Paleozoic and Mesozoic Deformations in the Central Sierra Nevada, California Paleozoic and Mesozoic Deformations in the Central Sierra Nevada, California By WARREN J. NOKLEBERG and RONALD W. K1STLER GEOLOGICAL SURVEY PROFESSIONAL PAPER 1145 UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, WASHINGTON : 1980 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR CECIL D. ANDRUS, Secretary GEOLOGICAL SURVEY H. William Menard, Director Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Nokleberg, Warren J Paleozoic and Mesozoic deformations in the central Sierra Nevada, California. (Geological Survey professional paper ; 11*1-5) Bibliography: p. 22-24. Supt. of Docs, no.: I 19.16:11^5 1. Rock deformation--Sierra Nevada Mountains. 2. Geology--Sierra Nevada Mountains. I. Kistler, Ronald Wayne, 1931- joint author. II. Title. III. Series: United States. Geological Survey. Professional paper ; 11*4-5. QE6CA-.N61J. 551.8 '0979^ 80-607011 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Washington, D.C. 20402 Stock number 024-001-03293-7 CONTENTS Page Page Abstract______________________________________ 1 Mesozoic deformations Continued Introduction ______________________________________ 1 Nevadan orogeny in the western metamorphic belt-------- 11 Problems of Sierra Nevada deformational history-_____________ 2 Orientation and style of structures ________________ 12 Paleozoic deformations ________________________________ 2 Timing of deformation and regional correlations ______ 14 Devonian or Mississippian regional deformation ________ 2 Jurassic and Early Cretaceous regional deformations of Orientation of structures ____________________________ 2 high-country roof pendants _______________________ 14 Style of deformation _____________________________ 5 Orientation and style of structures _____-______---___ 14 Timing of deformation and regional correlations ______ 5 Timing of deformation and regional correlations ______ 15 Permian and Triassic uplift, erosion, and Andean-type Cretaceous regional deformation ________________________ 17 volcanism _____________________________________ 6 Orientation and style of structures __________________ 17 Mesozoic deformations _______________________________ 7 Timing of deformation and regional structures __ 18 Areal extent-___________________________ 7 Continuing problems __________ ___________________________ 18 Triassic regional deformation of high-country roof pendants 7 Episodic or continuous deformation?---------------_ - 18 Orientation and style of structures __________________ 7 Role of granitic intrusions _____________-_--___-----_--_- 19 Timing of deformation and regional correlations ____ 9 Conjugate folds _____________________ -- -------_----_ 19 Early and Middle Jurassic regional deformation _-______ 9 Conclusions ___________________-________----- ------------- 19 Orientation and style of structures ________________ 9 Acknowledgments ____-_____________________________ _ 20 Timing of deformation and regional correlations ______ 11 References cited _______________-_ ___-_-------------------- 20 ILLUSTRATIONS Page FIGURE Generalized geologic map of the central Sierra Nevada __________--_____--___-_ __-_______-_____---__-------_ 3 Structural diagrams for areas deformed during the Devonian or Mississippian period along north-south trends ______ 6 Structural diagrams for three high-Sierra Nevada roof pendants ____________________________________-___-------- 8 Structural diagrams for parts of the Calaveras Formation ____________________________-----_-------_----__-------- 10 Structural diagrams for areas of the western metamorphic belt ________________________________-_-----__--------- 13 Structural diagram of poles to bedding---_______________________________________-----_-_------------_------- 14 Structural diagrams for high-country roof pendants deformed probably during Jurassic orogenies __ _____________ 16 Structural diagrams for high-country roof pendants and areas of the western metamorphic belt ____________________ 18 TABLES Page TABLE 1. Regional deformations recorded in roof pendants and wallrocks of the central Sierra Nevada______- --------------- 4 2. Data for figure 2 _____________________________________________________________________________________ 7 3. Data for figure 3 _____________________________________________________________ 8 4. Data for figure 4 __________________________________________________________________________ 11 5. Data for figure 5 ------____________---__--___________--______-________----___------__________________________ 12 6. Data sources for figure 6 ______________________________________________________ _________________________ 14 7. Data for figure 7 ________________________________________ ___________________ 18 8. Data for figure 8 ________________________________________________ ________ _ __ 20 III PALEOZOIC AND MESOZOIC DEFORMATIONS IN THE CENTRAL SIERRA NEVADA, CALIFORNIA By WARREN J. NOKLEBERG and RONALD W. KISTLER ABSTRACT structural grain resulting from the Late Jurassic Analysis of structural and stratigraphic data indicates that sev­ Nevadan orogeny (Bateman and others, 1963; eral periods of regional deformation, consisting of combined folding, Bateman and Clark, 1974); (2) accretion of Mesozoic faulting, cataclasis, and regional metamorphism, occurred through­ country rocks onto the west side of the range against out the central Sierra Nevada during Paleozoic and Mesozoic time. an Andean-type volcanic arc (Hamilton, 1969, 1978; The oldest regional deformation occurred alono northward trends during the Devonian and Mississippian periods in most roof pend­ Schweickert and Cowan, 1975; Davis and others, 1978; ants containing lower Paleozoic metasedimentary rocks at the center Schweickert, 1978); and (3) an anticlinorium that and along the crest of the range. This deformation is expressed in formed as a result of multiple deformations (Kistler some roof pendants by an angular unconformity separating older and others, 1971). In this report we test these interpre­ thrice-deformed from younger twice-deformed Paleozoic meta­ tations by examining geologic structures in the^ differ­ sedimentary rocks. The first Mesozoic deformation, which consisted of uplift and ero­ ent roof pendants and in areas of the western sion and was accompanied by the onset of Andean-type volcanism metamorphic belt that have already been studied in during the Permian and Triassic, is expressed by an angular uncon­ detail. From rock ages and the style and orientation of formity in several roof pendants from the Saddlebag Lake to the regional structures, we envision successive gen­ Mount Morrison areas. This unconformity is defined by Permian and erations of deformations, infer their causes, and Triassic andesitic to rhyolitic metavolcanic rocks unconformably overlying more intensely deformed Pennsylvanian, Permian(?), and bracket their durations. older metasedimentary rocks. A later regional deformation occurred Previous reports that discussed the tectonics of the during the Triassic along N. 20°-30° W. trends in Permian and range include studies of the Alpine County area Triassic metavolcanic rocks of the Saddlebag Lake and Mount Dana (Parker, 1961), the Mono Craters quadrangle (Kistler, roof pendants, in upper Paleozoic rocks of the Pine Creek roof pend­ 1966a, b), the Dinkey Creek roof pendant (Kistler and ant, and in the Calaveras Formation of the western metamorphic belt; the roof pendants are crosscut by Upper Triassic granitic rocks Bateman, 1966), and the Mount Morrison roof pendant of the Lee Vining intrusive epoch. A still later period of Early and (Russell and Nokleberg, 1974, 1977). Valuable new in­ Middle Jurassic regional deformation occurred along N. 30C-60° E. formation on the structure, stratigraphy, and rock ages trends in upper Paleozoic rocks of the Calaveras Formation of the of roof pendants and areas of the western metamorphic western metamorphic belt. A further period of deformation was the belt is available from recent detailed studies of the Late Jurassic Nevadan orogeny, which occurred along N. 20°-40° W. trends in Upper Jurassic rocks of the western metamorphic belt that Strawberry mine roof pendant (Nokleberg, 1970a, b), are crosscut by Upper Jurassic granitic rocks of the Yosemite intru­ the Saddlebag Lake roof pendant (Brook, 1972, 1974, sive epoch. Structures of similar age occur in intensely deformed 1977), the Ritter Range roof pendant (Kistler, 1966a, b; oceanic-lithospheric and syntectonic plutonic rocks of the lower Fiske and Tobisch, 1978), the Boyden Cave roof pend­ Kings River area, in Jurassic metavolcanic rocks of the Ritter Range ant (Girty, 1977a, b), the lower Kings River area roof pendant, and in Triassic metasedimentary rocks of the Mineral King roof pendant. The final Mesozoic deformation occurred along N. (Saleeby, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978; Nokleberg, 1975; 50°-80° W. trends in both high-country roof pendants and the lower Saleeby and others, 1978), the Merced River area (W. Kings River area; structures of this generation are crosscut by rela­ J. Nokleberg, unpub. data, 1978), the Oakhurst roof tively undeformed Upper Cretaceous granitic rocks of the Cathedral pendant (Russell and Cebull, 1977), and the western Range intrusive epoch. metamorphic belt (Baird, 1962; Best, 1963; Wetzel and Nokleberg, 1976; Schweickert and others, 1977; Schweickert, 1978). We have also made use of struc­ INTRODUCTION tural data from the geologic maps by Taliaferro and Considerable controversy persists over the deforma- Solari (1948), Clark