Published: 2026-06-18
OLIGO–MIOCENE TECTONO‑MAGMATIC PROCESSES OF THE INTERNAL DINARIDES - THE FINAL PULSE OF A CLOSED OCEAN?
Authors: Ana Mladenović, Dejan Prelević, Vladica Cvetković
Abstract:
The Dinaric orogen, as part of a complex double vergent orogenic system dominating the Balkan Peninsula, formed as a result of convergence between the Adriatic and European plates from the Middle Jurassic to the present. The Dinaric orogen is situated above an anomalously thin lithosphere that resulted from the delamination of the Adriatic lithospheric mantle. Moreover, this area was tectonically reactivated multiple times during the Cenozoic, and some of those tectonic phases were accompanied by magmatic activity as well as by the formation of mineral deposits. Here we present the results of study of the interaction between tectonic and magmatic processes at two key localities in the Internal Dinarides: the Kopaonik-Golija-Rogozna magmatic province and the Bukulja-Brajkovac complex. By integrating structural‑geological data with petrographic and geochemical characteristics of the magmatic rocks, supported by information on anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility and thermochronological data, we reconstruct the timing and mechanisms of deformation, magmatism, and exhumation of the granitic intrusions in the study areas. We also compare our data with other Oligo-Miocene magmatic provinces of the Internal Dinarides and attempt to define a unified model that could explain the tectono‑magmatic processes across the region. Based on our results, we propose that partial melting of the upper mantle and the lower crust during the Oligocene was likely the result of post break-off delamination of the relatively thick Adriatic lithosphere. By contrast, the genesis of the Miocene two‑mica granites is explained by an advanced stage of extension associated with significant lithospheric thinning and melting of the shallow crust. Our findings offer a more precise chronological and geodynamic framework for post‑collision extension in the Internal Dinarides. Moreover, they illustrate the role of tectonic reorganization in governing generation, emplacement, and uplift of granitoid magma in continental orogenic environments.
Presented at 19th Congress of Geologists of Serbia
The Dinaric orogen, as part of a complex double vergent orogenic system dominating the Balkan Peninsula, formed as a result of convergence between the Adriatic and European plates from the Middle Jurassic to the present. The Dinaric orogen is situated above an anomalously thin lithosphere that resulted from the delamination of the Adriatic lithospheric mantle. Moreover, this area was tectonically reactivated multiple times during the Cenozoic, and some of those tectonic phases were accompanied by magmatic activity as well as by the formation of mineral deposits. Here we present the results of study of the interaction between tectonic and magmatic processes at two key localities in the Internal Dinarides: the Kopaonik-Golija-Rogozna magmatic province and the Bukulja-Brajkovac complex. By integrating structural‑geological data with petrographic and geochemical characteristics of the magmatic rocks, supported by information on anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility and thermochronological data, we reconstruct the timing and mechanisms of deformation, magmatism, and exhumation of the granitic intrusions in the study areas. We also compare our data with other Oligo-Miocene magmatic provinces of the Internal Dinarides and attempt to define a unified model that could explain the tectono‑magmatic processes across the region. Based on our results, we propose that partial melting of the upper mantle and the lower crust during the Oligocene was likely the result of post break-off delamination of the relatively thick Adriatic lithosphere. By contrast, the genesis of the Miocene two‑mica granites is explained by an advanced stage of extension associated with significant lithospheric thinning and melting of the shallow crust. Our findings offer a more precise chronological and geodynamic framework for post‑collision extension in the Internal Dinarides. Moreover, they illustrate the role of tectonic reorganization in governing generation, emplacement, and uplift of granitoid magma in continental orogenic environments.
Presented at 19th Congress of Geologists of Serbia
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