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Sedimentary record from Holocene to present-day Southeastern Tunisia: facies, paleoenvironments and climate changes

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Abstract

The sedimentological features of the Holocene deposits outcropping along southeastern Tunisia show a littoral para-sequence including red silt, conglomerates, bioclastic, and siliciclastic deposits. At Sebkha Boujmel, they are represented by a buried lagoon characterized by a transgressive–regressive para-sequence. The latter displays seven facies integrated within a transgressive biodedritic complex followed by bioclastic and oolitic sands, laminated silty carbonate sand, and eolian silts rich in gypsum, crowned by microbial mats. Lateral correlations have identified the spatiotemporal distribution of facies. The neighboring Sebkha el Melah (10 km further north) displays a Holocene para-sequence consisting of a transgressive biodetritic complex overtopped by thick evaporitic series. The sedimentation in this region, which has remained tectonically stable since the last 125 ka BP, was driven by coastal thresholds, climate and recent sea level changes that formed three different para-sequences in three nearby sites. Our observations with those available from previous studies provide new insights on the evolution on the landscape of southeastern Tunisia before and during the Holocene that driven the formation of an inland shoaled homoclinal ramp with a lagoon system.

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Acknowledgements

This work was conducted with the support of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Tunisia and was funded by the Research Laboratory: LR18 ES07 (Sedimentary Basins and Petroleum Geology). The authors thank Prof. Abdullah M. Al-Amri Editor-in-Chief for its insightful comments and Dr. Nabil Khelifi, Senior Editor, Springer, MENA, for judicious recommendations; they are both greatly acknowledged. Aanonymous reviewers are also thanked for their constructive remarks and comments, which really improve the quality of the manuscript. Many thanks to the LR18 ES 07 Laboratory researchers for their continuous help and support.

Funding

This research was financially supported by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research of Tunisia, and was funded by the Research Laboratory: LR18 ES07 (Sedimentary Basins and Petroleum Geology).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sciences Faculty of Bizerte, Carthage University, LR18ES07, Université de Tunis El Manar, Tunis, Tunisia

    Lakhdar Rached

  2. Center for Water Research and Technologies (CERTE), Carthage University, Georessources Laboratory, Technopark of Borj-Cedria, BP 273, 8020, Soliman, Tunisia

    Talbi Rachida

  3. Sciences Faculty of Tunis, El Manar University, LR18ES07, Université de Tunis El Manar, Tunis, Tunisia

    Soussi Mohamed

  4. Institut Supérieur Des Sciences Et Techniques Des Eaux de Gabès, Unite´ de Recherche ‘Hydrosciences Appliquées’ (06/UR/10-03), Université de Gabès, 6072, Zrig, Gabès, Tunisia

    Jedoui Younès

  5. Departamento de Estratigrafía Y Paleontología, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain

    Jaouadi Sahbi

  6. Istituto Nazionale Di Geofisica E Vulcanologia, via di Vigna Murata 605, 00143, Rome, Italy

    Anzidei Marco

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Rached, L., Rachida, T., Mohamed, S. et al. Sedimentary record from Holocene to present-day Southeastern Tunisia: facies, paleoenvironments and climate changes. Arab J Geosci 15, 954 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-022-09964-w

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