Elsevier

Geomorphology

Volume 317, 15 September 2018, Pages 107-116
Geomorphology

Structural controls on distribution of dolines on Mount Anamas (Taurus Mountains, Turkey)

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2018.05.023Get rights and content

Abstract

Solution dolines are characteristic landforms on the high plateaus of the Taurus Mountains. In this study, the effects of tectonic structures, drainage and slope conditions on the distribution and morphometric properties of dolines in the western part of the Central Taurus are explained. To delimit the dolines, 1/25000 scale topographic maps were used. The uppermost closed contour lines were digitized as polygons and the elevation, long and short axes, elongation ratios, orientation angles of the polygons were calculated. The doline density is compared with drainage density and mean slope values. A total of 111 rose diagrams were created in order to illustrate the superficial distribution of orientation. As a result, a total of 10,652 dolines were detected in a 711 km2 doline area and maximum density reaches 123 dolines/km2. However, according to the doline density, two distinct regions were detected, high density (R1) and low density (R2). Correlations between drainage density, slope angle and doline density are negative in the two regions. According to negative correlations, the drainage density is not a determinant factor in R1, while it is a determinant factor in R2. A 30° slope angle (in km2) limits doline distribution on the plateau surface.

The orientation of all doline long axes is NW-SE, which is parallel to the general orographic extent of Mount Anamas. However, different orientations were detected and these orientations were showed in farther sub-regions according to the 111 gridded rose diagrams. The overall result of this study is that the fault and joint systems that developed on the thick-bedded limestone between thrust faults affected the doline density, while lateral strike-slip, normal faults and joint systems in front of the thrust belt were more effective on the geometric shapes of dolines.

Introduction

Karstic terrains covering about one third of Turkey spread over almost the entire country (Günay, 2010; Nazik and Tuncer, 2010). The largest and most important karstic terrain is the Taurus Mountains, forming a continuous karst belt across southern Turkey. The Taurus Mountain range is highly karstified due to abundance of carbonate rocks, tectonic activity and climatic conditions at present and past, especially glacial and interglacial times in Quaternary (Klimchouk et al., 2006). Due to tectonism being the main factor on development of landforms in the region, karstic landforms follow structural lineaments on the Taurus Mountains (Nazik, 1986; Elhatip, 1997; Gunn and Günay, 2004).

Circular or semicircular solution dolines are diagnostic landforms characteristic of bare karstic regions (Ford and Williams, 2007; Veress, 2017), especially on young folded mountains (Kranjc, 2013) in the mid-latitude zone (Gams, 2000) and in the Taurus Mountains of Turkey (Elhatip, 1997; Öztürk et al., 2015). The low-angled, high karstic plateaus without active drainage create appropriate topographic conditions for doline formation because dolines generally reach maximum density on the gentle slopes of high karstic plateaus (Palmquist, 1977; Gams, 2000; Orndorff et al., 2000; Plan and Decker, 2006; Faivre and Pahernik, 2007; Pardo-Igúzquiza et al., 2013; Sauro, 2013; Daura et al., 2014; Bočić et al., 2015; Öztürk et al., 2015). Tectonic structure, especially joint intensity and orientation, has a strong effect on doline development, density, orientation and distribution on gentle slope of high karstic plateaus (Orndorff et al., 2000; Car, 2001; Jemcov et al., 2001; Faivre and Pahernik, 2007; Doctor and Doctor, 2012; Kranjc, 2013). As doline orientations and ordering provide information about the effective fault and joint systems (Theilen-Willige et al., 2014), they are of great importance in the search for causes of tectonic and geomorphologic development in karstic regions (Mihljevic, 1994; Ekmekci and Nazik, 2004; Closson and Karaki, 2009; Pardo-Igúzquiza et al., 2013; Öztürk et al., 2017).

The aims of this study were to determine the distribution and morphometric properties of the dolines via 1/25000 scale maps, and to explain the effects of tectonic structures, drainage and slope conditions on the distribution and morphometric properties of dolines on the Mount Anamas. The distribution patterns of dolines were explained by means of morphometric maps created by a geographic information system (GIS), and the orientation of the dolines was also revealed through rose diagrams formed from the long axis of azimuths of the dolines. The relationships between doline density and mean slope angles (°/km2) and surface drainage density (km/km2) were investigated according to 1 km2 grids. All obtained data were evaluated in terms of explaining the distribution characteristics of dolines as a function of underlying structural control.

Section snippets

Study area

Mount Anamas is located in the western part of the Central Taurus mountains and the northeastern segment of the Isparta Angle (Blumenthal, 1963; Dumont, 1976; Fig. 1a). The Isparta Angle is the most complex tectonic structure in Anatolia and its shape is the result of compressional and extensional tectonic events from Late Cretaceous to present (Kissel et al., 1993; Koçyiğit and Özacar, 2003). Nappe structures cut by large and small normal faults dominate in the Isparta Angle (Aksu, 2011).

Mount

Material and methods

Morphometric analysis and morphometric maps of dolines are commonly used as a quantitative tool in karstic areas (Bondesan et al., 1992; Day, 1983; Jennings, 1975). These morphometric analyses are applied to find links between doline properties and structure (Faivre and Reiffsteck, 2002; Florea, 2005; Telbisz et al., 2009) and enable the generation of hypotheses on the evolution and dynamics of karstic systems (Péntek et al., 2007; Jeanpert et al., 2016; Öztürk et al., 2017).

To determine the

Results

10,652 dolines were detected on Mount Anamas as a result of examining the 1/25,000 scale topographic maps. Maximum density was found to be 123 dolines/km2; however, the density was >50 dolines/km2 and <10 dolines/km2 in 6% and 53% of the study area, respectively. The average area of dolines, which range in size from 35 m2 to 0.352 km2, is 2350 m2. Long axis values range from 8 m to 1250 m, while short axis values range from 3 m to 699 m.

Dolines are found from 1200 m to 2390 m a.s.l. in

Conclusions

In this study, the effect of tectonic structure on the distribution patterns of dolines was investigated. A total of 10,652 dolines were detected on the Mount Anamas. According to relationships between tectonic structure and doline density and orientation characteristics, five different distribution patterns were determined on the plateau. (1) Doline density is the highest on the limestones which are intensively fragmented by antithetic and synthetic faults between two thrust faults. (2) The

Acknowledgements

This study was financially supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) (Project number: 115Y580). We express our sincere thanks for their financial support.

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