies the external calcareous
zone of the Apennines is developed in the southern part of the Peninsula, in the boundary
zone between ihe Apennines and Calabria.
In Lucania there is Lower Cretaceous flysch represented by argillites, phyllites
and quartzites which overlie the calcareous Apennines.
Non-metamorphosed flysch (Berriasian-Albian) is discovered between Lucano—Calabria
and Cilcnto.
The Flysch in North Africa
The Magreb orogen stretches from Calabria to the Gibraltar arc. Its northern
axial zone represents numerous outcrops of allochthonous flysch (Lower Cretaceous-Lower
Miocene).
Two basic types of flysch are distinguished in North Africa: (1) with facies
which are relatively coarser (inner), with the Gerouch flysch as a typical example,
often designated as Mauritanian flysch; (2) with facies among which phaneromeric
varieties predominate, designated as Massilian flysch, revealed very well between
Tenes and Constantine (Durand Delga, 1980).
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