Circulation of water masses, sediment, and biotope between the sub-basins of the Mediterranean Sea strongly depends on morphological oceanic gateways. These geological features react to geodynamic reorganisation through volcanism, vertical movements, and/or the segmentation of sedimentary basins. Despite the palaeogeographic relevance of straits and oceanic-gateways, their evolution and impact on sedimentary transports and deposition in the Mediterranean remain in general poorly constrained. The Gargano-Pelagosa gateway is here first recognized as an influential element of the palaeogeographic/environmental evolution of the central-southern Apenninic foredeep and wedge-top domains during the Messinian, as shown by the integration of (i) seismic lines, (ii) well information from the Adriatic Sea, and (iii) a review of both onshore and offshore structural data and Messinian depositional environments. A palinspastic evolution is proposed for the Apennine and south Adriatic foredeeps during the Messinian Salinity Crisis (MSC: 5.97–5.33 Ma). We highlight the implication of the pre-MSC structural legacy and the development of the Apennine and Dinarid-Albanian chains in 1) the isolation of the Apennine foredeep from the deep central Mediterranean domains at the peak of the MSC; 2) the vertical movements at the Gargano-Pelagosa structure and the Apulian Platform and 3) their implication in the deposition of a chaotic sedimentary body.

地中海次盆地之间的水团、沉积物和生物群落的循环在很大程度上取决于形态海洋通道。这些地质特征通过火山作用、垂直运动和/或沉积盆地的分割对地球动力学重组作出反应。尽管海峡和海洋门户具有古地理相关性，但它们的演变和对地中海沉积运输和沉积的影响总体上仍然缺乏约束。Gargano-Pelagosa 网关在这里首次被认为是墨西尼纪期间亚平宁中南部前深和楔顶域的古地理/环境演化的一个有影响力的元素，如（i）地震线，（ii）来自亚得里亚海的井信息，以及（iii）对陆上和海上结构数据以及墨西拿沉积环境的审查所示。在墨西拿盐度危机（MSC：5.97-5.33 Ma）期间，亚平宁和南亚得里亚海的前深部出现了回文痉挛演化。我们强调了 MSC 前结构遗产的影响以及亚平宁链和 Dinarid-Albanian 链的发展：1）在 MSC 顶峰将亚平宁前深与中部地中海深部区域隔离；2) Gargano-Pelagosa 构造和 Apulian 地台的垂直运动和 3) 它们对混沌沉积体沉积的影响。