Fault growth by segment linkage in seismically active settings: Examples from the Southern Apennines, Italy, and the Coast Ranges, California

Most models for fault growth and scaling are based on analysis of faults which display dip-slip (i.e. reverse, normal) and strike-slip kinematics; by contrast, little information is derived from faults displaying oblique-slip kinematics. Observations on mesoscopic transpressional faults from the Salinian Block of California and transtensional faults from the Southern Apennines of Italy reveal a complex kinematic history of fault propagation. Faults initially nucleate as isolate segments, which are later kinematically and mechanically linked via development of diffuse deformation zones and/or localised oblique connecting splays. The geometry of observed mesoscopic faults is similar to that of the host, larger structures, thus suggesting that the produced fault patterns are scale independent. Moreover, the overprinting relationships among minor fault-related fabrics permit to define a relative chronology within fault arrays, thus enabling a general sequence of structural stages to be correctly established. Based on minor fabrics and their overprinting relationships, a kinematic deformation model of fault growth by segment linkage is presented, which may have a wide applicability in the field of seismic hazard evaluation.