THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE PALEOBIOGEOGRAPHY OF THE NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN SIDES OF THE NEOTETHYS AND THE DEEP GEODYNAMIC PROCESSES

Several of our previous studies substantiated the discovery of the phenomenon of a deep mantle structure rotating counterclockwise, influencing tectonics and various geological-environmental processes in the South Caucasus and the Eastern Mediterranean. This study made it possible to estimate the onset of the influence of the deep structure and characterize the structural-tectonic changes that occurred in different geological eras. The widespread use of paleontological data has made it possible to classify the migration of organisms from distant provinces and obtain data on the formation of basins based on the study of the geodynamics of terrane belts, island arcs, shear zones, and deep movements determined by the nature of mantle convection. The role of paleobiogeography, sedimentation tectonics, and paleogeography in assessing autochthonous and allochthonous structures is essential to the deep geodynamics of past and present geological eras. The geodynamic evolution of the Mesozoic Terrane Belt (MTB) located on the Neotethys southern side (the Gondwana northern part) was investigated. Our comprehensive studies showed the MTB’s allochthonous nature and confirmed previous data on the terrane nature and the Mesozoic age of the displaced tectonic blocks. In the Lesser Caucasus, biogeographical and tectonophysical studies sharply separated the eastern (Azerbaijanian) part of the Lesser Caucasus from the ophiolite belt in its southwestern continuation. The structural-geodynamic uniqueness of the mixed Late Cretaceous fauna of the Garabakh region (western Azerbaijan) has received a comprehensive justification. An assessment was made of the beginning of the influence of the mantle structure on near-surface tectonic-structural elements.