Hydrothermal dolomite marbles associated with charnockitic magmatism in the Proterozoic Bamble Shear Belt,south Norway

Deformed and metamorphosed dolomite marbles in the Kragerø area of the Bamble Shear Belt occur as lenses within metasupracrustal sequences, as matrix in bodies resembling magmatic breccias, and as veins/dykes cutting amphibolites and metagabbros. A common origin is not evident from the field relationships, but is nevertherless probable due to great geochemical similarities between dolomite from the different occurrences. They are characterized by higher REE, Ni, Co, Cr and Sc, and lower Ba and Sr contents relative to metasedimentary marbles occurring nearby. Sm-Nd isotope data shows that the dolomites are of Sveconorwegian age (1175±37 Ma). The dolomite marbles are very weakly LREE-enriched and display in most cases positive Eu anomalies. Their stable isotope compositions are uniform (¹⁸O=+9.6 to +10.7; ¹³C=-8.5 to-6.2), their initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr ratios are high (0.706–0.709), whereas their age corrected _Nd varies from +0.7 to-1.5. Geochemically the dolomitic marbles differ considerably from sedimentary or metasedimentary marbles as well as from carbonatites. The Kragerø dolomite marbles represent deformed and metamorphosed hydrothermal veins or vein-complexes deposited in tensional fractures in the deep crust. Although the dolomitic marbles regionally are of minor volume, the dolomite deposition represents a specific and important event in the geological evolution of the Bamble Shear Belt. Their geochemical and isotopic homogeneity on a regional scale suggest that the hydrothermal solutions were supplied from a very large, homogeneous reservoir. Trace elements, stable and radiogenic isotopes, and field and isotopic age relationships are consistent with a deposition from hydrothermal solutions which were exsolved from crystallizing charnockitic intrusions and subsequently interacted with the crust. The parental magma to these intrusions underplated the crust and raised the geotherm of a carbonated ultramafic uppermost mantle, and imposed decarbonation and fluid release. These fluids were channelled into a large degassing zone now found as a deformed, regional zone with hydrothermal dolomite deposits, albitites, apatite-veins and widespread scapolitization. Whether the CO₂-rich fluids, which precipitated the Kragerø dolomites, pervasively infiltrated crustal rocks at a deeper level and caused granulitization is ambiguous, but possible.     

The Pb-Sr-Nd isotope geochemistry of some recent circum-Mediterranean granites

Pb, Sr and Nd isotopic compositions have been analyzed in recent granites from Northern Africa, Northern Italy and Greece. Lead isotope compositions of K-feldspars are rather homogeneous, and cluster close to the modern lead of Stacey and Kramers (1975) but with slightly higher²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb and²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios. The Cyclades samples, however, have higher²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb ratios. Addition of mantle-derived lead was probably very limited, which supports a quasi-closed system evolution of this element in the continental crust. The Sr, Nd data fall in the enriched part of the¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd vs.⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr diagram and define a smooth hyperbolic mixing curve. Over a wide area, straddling different orogens, most granites may be accounted for by a binary mixture between a recycled crustal component and a depleted mantle-like component. No correlation is observed between either Pb and Sr or Nd isotopic ratios, or any isotopic ratio and major element contents. Quantitative modelling suggests that two cases fit the Sr and Nd characteristics of these granites: they both require anatexis of the crust on a scale large enough to average the isotopic properties of heterogeneous terranes. In the first case, the mantle-derived component may be represented by differentiated Island Arc-type magmas, and the granites result from mixing these magmas with anatectic melts. In the second case, mantle-derived igneous rocks, such as obducted ophiolites, are part of the crustal source and their variable involvement in the anatectic process causes isotopic variations.CRPG Contribution n 630.     

Agrobiodiversity and Shade Coffee Smallholder Livelihoods: A Review and Synthesis of Ten Years of Research in Central America

We used households as the primary unit of analysis to synthesize agrobiodiversity research in small-scale coffee farms and cooperatives of Nicaragua and El Salvador. Surveys, focus groups, and plant inventories were used to analyze agrobiodiversity and its contribution to livelihoods. Households managed high levels of agrobiodiversity, including 100 shade tree and epiphyte species, food crops, and medicinals. Small farms contained higher levels of agrobiodiversity than larger, collectively managed cooperatives. Households benefited from agrobiodiversity through consumption and sales. To better support agrobiodiversity conservation, our analysis calls for a hybrid approach integrating bottom-up initiatives with the resources from top-down projects.     

Solar and anthropogenic imprints on Lake Masoko (southern Tanzania) during the last 500 years

The Masoko crater-lake in southern Tanzania provides a continuous record of environmental changes covering the last 500 years. Multi-proxy studies were performed on a 52 cm sediment core retrieved from the deepest part of the lake. Magnetic, organic carbon, geochemical proxies and pollen assemblages indicate a dry climate during the ‘Little Ice Age’ (AD 1550–1850), confirming that the LIA in eastern Africa resulted in marked and synchronous hydrological changes. However, the direction of response varies between different African lakes (low versus high lake-levels), indicating strong regional contrasts that prevent the clear identification of climate trends over eastern Africa at this time. Inferred changes in Masoko lake-levels closely resemble the record of solar activity cycles, indicating a possible control of solar activity on the climate in this area. This observation supports previous results from East African lakes, and extends this relationship southward. Finally, anthropogenic impact is observed in the Masoko sediments during the last 60 years, suggesting that human disturbance significantly affected this remote basin during colonial and post-colonial times.