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The Early Mesozoic Volcanic Arc of Western North America in Northeastern Mexico

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The Early Mesozoic Volcanic Arc of Western North America in Northeastern Mexico Journal of South American Earth Sciences 25 (2008) 49–63 www.elsevier.com/locate/jsames The Early Mesozoic volcanic arc of western North America in northeastern Mexico Jose´ Rafael Barboza-Gudin˜o a,*, Marı´a Teresa Orozco-Esquivel b, Martı´nGo´mez-Anguiano c, Aurora Zavala-Monsiva´is d a Instituto de Geologı´a, Universidad Auto´noma de San Luis Potosı´, Manuel Nava No. 5. Zona Universitaria, 78240 San Luis Potosı´, S.L.P., Mexico b Centro de Geociencias, Universidad Nacional Auto´noma de Me´xico, Campus Juriquilla, 76230 Quere´taro, Qro., Mexico c Universidad Tecnolo´gica de La Mixteca, Carretera a Acatuma Km. 2.5, 69000 Huajuapan de Leo´n, Oaxaca, Mexico d Posgrado en Geologı´a Aplicada, Universidad Auto´noma de San Luis Potosı´, Manuel Nava No. 5, Zona Universitaria, 78240 San Luis Potosı´, S.L.P., Mexico Abstract Volcanic successions underlying clastic and carbonate marine rocks of the Oxfordian–Kimmeridgian Zuloaga Group in northeastern Mexico have been attributed to magmatic arcs of Permo–Triassic and Early Jurassic ages. This work provides stratigraphic, petrographic geochronological, and geochemical data to characterize pre-Oxfordian volcanic rocks outcropping in seven localities in northeastern Mexico. Field observations show that the volcanic units overlie Paleozoic metamorphic rocks (Granjeno schist) or Triassic marine strata (Zacatecas Formation) and intrude Triassic redbeds or are partly interbedded with Lower Jurassic redbeds (Huizachal Group). The vol- canic rocks include rhyolitic and rhyodacitic domes and dikes, basaltic to andesitic lava flows and breccias, and andesitic to rhyolitic pyroclastic rocks, including breccias, lapilli, and ashflow tuffs that range from welded to unwelded. Lower–Middle Jurassic ages (U/ Pb in zircon) have been reported from only two studied localities (Huizachal Valley, Sierra de Catorce), and other reported ages (Ar/ Ar and K–Ar in whole-rock or feldspar) are often reset. This work reports a new U/Pb age in zircon that confirms a Lower Jurassic (193 Ma) age for volcanic rocks exposed in the Aramberri area. The major and trace element contents of samples from the seven localities are typical of calc-alkaline, subduction-related rocks. The new geochronological and geochemical data, coupled with the lithological fea- tures and stratigraphic positions, indicate volcanic rocks are part of a continental arc, similar to that represented by the Lower–Middle Jurassic Nazas Formation of Durango and northern Zacatecas. On that basis, the studied volcanic sequences are assigned to the Early Jurassic volcanic arc of western North America. Ó 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Stratigraphy; Volcanic rocks; Arc; Jurassic; Mexico 1. Introduction lini et al., 2003; Barboza-Gudin˜o et al., 1998, 1999, 2004) reveal diverse lithologies and stratigraphic position below Volcanic successions underlie clastic and carbonate mar- Oxfordian limestones. In northern Durango and Zacate- ine sequences of the Oxfordian–Kimmeridgian Zuloaga cas, the volcanic pre-Oxfordian rocks have been assigned Group in northeastern Mexico. Studies of the successions to the Jurassic continental volcanic arc, related to the (e.g., Pantoja-Alor, 1972; Blickwede, 2001; Lo´pez-Infan- active continental margin of southwestern North America zo´n, 1986; Jones et al., 1990, 1995; Bartolini, 1998; Barto- (Grajales-Nishimura et al., 1992; Jones et al., 1995; Barto- lini, 1998; Bartolini et al., 2003), whereas in areas of San Luis Potosı´, Nuevo Leo´n, and Tamaulipas, they have been * Corresponding author. Fax: +52 444 8111741. considered products of a Permo–Triassic volcanic arc (Mei- E-mail address: [email protected] (J.R. Barboza-Gudin˜o). burg et al., 1987; Bartolini et al., 1999). 0895-9811/$ - see front matter Ó 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.jsames.2007.08.003 50 J.R. Barboza-Gudin˜o et al. / Journal of South American Earth Sciences 25 (2008) 49–63 However, the assignments are uncertain because reli- 2. The exposed sequences able isotopic data are lacking, and petrographic and geochemical information is scarce. In this article, we Localities described in this section are shown in Fig. 1. report new geochemical, petrographic, and stratigraphic Some outcrop aspects and textural or microstructural data for pre-Oxfordian rocks exposed in northeastern details of the pre-Oxfordian volcanic rocks studied in local- Mexico in the Sierra de Salinas, Sierra de Charcas, ities from northeastern Mexico are illustrated in Fig. 2. and Sierra de Catorce in San Luis Potosı´; the Aramb- In northern Durango, intermediate to felsic volcanic erri and San Marcos areas in Nuevo Leo´n; and the rocks are exposed in the Villa Jua´rez area. Pantoja-Alor Huizachal Valley in Tamaulipas (Fig. 1). The main pur- (1972) defines this unit as the Nazas Formation, with its pose of the geochemical analyses is to characterize the type locality at Cerritos Colorados and a reported Pb-a rocks with regard to the tectonic setting in which they age of 230 ± 20 Ma from a rhyolitic flow. In the Villa could have originated, rather than providing informa- Jua´rez area, Bartolini and Spell (1997) obtain a 40Ar/39Ar tion leading to a detailed evolutionary model of the age of 195 ± 55 Ma from plagioclase in rhyolitic rocks, magmas. The new data, supported by information from probably comparable to those dated by Pantoja-Alor the literature, help establish the tectonic setting and the (1972). The Nazas Formation is the oldest exposed unit correlations among pre-Oxfordian volcanic rocks in in the Villa Jua´rez region, but 200 km northwest of this northeastern Mexico. locality, in Santa Marı´a del Oro, northern Durango, the Fig. 1. Geologic map of northeastern Mexico, showing outcrops of pre-Oxfordian volcanic and sedimentary rocks and location of samples. J.R. Barboza-Gudin˜o et al. / Journal of South American Earth Sciences 25 (2008) 49–63 51 Fig. 2. Details of the textures and microstructures observed in outcrops, hand samples, and thin sections of the volcanic rocks. (a) Volcanic breccia in the pyroclastic deposits of the Aramberri area, Nuevo Leo´n. Knife is 11 cm long. (b) General aspect of a rhyolitic dike (R) in the Sierra de Catorce; Juj, Upper Jurassic La Joya Formation; volc., intermediate pre-Oxfordian volcanic rocks. Note person for scale. (c) Lithophyse contained in pyroclastic deposits outcropping west of Charcas, San Luis Potosı´ (long edge = 10 cm). (d) Fiamme structures in ignimbrites from Aramberri, Nuevo Leo´n; hand-lens diameter is 2.5 cm. (e) Fragments of partially collapsed pumice in an ignimbrite of Charcas, San Luis Potosı´. (f) Trachytic or pylotaxitic texture in a basaltic andesite of La Ballena, Zacatecas, San Luis Potosı´. unit overlies Paleozoic metamorphic rocks (Bartolini, 1998) a K–Ar age of 183 Ma determined in hornblende from and unconformably underlies Upper Jurassic sandy lime- the so-called Rodeo Formation (Lo´pez-Infanzo´n, 1986) stone of La Gloria Formation (Imlay, 1936). and an apparent U–Pb age of 158 ± 4 Ma in zircon grains In northern Zacatecas, lava flows, airfall and ashflow from the Caopas schist (Jones et al., 1995). In the Sierra de tuffs, and lahars correlated with the Nazas Formation have Teyra, the Nazas Formation overlies the marine siliciclastic been described in the Caopas–Rodeo area, including Sierra Taray Formation (Co´rdoba-Me´ndez, 1964) of Triassic age de Teyra to the west and Sierra de San Julia´n to the east (Silva-Romo et al., 2000) and underlies Upper Jurassic (Blickwede, 1981, 2001). Some units (Caopas schist and continental deposits of La Joya Formation (Mixon et al., Rodeo Formation) initially were considered pre-Jurassic 1959) and shallow marine limestones of the Zuloaga For- because of their very deformed and metamorphosed mation (Imlay, 1938). aspects (de Cserna, 1956; Co´rdoba-Me´ndez, 1964). Subse- In western San Luis Potosı´, volcanic sequences compa- quent studies indicated that the deformed units are coeval rable to those of Durango and Zacatecas rest on Triassic with the Nazas Formation and belong to the same Jurassic thin-bedded strata interpreted as part of a turbiditic continental volcanic arc sequence (Lo´pez-Infanzo´n, 1986; sequence known as the Zacatecas Formation (Martı´nez- Jones et al., 1990, 1995). This hypothesis is supported by Pe´rez, 1972) or the La Ballena Formation (Silva-Romo, 52 J.R. Barboza-Gudin˜o et al. / Journal of South American Earth Sciences 25 (2008) 49–63 1993; Centeno-Garcı´a and Silva-Romo, 1997). The volca- nic units are unconformably overlain by Upper Jurassic Corr. coef. redbeds of La Joya Formation and shallow marine lime- stones of the Zuloaga Formation. The volcanic sequences crop out in the Sierra de Salinas, at the state border Pb age between Zacatecas and San Luis Potosı´ (Silva-Romo, 206 Pb/ (Ma) 1993; Barboza-Gudin˜o et al., 1998, 1999; Zavala-Monsi- 207 va´is, 2000; Go´mez-Anguiano, 2001), in the Sierra de Charcas, and in the region of Tepozan in western San Luis Potosı´ state (Trista´n-Gonza´lez and Torres-Herna´ndez, U age 235 1992, 1994; Trista´n-Gonza´lez et al., 1995; Zavala-Monsi- Pb/ (Ma) va´is, 2000), as well as in the Sierra de Catorce (Lo´pez- 207 Infanzo´n, 1986; Barboza-Gudin˜o et al., 1998, 1999; Zav- ala-Monsiva´is, 2000; Hoppe, 2000; Go´mez-Anguiano, 2001). Barboza-Gudin˜o et al. (2004) report U–Pb isotopic U age 238 analyses of zircon for rhyolite of the Sierra de Catorce. Pb/ (Ma) The fraction recording the least inheritance yields an age 206 of 174.7 ± 1.3 Ma, a maximum age of the rock. In Nuevo Leo´n state, volcanic rocks comparable in their lithology and stratigraphic position with those Pb described previously have been observed in a sequence 206 Pb/ exposed in Aramberri (Jones et al., 1995). The sequence 207 consists predominantly of ignimbrites, volcanic breccias, and tuffs of intermediate to felsic composition, which overlie Paleozoic schist and unconformably underlie the U transgressive Upper Jurassic strata.
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