Geological Constraints for the Geodynamic Evolution of the Southern Margin of the Caribbean Plate
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Published:January 01, 2003
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CiteCitation
Giuseppe Giunta, Michele Marroni, Elisa Padoa, Luca Pandolfi, 2003. "Geological Constraints for the Geodynamic Evolution of the Southern Margin of the Caribbean Plate", The Circum-Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean: Hydrocarbon Habitats, Basin Formation and Plate Tectonics, Claudio Bartolini, Richard T. Buffler, Jon F. Blickwede
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Abstract
The southern margin of the Caribbean plate, cropping out in the Venezuela belt, consists of an assemblage of four main terranes: the Dutch-Venezuelan Islands, Margarita Island, Cordillera de la Costa, and Serrania del Interior. These terranes have been located, since the middle Cretaceous, along the transform boundary between the Caribbean and South American plates. On the basis of both new data and the literature, a critical review of the complex and long-lived evolution recorded in different units of these terranes is herein provided in order to highlight the Mesozoic–early Tertiary geodynamic evolution of the southern Caribbean.
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Contents
The Circum-Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean: Hydrocarbon Habitats, Basin Formation and Plate Tectonics

The Circum-Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean has long been one of the world's most important petroleum provinces, as well as one of the world's most geologically complex regions. These two characteristics have resulted in an extensive amount of ongoing research by both industry and academia. AAPG Memoir 79, The Circum-Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, is the first volume in more than a decade to document such a wide range of research on the geology of this vast area. Of the total 44 papers, roughly two-thirds pertain to the Gulf of Mexico, with an emphasis on the Mexican portion of the basin, and to the petroliferous areas of the southern Caribbean, including Colombia, Venezuela, Cuba, and Trinidad and Tobago. The remaining papers relate to the Antilles and Central America, as well as a series of papers that address region-wide topics such as plate tectonic evolution. A significant number of papers were contributed by authors from national oil companies and universities from within the region.