The Geology of the Country East of Beitbridge
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ZIMBABWE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY BULLETIN NO. 87 The Geology of the Country East of Beitbridge by MPR LIGHT & TJ. BRODERICK ISSUED BY AUTHORITY HARARE 1998 PREFACE Bulletin No. 87 and accompanying 1: I 00000 scale map describes the geology of an area about 1765 km2 in Beitbridge District. The area is bounded by longitudes 300 00' E to 300 30' E, and latitude 220 00' S, the southern boundary being the Limpopo River. M.P.R. Light carried out the geological mapping between 1973 and 1975, and the map was published in 1981. Publication of the Bulletin text, rc-written by TJ. Broderick, was delayed by lack of funds. This publication has bcen madc possible, courtesy of funds provided by Centrum fuer Internationale Migration unci Entwicklung (CIM) of Frankfurt, Germany. The area first described by Carl Mauch in 187 I comprises complexly deformed gneisses and granulites of the Central Zone of the Limpopo Mobile Belt. Rare exposures of enderbites and dioritic gneisses form a basement to the Beitbridge Group deposited as various sediments, limestones and volcanic rocks, but now intensely cleformed and metamorphosed to clifferent gneisses and granulites. Karoo sediments lying uneonfonnably on the Beitbridge Group, are preserved in grabens. The whole area is intensely fractured. Most fractures are radial to post Karoo volcanic centres, and are filled by dykes of various rock types. Patt 11 of the Bulletin describes the cconomic geology of the area. Bcitbridge West has been subject to numerous Exclusive Prospecting Orders concerned mainly with exploration for base metals, Messina-type copper mineralization in particular. Though few claims were pegged, there has not been any mining of base metals from the area. Recent commissioning of River Ranch diam.ond mine a few kilometres west of Beitbridge town has attracted huge interests in exploration for kimberlitic diamond deposits in the area. With a production of over 800 000 tonnes of magnesite, Pande was one of the biggest magnesite mines in the country. Other economic minerals include crystal corundum, limestone, uranium, and semiprecious stones (aventurine, rose quartz, garnet, and epidote). Epidotization of the Bulai gneiss has produced an unakite used for ornamental purposes. The Bulletin was edited by L.A. Lister. P.M. Oesterlen, R.T. Sithole and T. Kapondo, all of the Zimbabwe Geological Survey, are acknowledged for proof-reading drafts, production and setting up of diagrams and plates, and page setting and formatting, respectively. F. Mugumbate Acting Director Geological Survey Department Harare November 1998 ~s CONTENTS t. .d PART I - GENERAL GEOLOGY :11 Page , ' \--' 'Y INTRODUCTION.............................. ..................................................... ;y TI-IE AREA ............... ,',."." .. ".. ..................... .... :';". :':..: .................... ,,, ................................ 1 .d PHYSICAL FEATURES ........................................................................................................ .. 2 PREVIOUS GEOLOGICAL WORK ......................................................................................... 2 '8 OUTLINE OF THE GEOLOGy ............................................................................................. 3 le GEOCHRONOLOGY ......................................................................................................... .. 7 d Jl BASEMENT GNEISSES ........................................................................................................... .. 8 s, II BEITBRIDGE GROUP .............................................................................................................. 11 Y DITI FORMATION ................................................................................................................ 12 'c Diti Paragneisscs .............................................................................................................................. .. 12 l Shakwisa Calcareous Member ......................................................................................................... 20 k Swebebe Ferruginous Member... ....................... .............. ............................................ 27 NULLI FORMATION ........................................................................................................ 32 c e SYNTECTONIC INTRUSIVE ROCKS ......................................................................................... 39 e LAYERED ANORTHOSITE SUiTE .................................................................................... .. 39 h Lower Group .................................................................................................................................... 41 c Upper Group .................................................................................................................................... 42 h ULTRAMAFIC SUiTE ....................................................................................................... 47 is Ultramafic Granulites, Gneisses and Hornblendites ...................................................................... .. 47 d Serpeutinites ..................................................................................................................................... 52 MAFIC GRANULITES ................................................ '" .................................................... .. 55 e Two-Pyroxcne Granulites ................................................................................................................. 55 ~r Metabasic Dykes ............................................................................................................................... 56 I, BULAI GNEISS SUITE ...................................................................................................... 58 d Singe\elc and Charnockitic Aureole Gueisses .................................................................................. 58 11 Bulai Gneiss ...................................................................................................................................... 62 SYNTECTONIC ROSE QUARTZ REEFS ................................................................................ .. 67 APLITIC RIEBECKITE-GNEISS .......................................................................................... .. 67 I, FLASER GNEISS AND MYLONITE ..................................................................................... .. 68 g PEGMA TITES ................................................................................................................ .. 69 , METASOMATIZED BRECCIAS AND APLITES ..................................................................... .. 71 " QUARTZ REEFS .............................................................................................................. 72 STRUCTURE OF THE BElTBRIDGE GROUP....................................... ........................................ 72 METAMORPHISM OF THE BElTBRIDGE GROUP... ...... ...... ...... ......... ... ...................................... 73 THE KAROO SYSTEM.. .... ... ...... ..... .... ......... .... ..... ... ... ...... ...... ... ...... ........................................ 77 DOLERlTES....................................................................................... .................................... 78 COARSE-GRAINED DOLERITES........................................................ ................................. 80 FINE- TO MEDIUM-GRAINED DOLERITES............................................................................. 81 GLOMEROPHYRIC DOLERITES... ... ...... ...... ... ... ... ... ...... ......... ..... ......................................... 81 PLATY FELDSPAR DOLERITES.......................................................................................... 82 Pagc POST-KAROO IGNEOUS ROCKS, """"" 82 TONALITES AND APLITES"""""""",,, 83 MAFIC PORPHYRY DYKES, """"" 83 PORPHYRITIC PlC RITE DYKES 85 NEPHELINE-SYENITE DYKES" 86 LA TE FINE-GRAINED DOLERITES"""" 86 FAULTING AND BRECCIATION,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, 87 HYDROTHERMAL ACTIVITY",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, 88 SUPERFICIAL DEPOSITS""""""", 88 PART H - ECONOMIC GEOLOGY EXCLUSIVE PROSPECTING ORDERS" 91 ASBESTOS, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 94 COPPER AND NICKEL"""", 94 CORUNDUM, """''''',,'''''''' 96 IRON""""""""", 98 LIMESTONE", ", ","""""""""""'" 99 MAGNESITE.",.""",,,, "'''' '" '''''''''' 100 SEMI-PRECIOUS STONES""""""" 11 I SILLIMANITE AND CORDIERITE"", 11 I URANIUM"""", """""""""""','.,' III REFERENCES"""""""""",,,,,,,,,, , 113 APPENDIX""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""", ... , ... , .... , ... """.""""."".".,,"",,"""",,. 116 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS FIGURES Landsurfaces east of Beitbridgc ............ ,', ......... " ....... " ............. """""""""""""""""""""""".,,,,. 3 2 Analysis of the Fe-content for 283 samples ofSwebebe Ferruginous Quartzites"""""""""""""""""".""" 28 3 Classification of Gabbroic Rocks containing Hornblende (modified after Streckeisen 1976 and Windley 1973)"" ... ", 38 4 Classification of Ultramafic Rocks containing Hornblende (after Streckeisen 1976)."" .. " ... """"""".""". 49 5 Sketch showing dyke relationships 1.5 km south-east of Swebebe Hill. ............................. """""""",, 70 6 P-Tconditions prevailing during metamorphism of the Beitbridge Group (Light 1979) .......... """"" .. ,,.,," 76 7 Strike distribution of dole rite dykes east of Be itbridge ................................................... """."""". 79 8 Strike distribution of 88 Breccia zones East of Be it bridge ...................................