Plate-driven extension and convergence along the East Gondwana active margin: Late Silurian–Middle Devonian tectonics of the Lachlan Fold Belt,southeastern Australia

The Lachlan Fold Belt of southeastern Australia developed along the Panthalassan margin of East Gondwana. Major silicic igneous activity and active tectonics with extensional, strike-slip and contractional deformation have been related to a continental backarc setting with a convergent margin to the east. In the Early Silurian (Benambran Orogeny), tectonic development was controlled by one or more subduction zones involved in collision and accretion of the Ordovician Macquarie Arc. Thermal instability in the Late Silurian to Middle Devonian interval was promoted by the presence of one or more shallow subducted slabs in the upper mantle and resulted in widespread silicic igneous activity. Extension dominated the Late Silurian in New South Wales and parts of eastern Victoria and led to formation of several sedimentary basins. Alternating episodes of contraction and extension, along with dispersed strike-slip faulting particularly in eastern Victoria, occurred in the Early Devonian culminating in the Middle Devonian contractional Tabberabberan Orogeny. Contractional deformation in modern systems, such as the central Andes, is driven by advance of the overriding plate, with highest strain developed at locations distant from plate edges. In the Ordovician to Early Devonian, it is inferred that East Gondwana was advancing towards Panthalassa. Extensional activity in the Lachlan backarc, although minor in comparison with backarc basins in the western Pacific Ocean, was driven by limited but continuous rollback of the subduction hinge. Alternation of contraction and extension reflects the delicate balance between plate motions with rollback being overtaken by advance of the upper plate intermittently in the Early to Middle Devonian resulting in contractional deformation in an otherwise dominantly extensional regime. A modern system that shows comparable behaviour is East Asia where rollback is considered responsible for widespread sedimentary basin development and basin inversion reflects advance of blocks driven by compression related to the Indian collision.     

The origin and pre-Cenozoic evolution of the Tibetan Plateau

Different hypotheses have been proposed for the origin and pre-Cenozoic evolution of the Tibetan Plateau as a result of several collision events between a series of Gondwana-derived terranes (e.g., Qiangtang, Lhasa and India) and Asian continent since the early Paleozoic. This paper reviews and reevaluates these hypotheses in light of new data from Tibet including (1) the distribution of major tectonic boundaries and suture zones, (2) basement rocks and their sedimentary covers, (3) magmatic suites, and (4) detrital zircon constraints from Paleozoic metasedimentary rocks. The Western Qiangtang, Amdo, and Tethyan Himalaya terranes have the Indian Gondwana origin, whereas the Lhasa Terrane shows an Australian Gondwana affinity. The Cambrian magmatic record in the Lhasa Terrane resulted from the subduction of the proto-Tethyan Ocean lithosphere beneath the Australian Gondwana. The newly identified late Devonian granitoids in the southern margin of the Lhasa Terrane may represent an extensional magmatic event associated with its rifting, which ultimately resulted in the opening of the Songdo Tethyan Ocean. The Lhasa−northern Australia collision at ~ 263 Ma was likely responsible for the initiation of a southward-dipping subduction of the Bangong-Nujiang Tethyan Oceanic lithosphere. The Yarlung-Zangbo Tethyan Ocean opened as a back-arc basin in the late Triassic, leading to the separation of the Lhasa Terrane from northern Australia. The subsequent northward subduction of the Yarlung-Zangbo Tethyan Ocean lithosphere beneath the Lhasa Terrane may have been triggered by the Qiangtang–Lhasa collision in the earliest Cretaceous. The mafic dike swarms (ca. 284 Ma) in the Western Qiangtang originated from the Panjal plume activity that resulted in continental rifting and its separation from the northern Indian continent. The subsequent collision of the Western Qiangtang with the Eastern Qiangtang in the middle Triassic was followed by slab breakoff that led to the exhumation of the Qiangtang metamorphic rocks. This collision may have caused the northward subduction initiation of the Bangong-Nujiang Ocean lithosphere beneath the Western Qiangtang. Collision-related coeval igneous rocks occurring on both sides of the suture zone and the within-plate basalt affinity of associated mafic lithologies suggest slab breakoff-induced magmatism in a continent−continent collision zone. This zone may be the site of net continental crust growth, as exemplified by the Tibetan Plateau.     

New Zealand's Geological Foundations

New Zealand is a fragment of Gondwana that, before Late Cretaceous sea floor spreading, was contiguous with Australia and Antarctica. Only about 10% of the area of continental crust in the wider New Zealand region (Zealandia) is emergent above sea level as the North and South Islands. No Precambrian cratonic core is exposed in onland New Zealand. The Cambrian to Early Cretaceous basement can be described in terms of nine major volcano-sedimentary terranes, three composite regional batholiths, and three regional metamorphic-tectonic belts that overprint the terranes and batholiths.The terranes (from west to east) are: Buller, Takaka, Brook Street, Murihiku, Maitai, Caples, Bay of Islands (part of former Waipapa), Rakaia (older Torlesse) and Pahau (younger Torlesse). The western terranes are intruded by three composite batholith (>100 km²) sized belts of plutons: Karamea-Paparoa, Hohonu and Median, as well as by numerous smaller plutons. Median Batholith (including the Median Tectonic Zone) is a recently-recognised Cordilleran batholith that represents the site of subduction-related magmatism from ca. 375–110 Ma. Parts of the terranes and batholiths are variably metamorphosed and deformed: Devonian and Cretaceous amphibolite-granulite facies gneisses are present in Buller, Takaka, Median and Karamea-Paparoa units; Jurassic-Cretaceous subgreenschist-amphibolite facies Haast Schist overprints the Caples, Bay of Islands and Rakaia Terranes; Cretaceous subgreenschist facies Esk Head and Whakatane Mélanges bound the Pahau Terrane. In the South Island, small areas (<5 km² total) of Devonian, Permian, Triassic and Jurassic Gondwana sequences have been identified. In the North Island a widespread Late Jurassic overlap sequence, Waipa Supergroup (part of former Waipapa Terrane), has recently been proposed.     

A Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic reconstruction of the Southwest Pacific region: Tectonics controlled by subduction and slab rollback processes

A Cenozoic tectonic reconstruction is presented for the Southwest Pacific region located east of Australia. The reconstruction is constrained by large geological and geophysical datasets and recalculated rotation parameters for Pacific–Australia and Lord Howe Rise–Pacific relative plate motion. The reconstruction is based on a conceptual tectonic model in which the large-scale structures of the region are manifestations of slab rollback and backarc extension processes. The current paradigm proclaims that the southwestern Pacific plate boundary was a west-dipping subduction boundary only since the Middle Eocene. The new reconstruction provides kinematic evidence that this configuration was already established in the Late Cretaceous and Early Paleogene. From ∼ 82 to ∼ 52 Ma, subduction was primarily accomplished by east and northeast-directed rollback of the Pacific slab, accommodating opening of the New Caledonia, South Loyalty, Coral Sea and Pocklington backarc basins and partly accommodating spreading in the Tasman Sea. The total amount of east-directed rollback of the Pacific slab that took place from ∼ 82 Ma to ∼ 52 Ma is estimated to be at least 1200 km. A large percentage of this rollback accommodated opening of the South Loyalty Basin, a north–south trending backarc basin. It is estimated from kinematic and geological constraints that the east–west width of the basin was at least ∼ 750 km. The South Loyalty and Pocklington backarc basins were subducted in the Eocene to earliest Miocene along the newly formed New Caledonia and Pocklington subduction zones. This culminated in southwestward and southward obduction of ophiolites in New Caledonia, Northland and New Guinea in the latest Eocene to earliest Miocene. It is suggested that the formation of these new subduction zones was triggered by a change in Pacific–Australia relative motion at ∼ 50 Ma. Two additional phases of eastward rollback of the Pacific slab followed, one during opening of the South Fiji Basin and Norfolk Basin in the Oligocene to Early Miocene (up to ∼ 650 km of rollback), and one during opening of the Lau Basin in the latest Miocene to Present (up to ∼ 400 km of rollback). Two new subduction zones formed in the Miocene, the south-dipping Trobriand subduction zone along which the Solomon Sea backarc Basin subducted and the north-dipping New Britain–San Cristobal–New Hebrides subduction zone, along which the Solomon Sea backarc Basin subducted in the west and the North Loyalty–South Fiji backarc Basin and remnants of the South Loyalty–Santa Cruz backarc Basin subducted in the east. Clockwise rollback of the New Hebrides section resulted in formation of the North Fiji Basin. The reconstruction provides explanations for the formation of new subduction zones and for the initiation and termination of opening of the marginal basins by either initiation of subduction of buoyant lithosphere, a change in plate kinematics or slab–mantle interaction.     

福建省古生代至中生代大地构造演化的格架

松溪—长汀断裂带和福州—永定断裂带是控制福建古生代及以后大地构造演化的两条北东东向的断裂带。地质地球化学资料表明,前者是加里东期的地体碰撞带,沿线分布了构造混杂岩、变质超基性岩体、具有角闪岩相和中压矿物的变质岩以及同碰撞型花岗岩体,以后又发育为A型俯冲带;后者是发育于加里东构造层之上的海西期张裂带,在形成海西期的福州—永定海峡的同时,产生了石炭纪海底双模式火山岩及层控铁矿,印支期的碰撞活动使海峡封闭并发育A型俯冲作用。由此,北东东向的松溪—长汀断裂带和福州—永定断裂带可以将福建划分为三个古生代的构造地层地体:闽北地体、闽中地体和闽东南地体。通过对福建省古生代地体构造分析、古地磁测量及古地理重建,展现在我们眼前是:华南(其中包括福建)在古生代中期从冈瓦纳大陆分离出来后,横渡特提斯海,在古生代末至中生代初到达劳亚大陆,与中朝板块碰撞引起了福建地体间强烈的造山运动。     

Kurosegawa Terrane in Southwest Japan: Disrupted Remnants of a Gondwana-Derived Terrane

The Kurosegawa Terrane is an anomalous, disrupted, Paleozoic and Mesozoic lithotectonic assemblage characterized by fragments of continent and continental margins. It is located in Southwest Japan where it lies between two Mesozoic subduction complex terranes. The Kurosegawa Terrane is an exotic and far-travelled geologic entity with respect to its present position. Limestones of the Kurosegawa Terrane formed along a continental margin yield fusulinacean fossils Cancellina, Colania and Lepidolina. Accordingly, the Kurosegawa Terrane was once situated within the Colania-Lepidolina territory in the East Tethys-Panthalassa region at a palaeo-equatorial latitude, possibly close to the eastern margin of the South China and/or Indochina-East Malaya continental blocks. These blocks had rifted from Gondwana by late Devonian. They drifted northwards, passing through the Colania-Lepidolina territory in mid-Permian time, and amalgamated with the proto-Asian continent during the late Triassic. Subsequently, during the Cretaceous, parts of the allochthonous continental blocks and their associated tectonic collage were transpressed, dispersed, and displaced from the southeastern periphery of Asia towards the north. As a result, the Kurosegawa Terrane is formed as a disrupted allochthonous terrane, characterized by a serpentinite melange zone, lying between the adjoining Mesozoic subduction complex terranes.     

An overview of electrical conductivity structures of the crust and upper mantle beneath the northwestern Pacific, the Japanese Islands, and continental East Asia

This article reviews the electrical conductivity structures of the oceanic upper mantle, subduction zones, and the mantle transition zone beneath the northwestern Pacific, the Japanese Islands, and continental East Asia, which have particularly large potential of water circulation in the global upper mantle. The oceanic upper mantle consists of an electrically resistive lid and a conductive layer underlying the lid. The depth of the top of the conductive layer is related to lithospheric cooling in the older mantle, whereas it is attributable to the difference in water distribution beneath the vicinity of the seafloor spreading-axis. The location of a lower crustal conductor in a subduction zone changes according to the subduction type. The difference can be explained by the characteristic dehydration from the subducting slab in each subduction zone and by advection from the backarc spreading. The latest one-dimensional electrical conductivity model of the mantle transition zone beneath the Pacific Ocean predicts values of 0.1–1.0 S/m. These values support a considerably dry oceanic mantle transition zone. However, one-dimensional electrical profiles may not be representative of the mantle transition zone there, since there exists a three-dimensional structure caused by the stagnant slab. Three-dimensional electromagnetic modeling should be made in future studies.     

An overview of electrical conductivity structures of the crust and upper mantle beneath the northwestern Pacific,the Japanese Islands,and continental East Asia

This article reviews the electrical conductivity structures of the oceanic upper mantle, subduction zones, and the mantle transition zone beneath the northwestern Pacific, the Japanese Islands, and continental East Asia, which have particularly large potential of water circulation in the global upper mantle. The oceanic upper mantle consists of an electrically resistive lid and a conductive layer underlying the lid. The depth of the top of the conductive layer is related to lithospheric cooling in the older mantle, whereas it is attributable to the difference in water distribution beneath the vicinity of the seafloor spreading-axis. The location of a lower crustal conductor in a subduction zone changes according to the subduction type. The difference can be explained by the characteristic dehydration from the subducting slab in each subduction zone and by advection from the backarc spreading. The latest one-dimensional electrical conductivity model of the mantle transition zone beneath the Pacific Ocean predicts values of 0.1–1.0 S/m. These values support a considerably dry oceanic mantle transition zone. However, one-dimensional electrical profiles may not be representative of the mantle transition zone there, since there exists a three-dimensional structure caused by the stagnant slab. Three-dimensional electromagnetic modeling should be made in future studies.     

Designating tectonostratigraphic terranes versus mapping rock units in subduction complexes: perspectives from the Franciscan Complex of California,USA

Accretionary complex histories are broadly understood. Sedimentation in seafloor and trench environments on drifting subducting plates and in associated trenches, followed by (1) deformation and metamorphism in the subduction zone and (2) subsequent uplift at the overriding plate edge, result in complicated stratigraphic and structural sequences in accretionary complexes. Recognizing, defining, and designating individual terranes in subduction complexes clarify some of these complicated relationships within the resulting continent-scale orogenic belts. Terrane designation does not substitute for detailed stratigraphic and structural mapping. Stratigraphic and structural mapping, combined with radiometric and palaeontologic dating, are necessary for delineation of coherent, broken, and dismembered formations, and various mélange units, and for clarification of the details of subduction complex architecture and history. The Franciscan Complex is a representative subduction complex that has evolved through sedimentation, faulting, folding, and low-temperature metamorphism, followed by uplift, associated deformation, and later overprinted deformation. Many belts of Franciscan rocks are offset by strike-slip faults associated with the dextral San Andreas Fault System. In the Franciscan Complex, among the terrane names applied widely, are the ‘Yolla Bolly Terrane’ and the ‘Central Terrane’. Where detailed mapping and detrital zircon ages exist, data reveal that the two names have been applied to rocks of similar general character and age. In the northeastern Diablo Range, Franciscan Complex rocks include coherent units, broken and dismembered formations, and various types of mélanges, all assigned at various times to the Yolla Bolly and other terranes. The details of stratigraphic and structural history revealed by large-scale mapping and radiometric dating prove to be more useful in clarifying the accretionary complex history than assigning a terrane name to the rocks. That history will assist in resolving terrane assignment issues and allow discrimination of subduction-associated and post-subduction events, essential for understanding the overall history of the orogen.     

Arc accretion to the early Paleozoic Antarctic margin of Gondwana in Victoria Land

The Antarctic Ross Orogen was built up during the early Paleozoic in the framework of the convergence between the Paleo-Pacific oceanic plate and the Gondwana continental margin. Models for the Ross Orogen in northern Victoria Land are based on terranes having a variable provenance with respect to the margin. However, recent studies provide evidence for the occurrence of different pieces of the lithospheric puzzle: (i) the Wilson continental magmatic arc, representing the main part of the active Gondwana margin, (ii) the Bowers arc–backarc system, (iii) the Admiralty crustal ribbon including continental material of the Wilson forearc, and (iv) the newly discovered, Cambrian oceanic magmatic Tiger arc, along the Ross Sea coast. An updated model is presented in which, after the Early Cambrian magmatic activity of the Wilson arc, a retreat of the subduction zone in the Early–Middle Cambrian gave way to boudinage of the Wilson forearc, trenchward arc migration, opening of the Bowers backarc basin and inception of the outboard Tiger subduction zone. Renewed convergence resulted in the development of the Middle Cambrian Bowers arc, closure of the backarc and deep underthrusting of portions of it at the Middle–Late Cambrian. Finally, in the latest Cambrian to earliest Ordovician, fast exhumation was coupled in the north with erosion and sediment shed to the northeast, and with extension and potassic magmatism in central and southern Victoria Land.     

Subduction,mega-shear systems and Late Palaeozoic basin development in the African segment of Gondwana

 Basins within the African sector of Gondwana contain a Late Palaeozoic to Early Mesozoic Gondwana sequence unconformably overlying Precambrian basement in the interior and mid-Palaeozoic strata along the palaeo-Pacific margin. Small sea-board Pacific basins form an exception in having a Carboniferous to Early Permian fill overlying Devonian metasediments and intrusives. The Late Palaeozoic geographic and tectonic changes in the region followed four well-defined consecutive events which can also be traced outside the study area. During the Late Devonian to Early Carboniferous period (up to 330 Ma) accretion of microplates along the Patagonian margin of Gondwana resulted in the evolution of the Pacific basins. Thermal uplift of the Gondwana crust and extensive erosion causing a break in the stratigraphic record characterised the period between 300 and 330 Ma. At the end of this period the Gondwana Ice Sheet was well established over the uplands. The period 260–300 Ma evidenced the release of the Gondwana heat and thermal subsidence caused widespread basin formation. Late Carboniferous transpressive strike-slip basins (e.g. Sierra Australes/Colorado, Karoo-Falklands, Ellsworth-Central Transantarctic Mountains) in which thick glacial deposits accumulated, formed inboard of the palaeo-Pacific margin. In the continental interior the formation of Zambesi-type rift and extensional strike-slip basins were controlled by large mega-shear systems, whereas rare intracratonic thermal subsidence basins formed locally. In the Late Permian the tectonic regime changed to compressional largely due to northwest-directed subduction along the palaeo-Pacific margin. The orogenic cycle between 240 and 260 Ma resulted in the formation of the Gondwana fold belt and overall north–south crustal shortening with strike-slip motions and regional uplift within the interior. The Gondwana fold belt developed along a probable weak crustal zone wedged in between the cratons and an overthickened marginal crustal belt subject to dextral transpressive motions. Associated with the orogenic cycle was the formation of mega-shear systems one of which (Falklands-East Africa-Tethys shear) split the supercontinent in the Permo-Triassic into a West and an East Gondwana. By a slight clockwise rotation of East Gondwana a supradetachment basin formed along the Tethyan margin and northward displacement of Madagascar, West Falkland and the Gondwana fold belt occurred relative to a southward motion of Africa. Received: 2 October 1995 / Accepted: 28 May 1996     

Formation of arcs and backarc basins inferred from the tectonic evolution of Southeast Asia since the Late Cretaceous

Results of the geological and geophysical surveys in the Daito ridges and basin in the northern West Philippine Basin suggest that the Daito Ridge was an arc facing toward the south from the Late Cretaceous to the Early Tertiary. The Late Cretaceous and Tertiary history of Southeast Asia is evaluated based on these data in the Daito ridges and basins and reconstructed based on overall plate kinematics that have operated in this area. During the Late Cretaceous, the Daito Ridge and the East Philippine Islands were positioned along the boundary between the Indian and Pacific Plates. The western half of the Philippines setting on the Indian Plate approached from the south and collided with the East Philippine–Daito Arc either during the latest Paleocene or the earliest Eocene. It is inferred that the bulk of the Philippine archipelago rotated clockwise and Borneo spun counterclockwise during the Tertiary.From the reconstruction, the formation of backarc basins and their spreading direction are assessed. As a result, some primary causes and significant characteristics are suggested for the opening of backarc basins in Southeast Asia. First, opening of some backarc basins commenced with or was triggered by collisions. Second, backarc basins opened approximately parallel to oceanic plate motion. Third, the formation of some backarc basins was triggered by the approach of a hot spreading center. Fourth, the spreading mode or direction of backarc basins was greatly affected by the configuration of the surrounding continent and was also rearranged to spread approximately parallel to oceanic plate motion.The formation of backarc basins and their spreading direction can be reasonably explained by plate kinematics. However, the generative force responsible for their formation is possibly within the subduction system, particularly to form horizontal tensional force in backarc side.     

Single subduction zone for the generation of Devonian ophiolites and high‐P metamorphic belts of the Variscan Orogen (NW Iberia)

Within the Variscan Orogen, Early Devonian and Late Devonian high‐P belts separated by mid‐Devonian ophiolites can be interpreted as having formed in a single subduction zone. Early Devonian convergence nucleated a Laurussia‐dipping subduction zone from an inherited lithospheric neck (peri‐Gondwanan Cambrian back‐arc). Slab‐retreat induced upper plate extension, mantle incursion and lower plate thermal softening, favouring slab‐detachment within the lower plate and diapiric exhumation of deep‐seated rocks through the overlying mantle up to relaminate the upper plate. Upper plate extension produced mid‐Devonian suprasubduction ocean floor spreading (Devonian ophiolites), while further convergence resulted in plate coupling and intraoceanic ophiolite imbrication. Accretion of the remaining Cambrian ocean heralded Late Devonian subduction of inner sections of Gondwana across the same subduction zone and the underthrusting of mainland Gondwana (culmination of NW Iberian allochthonous pile). Oblique convergence favoured lateral plate sliding, and explained the different lateral positions along Gondwana of terranes separated by Palaeozoic ophiolites.     

Ediacaran–Cambrian basin evolution in the Koonenberry Belt (eastern Australia): Implications for the geodynamics of the Delamerian Orogen

Contention surrounds the Ediacaran–Cambrian geodynamic evolution of the palaeo-Pacific margin of Gondwana as it underwent a transition from passive to active margin tectonics. In Australia, disagreement stems from conflicting geodynamic models for the Delamerian Orogen, which differ in the polarity of subduction and the state of the subduction hinge (i.e., stationary or retreating). This study tests competing models of the Delamerian Orogen through reconstructing Ediacaran–Cambrian basin evolution in the Koonenberry Belt, Australia. This was done through characterising the mineral and U–Pb detrital zircon age provenance of sediments deposited during postulated passive and active margin stages. Based on these data, we present a new basin evolution model for the Koonenberry Belt, which also impacts palaeogeographic models of Australia and East Gondwana. Our basin evolution and palaeogeographic model is composed of four main stages, namely: (i) Ediacaran passive margin stage with sediments derived from the Musgrave Province; (ii) Middle Cambrian (517–500 Ma) convergent margin stage with sediments derived from collisional orogens in central Gondwana (i.e., the Maud Belt of East Antarctica) and deposited in a backarc setting; (iii) crustal shortening during the c. 500 Ma Delamerian Orogeny, and; (iv) Middle to Late Cambrian–Ordovician stage with sediments sourced from the local basement and 520–490 Ma igneous rocks and deposited into post-orogenic pull-apart basins. Based on this new basin evolution model we propose a new geodynamic model for the Cambrian evolution of the Koonenberry Belt where: (i) the initiation of a west-dipping subduction zone at c. 517 Ma was associated with incipient calc-alkaline magmatism (Mount Wright Volcanics) and deposition of the Teltawongee and Ponto groups; (ii) immediate east-directed retreat of the subduction zone positioned the Koonenberry Belt in a backarc basin setting (517 to 500 Ma), which became a depocentre for continued deposition of the Teltawongee and Ponto groups; (iii) inversion of the backarc basin during the c. 500 Delamerian Orogeny was driven by increased upper and low plate coupling caused by the arrival of a lower plate asperity to the subduction hinge, and; (iv) subduction of the asperity resulted in renewed rollback and upper plate extension, leading to the development of small, post-orogenic pull-apart basins that received locally derived detritus.     

Anatomy of the transpressional Dom Feliciano Belt and its pre-collisional isotopic (Sr–Nd) signatures: A contribution towards an integrated model for the Brasiliano/Pan-African orogenic cycle

The Dom Feliciano Belt evolution is reviewed based on cross-sections, space–time diagrams, P-T paths, and Sr–Nd isotopic data of pre-collisional metaigneous rocks. The belt is divided into northern, central and southern sectors, subdivided into tectonic domains, developed at Neoproterozoic pre-, syn- and post-collisional stages. The northern sector foreland pre-collisional setting represents a rift, with tholeiitic (meta)volcanic rocks (∼800 Ma) chronocorrelated to hinterland intermediate and acidic orthogneisses of high-K calc-alkaline arc signature. In contrast, the central sector records a complete section from the forearc towards the back-arc region during pre-collisional times. In the western domain, ophiolites (∼920 Ma) are associated with arc-related orthogneisses and metavolcanic rocks (880–830 Ma; 760–730 Ma). At back-arc position, continental arc-related magmatism (800–780 Ma) is registered by hinterland orthogneisses and central foreland metavolcanic rocks. Ophiolites on the hinterland opposite side comprise two compositional groups, with N-MORB and supra subduction signature, interpreted as a back-arc basin record (∼750 Ma). The pre-Neoproterozoic basement of the whole belt is correlated with the Nico Perez Terrane and Luis Alves Block (Archean to Mesoproterozoic, with Congo Craton affinity). This contrasts with the Piedra Alta Terrane (Rio de La Plata Craton, only Paleoproterozoic), westernmost Uruguay. The suture between the Piedra Alta and Nico Perez terranes is correlated with the suture zone in the westernmost central sector. Transpression affected both foreland and hinterland during collision (660–640 Ma), with high-T/low-P hinterland progressive exhumation, whilst foreland low- to medium-grade correlated sequences record underthrusting. Post-collisional processes included magmatism throughout the belt (640–580 Ma), strain partitioning along strike-slip shear zones, and foreland basin fill. Late tectono-metamorphic and magmatic processes (560–540 Ma) were attributed to the Kalahari Craton collision. Arc magmatism migration due to subduction angle variations suggests modern-style plate tectonics during Gondwana amalgamation. Diachronism and kinematic inversion are characteristic of an oblique convergent multi-plate orogenic system.     

柴达木盆地东缘早古生代弯山构造

位于中国中央造山带内部的柴达木盆地周缘出露有代表原特提斯洋盆的蛇绿岩带、指示大洋俯冲与大陆深俯冲的高压-超高压变质带以及不同性质的早古生代花岗岩带。根据这些构造单元的空间展布形态及其综合地质年龄分布,表现为一条环绕柴达木盆地东缘的连续而弯曲的加里东期造山带。造山带内发育一系列右行走滑断裂和韧性剪切带,与古地磁资料所揭示的柴达木地块在早古生代的相对逆时针旋转息息相关。本文提出,柴达木盆地周缘造山带为一弯山构造。它是在原特提斯洋向南斜向俯冲闭合过程中,诱发的大型走滑断裂和柴达木地块逆时针旋转牵引造山带发生弯曲所致。     

Kurosegawa Terrane as a Transform Fault Zone in Southwest Japan

The Kurosegawa Terrane intervening in the Jurassic-Early Cretaceous accretionary complexes along the Pacific side of the SW Japanese Islands is a serpentinite mélange zone. It contains various kinds of exotic rocks, for example, granitoids, metamorphic rocks, Siluro-Devonian deposits and is intimately associated with Cretaceous forearc basin deposits. The terrane is regarded as a key to clarify the Mesozoic geotectonic history of the western circum-Pacific orogenic belts. The current model, in which the formation of the Kurosegawa Terrane is attributed to nappe-movement or sinistral strike-slip faulting, can explain neither the mode of occurrence of the Kurosegawa Terrane we observed in eastern Kii Peninsula nor the array of evidence obtained from the Ryoke Terrane southward to the Shimanto Terrane. We suggest a new hypothesis in which the Kurosegawa Terrane was a transform fault zone that originated because of oceanic ridge subduction along the southern margin of the coeval accretionary prism (Butsuzo T.L.) in the late Early Cretaceous. Our model is mainly based on new geological evidence from the Kurosegawa Terrane in eastern Kii Peninsula where the deepest erosion level is exposed due to neotectonic uplift.     

Synthesis of Palaeozoic deformational events and terrane accretion in the Canadian Appalachians

Plate tectonic theory predicts that most deformation is associated with subduction and terrane accretion, with some deformation associated with transform/transcurrent movements. Deformation associated with subduction varies between two end members: (1) where the tectonic regime is dominated by subduction of oceanic lithosphere containing small terranes, a narrow surface zone of accretionary deformation along the subduction zone starts diachronously on the subducting plate at the trench as material is transferred from the subducting plate to the over-riding plate; and (2) where continent-continent collision is occurring, a wide surface zone of accretionary deformation starts synchronously or with limited diachronism. Palaeozoic deformational events in the Canadian Appalachians correspond to narrow diachronous events in the Ordovician and Silurian, whereas Devonian, Carboniferous and Permian deformational events are widespread and broadly synchronous. Along the western side of the Canadian Appalachians, the Taconian deformational event starts diachronously throughout the Ordovician and corresponds to the north-north-west accretion of the Notre Dame, Ascot-Weedon, St Victor and various ophiolitic massifs (volcanic arc and peri-arc terranes) over cratonic North America. Within the eastern half of the Central Mobile Belt, the Late Cambrian-Early Ordovician Penobscotian deformational event corresponds to the ?south-easterly accretion of the Exploits subzone (various volcanic are and peri-arc terranes) over the Gander Zone (?continental rise). In the centre of the orogen, the Late Ordovician-Silurian Beothukan deformational event corresponds to the south-easterly accretion of the Notre Dame over the Exploits-Gander subzones. Along the south-eastern side of the Central Mobile Belt, the Silurian Ganderian deformational event corresponds to the north-north-east, sinistral transcurrent accretion of the Avalon Composite Terrane (microcontinent) over the Gander-Exploits zones. Along the south-eastern half of the orogen, the Late Silurian-Middle Devonian Acadian deformation event corresponds to the westerly accretion of the Meguma terrane (intradeep or continental rise) over the Avalon Composite Terrane. Affecting the entire orogen, the Late Devonian, Carboniferous and Permian, Acadian-Alleghanian deformational events correspond to the east-west convergence between Laurentia and Gondwana (continent-continent collision).     

Early Cambrian palaeobiogeography of the Zhenba–Fangxian Block (South China): Independent terrane or part of the Yangtze Platform?

Early Cambrian small skeletal fossils (SSFs) are studied and revised from the Zhenba–Fangxian Block of the transitional zone between the Yangtze Block and the South Qinling Terrane. The study reveals a diverse fauna with 47 species of various biological affinities, including the new species Gapparodus gapparites sp. nov. The SSFs are assigned to the newly defined Cambroclavus fangxianensis–Rhombocorniculum cancellatum Assemblage Zone. Based on the investigated SSF fauna from Zhenba County, Southeast Shaanxi of China and published data, a palaeobiogeographic study is carried out for the Cambrian Stage 3 (equivalent to the Atdabanian–Botoman of Siberia). A hierarchical Pearson similarity cluster analysis of 295 species from 32 regions of the world indicates a distinct palaeobiogeographic pattern with seven faunal provinces. The result is mostly consistent with existing palaeogeographic reconstructions for the early Cambrian. However, it is also shown that the SSF assemblages of the Zhenba–Fangxian Block have low similarity with those of the Yangtze Block. Instead, they share high similarity with those from Armorica, Tarim and the Karatau–Naryn terranes (South Kazakhstan/North Kyrgyzstan). The Yangtze Block has a unique SSF assemblage dissimilar to most of other regions. The Terreneuvian–Cambrian Stage 3 sedimentary sequence of the Zhenba–Fangxian Block is more consistent with that of the South Qinling Terrane. Besides, sedimentary Ediacaran manganese ore deposits and Cambrian barite/witherite deposits have unique distribution pattern on the Zhenba–Fangxian Block. Derived from the profound dissimilarities in faunal composition, sedimentary sequence and distribution of sedimentary ore deposits, we hypothesize that during the Neoproterozoic–Cambrian transition, the Zhenba–Fangxian Block might have been an independent terrane and more distant from the Yangtze Block. The palaeobiogeographic analysis of SSFs also indicates a closer alliance between Avalonia and Siberia. It corroborates the palaeogeographic reconstruction of North China at the margin of Gondwana, in the vicinity of Australia, Antarctica, and Armorica.     

Development of the Khao Khwang Fold and Thrust Belt: Implications for the geodynamic setting of Thailand and Cambodia during the Indosinian Orogeny

The Indosinian Orogeny in Thailand is often viewed as having developed between strongly linear terranes, which today trend approximately N–S. The terranes were subsequently disrupted by later tectonics, particularly NW–SE trending Cenozoic strike-slip faults. The ENE–WSW to NE–SW striking thrusts and folds in the Khao Khwang Platform area of the Saraburi Group on the SW margin of the Indochina Terrane are not easily explained in the context of this traditional view. Reversal of the clockwise rotation shown to have affected the block north of the Mae Ping Fault zone only enhances the E–W orientation of structures in the fold and thrust belt, and moves the belt further east towards Cambodia. One solution for the trend that fits better with regional understanding from hydrocarbon exploration of the Khorat Plateau is that the Indochina Terrane was actually a series of continental blocks, separated by Permian rifting. During the Early Triassic the early stages of collision (South China-Cathaysian Terrane collision with Vietnam Indochina) resulted in the amalgamation of disparate blocks that now form the Indochina Terrane by closure along the rifts. At the same time or following on from the collision there was closure of the back-arc area between Indochina and the Sukhothai zone. The rift basins, were thrusted and inverted during the early stages of the Indosinian orogeny, and only underwent minor reactivated when later Sibumasu collided with Sukhothai Zone-Indochina Terrane margin during the Late Triassic. The scenario described above requires the presence of a (minor) E–W trending suture in NW Cambodia. Evidence for this suture is suggested by the presence of Permo-Triassic calc-alkaline volcanism.