Puncoviscana folded belt in northwestern Argentina: testimony of Late Proterozoic Rodinia fragmentation and pre-Gondwana collisional episodes: a reply

Franz and Lucassen (2000) rise several important points, which are primarily related to the Puncoviscana belt role in northwestern Argentina. Their discussion consisted of three major overviews: (a) the Puncoviscana belt evolution related to the Proterozoic Rodinia fragmentation; (b) the geochemical data associated with volcanic rock interlayered in the Puncoviscana formation and (c) the central Andes residual gravity field interpretations. It will be shown in this reply that their claim against our interpretation is the consequence of an equivocal handling of the geological times, the tectonic episodes and the associated lithologies in the wide context of the Puncoviscana belt type paleogeographic connections. Some present geochronological data oldest that 1.1 to 0.9 Ga. are consistent with an autochthonous basement integrated by very ancient protoliths adjoins to the typical Grenville belt rocks before the Rodinia fragmentation. The autochthonous condition must be interpreted only as the Rodinia supercontinental reality, that after remains into the new Laurentia-Cabalonia-Pannotia continental units. In this context, the Theia, Candelaria, Iapetus and other proto-oceanic rifts begins an allochthonous reality for lot of the drifting crustal slivers during the Pannotian Cycle (Late Proterozoic - Early Paleozoic) in the break-up geotectonic times of the post-Rodinian supercontinent. The Puncoviscana geochemical interpretation presented in this reply shows an very clear plate tectonic evolution in various steps: (1) the proto-rift lineaments from the extensional regimen of the Candelaria triple point (t_DM ~0.70 to 0.78 Ga.); (2) the passive continental margin sequences (700 to 600 Ma); and (3) the magmatic arc in the compressive regimen belonging to the Pampean orogeny (580 to 534 Ma).