Extensional Late Paleozoic deformation on the western margin of Pangea, Patlanoaya area, Acatlán Complex, southern Mexico

New mapping in the northern part of the Paleozoic Acatlán Complex (Patlanoaya area) records several ductile shear zones and brittle faults with normal kinematics (previously thought to be thrusts). These movement zones separate a variety of units that pass structurally upwards from: (i) blueschist-eclogitic metamorphic rocks (Piaxtla Suite) and mylonitic megacrystic granites (Columpio del Diablo granite ≡ Ordovician granites elsewhere in the complex); (ii) a gently E-dipping, listric, normal shear zone with top to the east kinematic indicators that formed under upper greenschist to lower amphibolite conditions; (iii) the Middle–Late Ordovician Las Minas quartzite (upper greenschist facies psammites with minor interbedded pelites intruded by mafic dikes and a leucogranite dike from the Columpio del Diablo granite) unconformably overlain by the Otate meta-arenite (lower greenschist facies psammites and pelites): roughly temporal equivalents are the Middle–Late Ordovician Mal Paso and Ojo de Agua units (interbedded metasandstone and slate, and metapelite and mafic minor intrusions, respectively) — some of these units are intruded by the massive, 461 ± 2 Ma, Palo Liso megacrystic granite: decussate, contact metamorphic muscovite yielded a ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar plateau age of 440 ± 4 Ma; (iv) a steeply-moderately, E-dipping normal fault; (v) latest Devonian–Middle Permian sedimentary rocks (Patlanoaya Group: here elevated from formation status). The upward decrease in metamorphic grade is paralleled by a decrease in the number of penetrative fabrics, which varies from (i) three in the Piaxtla Suite, through (ii) two in the Las Minas unit (E-trending sheath folds deformed by NE-trending, subhorizontal folds with top to the southeast asymmetry, both associated with a solution cleavage), (iii) one in the Otate, Mal Paso, and Ojo de Agua units (steeply SE-dipping, NE–SW plunging, open-close folds), to (iv) none in the Patlanoaya Group. ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar analyses of muscovite from the earliest cleavage in the Las Minas unit yielded a plateau age of 347 ± 3 Ma and show low temperature ages of  260 Ma. Post-dating all of these structures and the Patlanoaya Group are NE-plunging, subvertical folds and kink bands. An E–W, vertical normal fault juxtaposes the low-grade rocks against the Anacahuite amphibolite that is cut by megacrystic granite sheets, both of which were deformed by two penetrative fabrics. Amphibole from this unit has yielded a ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar plateau age of 299 ± 6 Ma, which records cooling through  490 °C and is probably related to a Permo-Carboniferous reheating event during exhumation. The extensional deformation is inferred to have started in the latest Devonian ( 360 Ma) during deposition of the basal Patlanoaya Group, lasting through the rapid exhumation of the Piaxtla Suite at  350–340 Ma synchronous with cleavage development in the Las Minas unit, deposition of the Patlanoaya Group with active fault-related exhumation suggested by Mississippian and Early Permian conglomerates ( 340 and 300 Ma, respectively), and continuing at least into the Middle Permian (≡ 260 Ma muscovite ages). The continuity of Mid-Continent Mississippian fauna from the USA to southern Mexico suggests that this extensional deformation occurred on the western margin of Pangea after closure of the Rheic Ocean.     

The palaeoenvironment associated with a partial Iguanodon skeleton from the Upper Weald Clay (Barremian, Early Cretaceous) at Smokejacks Brickworks (Ockley, Surrey, UK), based on palynomorphs and ostracods

In 2001 a partial skeleton of an Iguanodon was discovered in the Upper Weald Clay (Barremian, Early Cretaceous) at Smokejacks Brickworks near Ockley, Surrey, UK. When the dinosaur was excavated, a detailed stratigraphic section was logged and 25 samples taken for palynological and micropalaeontological (ostracod and megaspore) analysis, including a detailed sample set of the dinosaur bed itself. Qualitative and quantitative analysis of the palynoflora revealed rich and well-preserved non-marine assemblages of pollen and spores, including early angiosperms, and freshwater green algae. Four types of angiosperm pollen are described and assigned to the genus Retimonocolpites Pierce, 1961, but left in open nomenclature. Some marine elements such as dinoflagellate cysts are identified as the result of reworking of Middle and Upper Jurassic sediments. The pollen/spore assemblages depict a vegetational change from principally gymnosperm-dominated assemblages at the base to principally pteridophyte-dominated assemblages at the top of the section. The dinosaur bed shows a pteridophyte-dominated assemblage, with a significantly high amount of the freshwater green alga Scenedesmus novilunaris He Cheng-quan et al., 1992. Samples close to the dinosaur bed yielded the first useful ostracod finds from Smokejacks Brickworks: well-preserved assemblages containing Cypridea clavata (Anderson, 1939), Damonella cf. pygmaea (Anderson, 1941), Stenestroemia cf. cressida Anderson, 1971 and Stenestroemia sp. A, and fragments and damaged valves of a thin-shelled ostracod, possibly belonging to Mantelliana Anderson, 1966. Those identified as Cypridea clavata show a wide range of morphological variety and in opposition to Anderson's (1967, 1985) taxonomic scheme, which would assign them to up to five different taxa, they are considered to be intraspecific variants of a single species. The possibilities and limitations of age determination of the Wealden sediments using palynomorphs and ostracods are discussed; distinct forms of early angiosperm pollen, together with the ostracod fauna, are consistent with an early Barremian age. Pollen and spores are discussed in terms of their parent plants and the reconstruction of vegetation and palaeoclimate. Palynology and ostracods give evidence for temporary freshwater conditions at the time when the Iguanodon died and the carcase was buried.     

车镇凹陷上古生界高分辨率层序地层研究

以高分辨率层序地层学原理为指导,利用测井、岩芯和录井等资料,对车镇凹陷上古生界不同级次基准面旋回进行了高分辨率层序划分。将上古生界划分为2个超长期、7个长期、16个中期和45个短期基准面旋回,精细对比研究了短期、中期和长期基准面旋回。其中,短期基准面旋回可分为2大类3种亚类,并区别出A型、B型不对称短期基准面旋回和C型对称性短期基准面旋回,总结了它们的结构特征、形成条件、岩性岩相组成;通过研究不同沉积体系下中期、长期基准面旋回特点,得出中期、长期基准面旋回的特点和发育特征,区别出不同沉积环境下层序界面特点;分析了研究区内超长期基准面旋回特征,综合分析认为车镇凹陷超长期基准面旋回以下降半旋回为主。     

中国甘肃省酒泉地区公婆泉盆地早白垩世恐龙化石

中国甘肃省酒泉地区公婆泉盆地下白垩统新民堡群的恐龙化石主要由1992年中日丝绸之路恐龙考察计划和1997~2000年中美马鬃山恐龙考察计划发掘和研究。先后发现的恐龙包括兽脚类、蜥脚类、禽龙类和新角龙类等。这一新的公婆泉恐龙组合的主要特征是同时包含了在晚白垩世占主导地位的几类恐龙的基干分子,如戈壁巨龙(Gobititan)是巨龙型类的基干分子,马鬃龙(Equijubus)是鸭嘴龙型类的基干分子,而古角龙(Archaeoceratops)和黎明角龙(Auroraceratops)是新角龙类的基干分子。公婆泉恐龙组合的另一特征是其某些成员的体型较大,如似鸟龙类和镰刀龙类恐龙是同期同类中最大的。比较研究发现,公婆泉盆地新民堡群的恐龙和辽西热河群的恐龙关系密切,但前者的整体来说要比后者进步。考虑到公婆泉盆地新民堡群的时代(Albian)较辽西热河群(Hauterivian晚期-Aptian早期)晚,公婆泉恐龙组合似应代表中国北方早白垩纪鹦鹉嘴龙恐龙动物群进化过程中较进步的一个阶段。     

辽河断陷大民屯凹陷静北潜山孢粉化石新发现

静北潜山的油气勘探始于上世纪70年代初,并将钻井揭示的未见化石的碳酸盐岩和石英砂岩沉积划归中元古界长城系,沿用至今.2002年在对该区的地层研究中,首次发现了晚古生代孢粉化石,从而证实静北潜山存在晚古生代地层.本文以孢粉化石为主要依据,对潜山地层进行了重新划分,并与邻区进行对比.在此基础上对本区的构造和沉积作一讨论.     

扬子及周缘地区上奥陶统-下志留统烃源岩发育环境及其控制因素

扬子地区下古生界发育了上奥陶统五峰组和下志留统龙马溪组两套有效烃源岩,查清其发育环境及其控制因素具有重要的科学理论和油气勘探意义.晚奥陶世开始,扬子地区进入碎屑岩陆棚演化阶段;五峰期-龙马溪期,扬子地区主体为局限的深水陆棚环境,总体呈现出浅水陆棚、深水陆棚、次深海共存的古地理格局.沉积体系展布和沉积演化主要受扬子陆块与华夏陆块的汇聚作用控制.扬子地区上奥陶统-下志留统烃源岩的形成与生烃母质生物的高生产力和高埋藏率、冰期-冰后期之交的气温快速转暖、海平面快速上升以及粘土矿物在有机质富集保存过程中的赋存驻留作用等密切相关.     

Pb-Pb age of sedimentary phosphorite reworking in Lower Riphean carbonate sediments,the Satka Formation of Southern Urals

The mineral composition and U-Pb and Rb-Sr systematics of phosphorites from the Satka Formation of Lower Riphean carbonates, the Burzyan Group of Southern Urals, are studied. Phosphorites occurring as small lenses between stromatolite layers are composed largely of fluorapatite with admixture of detrital quartz, feldspars, illite, and chlorite. Phosphorite samples have been subjected to stepwise dissolution in 1 N (fraction L-1) and 2 N (fraction L-2) HCl. As is established, the maximum apatite content is characteristic of fraction L-1, while fraction L-2 is enriched in products of dolomite and sulfide dissolution and in elements leached from siliciclastic components. The Sr content in the Satka apatites (280–560 ppm) is substantially lower as compared with that in unaltered marine apatite. The ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr “initial ratio in the phosphorites studied (0.71705–0.72484) and host dolomites from the lower part of the Satka Formation is significantly higher than in the Early Riphean seawater that indicates a reset of the Rb-Sr original systems in sediments. The Pb-Pb age of 1340 ± 30 Ma (MSWD = 6.4) estimated based on 7 data points characterizing fractions L-1 and L-2 is younger than the formation time of overlying Burzyan sediments, being consistent, within the error range, with date of the Mashak rifting event recorded at the Early-Middle Riphean boundary. The comparative U-Pb characteristics of two soluble fractions (L-1 and L-2) and silicate residue of phosphorites show that epigenetic redistribution of Pb and U was characteristic of the phosphorite horizon only. The initial Pb isotope composition and μ (²³⁸U/²⁰⁴Pb) estimated according to model by Stacey and Kramers for the early diagenetic fluids in carbonate and phosphate sediments of the Satka Formation suggest that they were in isotopic equilibrium with erosion products of the Taratash crystalline complex.     

First U–Pb SHRIMP age of the Hauterivian stage, Neuquén Basin, Argentina

A high-resolution ion-microprobe (SHRIMP) U–Pb zircon age from a tuff layer intercalated in the ammonoid bearing sedimentary succession of the Neuquén Basin in Argentina provides a robust geochronologic date to add to the absolute ages and to improve the relative chronology of the Early Cretaceous Hauterivian stage. The tuff layer appears interbedded between shales of the upper member (Agua de la Mula) of the Agrio Formation within the Spitidiscus riccardii ammonoid zone (base of the Late Hauterivian) yielding a date of 132.5 ± 1.3 Ma. This date confirms and supports an accurate correlation between the ammonoid biostratigraphy of the Neuquén Basin with the Western Mediterranean Province of the Tethys during the Early Cretaceous and matches with the most recently published time scale. It also casts doubts on the validity of K–Ar ages on glauconite-grains recently reported from the Lower Cretaceous of the Vocontian Basin of France.     

湖南石门杨家坪下寒武统杷榔组三段混合沉积研究

湖南石门杨家坪下寒武统杷榔组三段发育陆源碎屑与海相碳酸盐的混合沉积。综合前人研究成果,通过对研究区野外露头资料的详细观测和室内样品分析及数据统计等工作,对研究区杷榔组三段混合沉积进行了详细的研究。研究区混合沉积特征宏观上表现为由陆源碎屑与混积物交互沉积、碳酸盐与混积物交互沉积和不同类型混积物本身的交互沉积构成的混积层系,微观上表现为陆源碎屑组分与碳酸盐组分混合沉积所形成混积岩;混合沉积类型主要为内潮汐沉积作用和浊流沉积作用形成的复合式混合沉积Ⅱ,次为深水原地沉积作用形成的渐变式混合沉积,但是不同成因的沉积作用形成的混合沉积类型往往叠加在一起,形成复合式混合沉积Ⅱ+渐变式混合沉积的混合沉积复合体;混合沉积环境为深水斜坡,发育内波、内潮汐混合沉积微相、深水原地混合沉积微相和远源浊流混合沉积微相等类型;在沉积环境分析的基础上,根据内波、内潮汐沉积特征,剖析了混合沉积的沉积机理;结合混合沉积的成因、沉积机理、产出部位及沉积环境等因素,以沉积学原理为指导,建立了研究区杷榔组三段的混合沉积模式。     

塔里木西部地区古生代断裂活动的方式和机制

基于系统的地震剖面解释及其与塔中地区的对比,本文探讨了塔里木西部地区古生代断裂活动的方式和机制。玛东断裂带是一条宽阔的北东向盖层滑脱型褶皱冲断带,前展式向东南扩展,冲断作用发生在奥陶纪末。巴东断裂(吐土休克Ⅱ号断裂)为北西向基底卷入型冲断带,奥陶纪末和中二叠世末发生冲断。巴西断裂和塔参2井南断裂是海西期的正断层。塔里木古板块古生代的发育受邻侧的造山带演化制约,近东西向和北东向断裂奥陶纪末的冲断是继承基底构造发育的。塔中地区的近北西向断裂是晚寒武世的新生断裂,加里东运动可分为两幕:奥陶纪末的冲断(艾比湖运动)和晚志留-中泥盆世的冲断-走滑,后者向西明显减弱。塔里木西部的部分北西向断裂(如康西断裂)可归入塔中北西向断裂系。北东向的玛东断裂带是其西的向北(东)冲断的吐木休克断裂带与其东的向南偏东冲断的塔中8-1井——塔中5井断裂带之间的调节断层。