Morphotectonics of the Tasso Stream - Sagittario River valley (Central Apennines, Italy)

This work presents the morphotectonic map of the Tasso Stream-Sagittario River valley, located in
the Central Abruzzo area (Marsica region), in one of the areas of highest average elevation in the
Apennines chain between two main intermontane basins (i.e. the Sulmona basin and Fucino
basin). It is bounded by one of the main drainage divides of Central Italy, separating the Adriatic
side of the Apennines from the large endorheic Fucino area. The morphotectonic map of the
Sagittario River valley is the result of an geomorphological analysis of the drainage at the basin
scale in Central Italy and incorporates three main sections: orography and hydrography (upper
right on the map), the main morphotectonic map (center and left on the map), and the
morphotectonic profile section (lower on the map). This map provides a basis for the recognition
of morphotectonic features at the basin scale, the detection of tectonic vs. surface processes’
control on the landscape, and the reconstruction of the landscape evolution of the Sagittario
gorges, one of the main gorges incising the carbonate ridges of the Apennines. It contributes to
defining the main phases of the Quaternary landscape evolution of the inner mountain
landscape of the Apennines, resulting from the combination of alternating morphotectonics (i.e.
rock uplift and local tectonics) and surface processes (i.e. slope, karst, glacial and fluvial processes).

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