Middle-Late Pleistocene marine terraces and fault activity in the Sant’Agata di Militello coastal area (north-eastern Sicily)

The coastal sector of Sant’Agata di Militello (north-eastern Sicily) is characterized by a flight of raisedMiddle-Upper Pleistocene marine terraces occurring at different heights with respect to present sea level.In particular, the geomorphological survey and the analysis of stereo-pairs of aerial photographs allowedto recognize at least five main orders of well preserved Quaternary surfaces and relative deposits mostlylocated at the hanging wall and at the footwall of the Pleistocene northwest-dipping Capo d’Orlandonormal fault, which controlled the geomorphological evolution of the coastal area. The marine terracesshow an overall good morphological continuity and are formed by marine platforms overlain by littoraldeposits made up of yellow littoral sand and gravels in a sandy matrix. The continental sedimentary coverof the 3rd order terrace contains mammal-bearing deposits that were previously dated 200 ± 40 ka BP byisoleucine epimerization method, allowing to relate them to MIS 7.1 high-stand. In order to better definethe whole terrace chronology, deposit samples were analyzed by Optically Stimulated Luminescence(OSL) methodology, a conventional SAR protocol used with sand-sized quartz. New datings, togetherwith the detailed morphostructural analysis, allow to relate the 2nd and 4th order terraces to MIS 5.5and 8.5, respectively, and to reconstruct the tectonic evolution of this coastal area, constraining theactivity of the Capo d’Orlando fault.