The Pelagonian terrane of Greece in the peri-Gondwanan mosaic of the Eastern Mediterranean: Implications for the geological evolution of Avalonia

In the NE Mediterranean, Caledonian accretion to Baltica, or magmatism of a comparable age (ca. 450 Ma), is recorded in several peri-Gondwanan terranes, including those of Cadomian-type. However, no Caledonian imprint is recognized in syn- to post-Caledonian rocks of the Pelagonian terrane. This implies that the geological history of the Pelagonian terrane diverged from that of Avalonia since the Early Ordovician. The data from the NE Mediterranean suggest that, when the Avalonian-Cadomian continental ribbon rifted from Gondwana to open the Rheic Ocean in the Early Ordovician, some Avalonian vestiges, now preserved in southeastern Europe, remained attached to Gondwana.