New stepping stones, Dugi otok and Vis islands, in the systematic paleomagnetic study of the Adriatic region and their significance in evaluations of existing tectonic models

• The Adriatic islands moved in coordination after the Aptian.
• The Adriatic islands form the imbricated margin of ‘autochtonous’ Adria.
• The High Karst exhibits smaller CCW rotation then Adria.

The External Dinarides from which several conflicting tectonic models were published, are the more tectonized NE margin of autochthonous Adria. Dugi otok and Vis islands belong to this margin. From the two islands a new paleomagnetic study is presented, based on 48 geographically distributed and biostratigraphically controlled Cretaceous carbonate sediment localities. The results suggest that the two islands certainly moved in co-ordination after the mid-Albian, which was the time of resumed sedimentation after a period of emersion, although some relative movement could have occurred earlier.The new post-Aptian paleomagnetic results are in perfect agreement with recently published paleomagnetic results from stable Adria and from the more northerly Adriatic islands. This consistency suggests that all these areas moved together from the Albian on, while the coastal range of the External Dinarides seems to have moved independently. Thus, autochthonous Adria together with the Adriatic islands is established as a crustal block within the Central Mediterranean region, which rotated significantly in CCW sense in post-Cretaceous times.