Crustal architecture and tectonic assembly of the Central Gneiss Belt, southwestern Grenville Province, Canada: a new interpretation
Abstract
The Central Gneiss Belt, southwestern Grenville Province, is characterized by parautochthonous crust in the north and allochthonous lithotectonic domains in the south. Despite nearly two decades of study, the basal décollement to allochthonous domains transported from the southeast, known as the allochthon boundary thrust, has not been precisely located throughout much of the belt. Between Lake Nipissing and Georgian Bay where its surface trace is known, it separates 1.24 Ga Sudbury metadiabase in the footwall from eclogite remnants and 1.17-1.15 Ga coronitic olivine metagabbro confined to its hanging wall. On the premise that this relationship can be used to trace the allochthon boundary thrust elsewhere in the Central Gneiss Belt, we have sought to extend the known distribution of these mafic rock types, making use of field, petrographic, and geochemical criteria to identify them. New occurrences of all three mafic types are identified in a region extending from south of Lake Nipissing to western Quebec, and the mutually exclusive pattern of occurrence is maintained within this region. Structural trends and reconnaissance mapping of high-strain zones that appear to represent a structural barrier to the mafic suites suggest that the allochthon boundary thrust lies well to the north of its previously suggested location. Our preferred surface trace for it passes around the southern end of the Powassan batholith and through the town of North Bay before turning east to join up with the Lac Watson shear zone in western Quebec. This suggests that a large segment of "parautochthonous" crust lying north of, and including, the Algonquin domain is in fact allochthonous. The mutually exclusive distribution of the mafic suites points to significant separation of allochthonous and parautochthonous components prior to the Grenvillian orogeny, in accord with models of pre-Grenvillian continental rifting proposed by others. Despite a relative abundance of geological and geochronological data for the Central Gneiss Belt and a mafic rock distribution that appears to successfully locate a major tectonic boundary, we emphasize the need for additional field and laboratory work aimed at testing our structural model.
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SL6 includes terranes and domains of the Composite Arc and Frontenac-Adirondack belts.
“In the northwestern part of the Grenville Province in Ontario (Fig. 2), the architecture, metamorphism and interrelationships of terranes and domains have been investigated in detail and the threefold lithotectonic subdivision shown in Fig. 1 has been refined into at least six structural levels (SLs; e.g., Culshaw et al. 1997; Ketchum and Davidson 2000), with the lowest (SL1) being adjacent to the”
From The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation (2002) · cites this paper as Ketchum and Davidson 2000
SL1 is adjacent to the Grenville Front.
“In the northwestern part of the Grenville Province in Ontario (Fig. 2), the architecture, metamorphism and interrelationships of terranes and domains have been investigated in detail and the threefold lithotectonic subdivision shown in Fig. 1 has been refined into at least six structural levels (SLs; e.g., Culshaw et al. 1997; Ketchum and Davidson 2000), with the lowest (SL1) being adjacent to the”
From The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation (2002) · cites this paper as Ketchum and Davidson 2000
In the northwestern part of the Grenville Province in Ontario, the threefold lithotectonic subdivision shown in Fig. 1 has been refined into at least six structural levels (SLs).
“In the northwestern part of the Grenville Province in Ontario (Fig. 2), the architecture, metamorphism and interrelationships of terranes and domains have been investigated in detail and the threefold lithotectonic subdivision shown in Fig. 1 has been refined into at least six structural levels (SLs; e.g., Culshaw et al. 1997; Ketchum and Davidson 2000), with the lowest (SL1) being adjacent to the”
From The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation (2002) · cites this paper as Ketchum and Davidson 2000
The HP belt in Ontario and western Quebec, comprising SL2 and SL3 of Ketchum and Davidson (2000), is composed of a number of domains referred to here collectively as Algonquin terrane in Ontario and Lac Dumoine terrane in Quebec.
“The HP belt in Ontario and western Quebec, comprising SL2 and SL3 of Ketchum and Davidson (2000), is composed of a number of domains referred to here collectively as Algonquin terrane in Ontario and Lac Dumoine terrane in Quebec.”
From The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation (2002) · cites this paper as Ketchum and Davidson (2000)
The HP terranes consist of Paleo- and Mesoproterozoic metagranitoid rocks emplaced during two magmatic episodes at c45 1715-1600 and c45 1470-1430 Ma.
“The HP terranes, which appear to lack units of Archean age, consist of Paleo- and Mesoproterozoic metagranitoid rocks emplaced during two magmatic episodes at c45 1715-1600 and c45 1470-1430 Ma (Krogh 1991; Nadeau and van Breemen 1998; Ketchum and Davidson 2000).”
From The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation (2002) · cites this paper as Ketchum and Davidson 2000
The mutually exclusive geographic distributions of Sudbury metadiabase in the Parautochthonous belt and Algonquin metagabbro and retrogressed eclogite relics in the HP belt have proved to be a useful tool for delineation of the boundary between the two belts in the field.
“The mutually exclusive geographic distributions of Sudbury metadiabase in the Parautochthonous belt and Algonquin metagabbro and retrogressed eclogite relics in the HP belt have proved to be a useful tool for delineation of the boundary between the two belts in the field (Ketchum and Davidson 2000).”
From The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation (2002) · cites this paper as Ketchum and Davidson 2000
Muskoka domain overlies the southern part of the HP belt.
“Muskoka domain, SL5 of Ketchum and Davidson (2000), overlies the southern part of the HP belt (Fig. 2).”
From The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation (2002) · cites this paper as Ketchum and Davidson 2000
Although tectonically dismembered, the Algonquin metagabbro bodies are commonly clustered, implying that they are fragments of larger intrusions.
“Although tectonically dismembered, the bodies are commonly clustered, implying that they are fragments of larger intrusions (Ketchum and Davidson 2000).”
From The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation (2002) · cites this paper as Ketchum and Davidson 2000
Coronitic metagabbro bodies of the Algonquin suite occur widely within the HP belt and Muskoka domain, some in close proximity to retrogressed eclogite.
“Coronitic metagabbro bodies of the Algonquin suite occur widely within the HP belt and Muskoka domain, some in close proximity to retrogressed eclogite (Fig. 6A; Davidson 1991; Ketchum and Davidson 2000).”
From The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation (2002) · cites this paper as Ketchum and Davidson 2000
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The High Pressure belt in the Grenville Province: architecture, timing, and exhumation
Rivers, T., Ketchum, J., Indares, A., & Hynes, A. (2002) · Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences · doi:10.1139/e02-025 · Cited by 124 · see citing works
Self-citation
- Authors
- Ketchum, J. W., & Davidson, A.
- Affiliations
- Memorial University of Newfoundland (CA)
- Geological Survey of Canada (CA)
- ORCID
- Ketchum, J WF
- Venue
- Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences
- Publisher
- Canadian Science Publishing
- Published
- 2000-04-02
- Volume
- 37
- Issue
- 2-3
- Pages
- 217-234
- ISSN
- 0008-4077 (ISSN-L)
- 1480-3313
- OpenAlex
- W2005472189
- Cited by
- 78
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 4 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 2
- FWCI
- 4.33
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Dalhousie University
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Geophysics › Geological and Geochemical Analysis
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Geology › Geological Studies and Exploration
- Physical Sciences › Earth and Planetary Sciences › Geology › Geological and Geophysical Studies
- Keywords
- Central Gneiss Belt, Grenville Province, crustal structure, tectonic assembly, eclogite, high-strain zones, Lake Nipissing, North Bay
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