Multidimensional Scaling (MDS): A quantitative approximation of zircon ages to sedimentary provenance with some examples from Mexico

Ortega-Flores, Berlaine; Solari, Luigi; Martini, Michelangelo

doi:10.1016/j.jsames.2021.103347

Cited by 11 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 87 publications

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“…Although local sources of 220–200 Ma zircon are conjectural and might not be correct, the Coahuila Block and/or western Sonobari Complex are solid intermediate‐distance sources of zircon of this age. There is no evidence for the El Alamar River system extending as far east as the Maya Block, central Texas, or the Suwannee Terrane as shown by Barboza‐Gudino et al (2010), Dickinson et al (2010), Ortega‐Flores et al (2014, 2021) and Frederick et al (2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

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Provenance and maximum depositional ages of Upper Triassic and Jurassic sandstone, north‐eastern Mexico

et al. 2022

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Upper Triassic to lowest Upper Jurassic strata in north‐eastern Mexico record surface processes during the early rifting that led to the opening of the Gulf of Mexico. Exposed near Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas and northwest to Galeana, Nuevo Leon, these continental deposits are called the Huizachal Group. Several key questions about these strata hamper their integration into a regional understanding of Late Triassic and Jurassic sediment routing and deposition. First, the depositional age of the stratigraphically lowest unit, the El Alamar Formation, is less well established than the depositional ages of the stratigraphically higher parts of the succession, leading to questions about the timinig of the onset of tectonic context, and regional correlation of these strata. Second, better knowledge of provenance and sediment routing, including fluvial transport distance, can help determine whether and when the depositional basin was split into subbasins versus connected by a throughgoing river system. This study uses sandstone detrital zircon U‐Pb isotopic ages and clast compositions to constrain depositional ages and reconstruct tectonic setting and provenance. Detrital zircon U‐Pb ages yielded a maximum depositional age of 210 Ma for the part of the El Alamar Formation exposed near Galeana, younger than previously determined. Although long‐distance (>100 km) sediment transport cannot be ruled out, the sources for Huizachal Group sandstone framework grains and detrital zircon could have been entirely local, within about 100 km. Alluvial deposits and pyroclastic and lava flows likewise indicate transport of no more than 100 km. We therefore infer deposition in partitioned rift basins receiving sediment from local sources. These data and interpretations contribute to understanding surface processes during the initial rifting that eventually led to opening of the Gulf of Mexico.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Paleogeographic map of part of western tropical Pangea during latest Triassic time. Modified from Ortega‐Flores et al (2021) using Frederick et al (2020). Position of the El Alamar River as in Barboza‐Gudino et al (2010), Dickinson et al (2010), Ortega‐Flores et al (2014, 2021) and Frederick et al (2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Provenance and maximum depositional ages of Upper Triassic and Jurassic sandstone, north‐eastern Mexico

et al. 2022

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“…Instead, this sector of the Pangaean margin was the site of deposition of turbidite successions (Zacatecas, Taray, Charcas and La Ballena formations, and the Arteaga and El Chilar complexes; Centeno-García, 2005;Ortega-Flores et al 2016, 2021, which have been interpreted as the stratigraphic record of submarine fans (i.e. the Potosí and Tolimán) that were deposited along the continental margin of western equatorial Pangaea and the adjacent Farallon oceanic plate (Silva-Romo et al 2000, 2015Barboza-Gudiño et al 2010;Ortega-Flores et al 2021;Fig. 2b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Even though a few subordinate detrital zircon grains of Late Triassic age have been documented in some samples from the Upper Triassic metasedimentary succession (e.g. Barboza-Gudiño et al 2010;Ortega-Flores et al 2021), the lack of widespread Late Triassic igneous rock exposures likely indicates that these zircons are far-travelled grains derived from distant sources in northwestern Mexico and northwestern South America. Likewise, the minor occurrence of Late Triassic zircon grains in modern fluvial and littoral deposits draining a large sector of southern Mexico (Cavazos-Tovar et al 2020) documents a clear gap in magmatism and zircon production, and supports the lack of a Late Triassic arc, at least along this sector of the western Pangaean margin.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The petrogenesis of Early–Middle Jurassic magmatism in southern and central Mexico and its role during the break-up of Western Pangaea

et al. 2022

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Central and southern Mexico represents a strategic place to understand the dynamics of Pangaea break-up and its influences on the evolution of the Pacific margin of North America. Lower–Middle Jurassic volcano-sedimentary successions, and scarce magmatic rocks, crop out discontinuously across this region and have been interpreted either as a vestige of a continental arc or as several deposits of syn-rift magmatism. At present, their origin is controversial. Available geochemical data on these igneous rocks suggest that they represent almost pure crustal melts produced in a rift environment rather than in an arc. In fact, the studied rocks exhibit the high silica contents and moderate to strong peraluminous character typical of sediment melts. The enriched isotopic composition (high 86Sr/87Sr and low 143Nd/144Nd) and the age distributions of inherited zircon grains readily identify the widespread Upper Triassic metasedimentary sequences presently exposed in southwestern and central Mexico as the most likely crustal source of these Jurassic igneous rocks. Accordingly, we argue that these Early–Middle Jurassic magmas originated in a syn-rift igneous province associated with extensional-driven crustal attenuation in the context of Pangaea fragmentation. Our findings also constrain post-Pangaea subduction initiation to be younger than Middle Jurassic time in central and southern Mexico.

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“…The uncertainty in the timing of Pangea breakup initiation does not permit an exhaustive reconstruction of the most recent supercontinent cycle and hinders our understanding of when, where, and why Pangea started to disaggregate. Mexico is a natural laboratory for the study of Pangea rift initiation because it preserves an extensive, though not continuous, stratigraphic and structural record spanning the late Paleozoic–early Mesozoic time interval (Coombs et al, 2020; Elías‐Herrera et al, 2005; Keppie et al, 2004; Ortega‐Flores et al, 2021). This work focuses on an enigmatic fluvial unit, the Matzitzi Formation of southern Mexico (Figure 1a), the age and tectonic setting of which have been discussed for the past century without reaching general agreement (Villanueva‐Amadoz et al, 2020 and references therein).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Matzitzi Formation in southern Mexico: A record of Pangea final assembly or breakup initiation along inherited suture belts?

et al. 2021

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The breakup of Pangea fundamentally shaped modern continents and controlled the climatic distribution and biodiversity on Earth. Although our knowledge on the processes that control the assembly and breakup of supercontinents has significantly improved, the timing of supercontinent assembly and breakup initiation remains in some cases controversial. According to the available data, the assembly of Pangea was completed in middle Permian time, resulting in the formation of major orogenic belts and transform faults like the N-S-trending, dextral, Caltepec fault in Mexico. Pangea breakup initiation is bracketed to early Middle Triassic time. In this work, we present new sedimentological, structural and U-Pb geochronological data from a fluvial unit, the Matzitzi Formation of southern Mexico, the age and tectonic setting of which have remained an enigma for the past century. Our data document that the Matzitzi Formation is the strati-EAGE MARTINI et al.

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Multidimensional Scaling (MDS): A quantitative approximation of zircon ages to sedimentary provenance with some examples from Mexico

Cited by 11 publications

References 87 publications

Provenance and maximum depositional ages of Upper Triassic and Jurassic sandstone, north‐eastern Mexico

Provenance and maximum depositional ages of Upper Triassic and Jurassic sandstone, north‐eastern Mexico

The petrogenesis of Early–Middle Jurassic magmatism in southern and central Mexico and its role during the break-up of Western Pangaea

The Matzitzi Formation in southern Mexico: A record of Pangea final assembly or breakup initiation along inherited suture belts?

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