The aim of this research was to contribute to a better understanding of the stratigraphic and structural evolution of southeastern Slovenia through a detailed sedimentological analysis of the succession exposed on the southern slopes of Orlica. A 35-metre-thick detailed sedimentological profile was logged along a road section at Vrhovnica.
The profile id divided into three lithostratigraphic units separated by two unconformities, indicating multi-phase sedimentation breaks in the study area. The oldest unit is the Main Dolomite, represented by fine-grained dolomite and microcrystalline dolomite microfacies with intense pyritisation, defined by fine-grained, non-planar dolomite crystals. Pervasive late-diagenetic dolomitisation has completely obliterated the original rock texture. Irregular oxidation zones indicating remnants of bioturbation, as well as opaque pyrite minerals, frequently occur in the samples. Overlying the Main Dolomite above an unconformity is the Biancone limestone succession, characterized by a partially dolomitised mudstone microfacies containing unimodal dolomite crystals dispersed within a micritic matrix. Pyritisation concentrated around bioturbated zones is also recognized in these thin sections. The second microfacies present is a laminated peloidal bioclastic packstone, dominated by radiolarians, sponge spicules, and peloids. The Biancone limestone sequence is truncated by an angular unconformity, overlain by the Lithothamnium limestone. Microfacies-wise, it is subdivided into three groups: bioclastic rudstone with individual large clasts, intraclastic rudstone, and bioclastic grainstone. All three groups share same core fossil assemblage, with slight variations in grain proportions and bioclast size across microfacies. The microfacies of the Lithothamnium limestone reflect the dynamic hydrodynamic conditions of a Neogene shallow-water environment.
This study confirms multi-phase sedimentation breaks marking the transition from a shallow-water to a deep-water environment and a subsequent Neogene transgression, thereby enhancing the understanding of the tectono-sedimentary evolution and regional stratigraphic gaps in the Transitional Area between the External and Internal Dinarides.
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