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Structure of the Pliocene Camp dels Ninots maar-diatreme (Catalan Volcanic Zone, NE Spain)

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Abstract

Maar volcanoes expose shallower or deeper levels of their internal structure as a function of the degree of erosion. In El Camp dels Ninots maar-diatreme (Catalan Volcanic Zone, Spain), the tephra ring has been largely eroded, and the remaining volcanic deposits infilling the diatreme are hidden under a lacustrine sedimentary infill of the crater. The volcano shows hardly any exposure, so its study needs the application of direct (e.g., boreholes) and indirect (shallow geophysics) subsurface exploration techniques. Additionally, this maar-diatreme was built astride two different substrates (i.e., mixed setting) as a result of its location in a normal fault separating Neogene sediments from Paleozoic granites. In order to characterize the internal structure and post-eruption stratigraphy of the maar-diatreme, we did geological studies (mapping, continuous core logging, and description of the tephra ring outcrops) and near-surface geophysics, including nine transects of electric resistivity tomography and a gravity survey. Results show that the deeper part of the diatreme is excavated into granites and is relatively steep and symmetrical. The uppermost diatreme is asymmetrical because of mechanical contrast between granites and Pliocene sands. The maar crater contained a lake permanently isolated from the surrounding relief and was deep enough to host anoxic bottom waters while its margins had shallower waters. These lake conditions preserved the remarkable Pliocene fossil record found in the lacustrine sediments.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the land owners, for their permission to work in the area, the Town Council of Caldes de Malavella, and the Departament de Cultura de la Generalitat de Catalunya for the economic funding of excavation. This study was partially funded by projects CGL2012-38358, CGL2012-38434-C03-03, and CGL2012-38481 of the Spanish Government and the SGR2014-901 and 2014-100575 of the Generalitat de Catalunya and by the European Commission (FT7 Theme: ENV.2011.1.3.3-1; Grant 282759: “VUELCO”. We highly appreciate the revisions by K. Németh and an anonymous reviewer and the comments by J.D.L. White and J. Taddeucci (executive and associate editors, respectively).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geology Department, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Campus Bellaterra, Fac. Ciencies, 08193, Bellaterra, Spain

    O. Oms

  2. Institute of Earth Sciences Jaume Almera, ICTJA-CSIC, Group of Volcanology, SIMGEO (UB-CSIC), Lluis Sole i Sabaris s/n, 08028, Barcelona, Spain

    X. Bolós, S. Barde-Cabusson, J. Martí & D. Pedrazzi

  3. Economic and Environmental Geology and Hydrology Group, Department of Geochemistry, Petrology and Geological Prospecting, Faculty of Geology, University of Barcelona, Martí i Franqués s/n, 08028, Barcelona, Spain

    A. Casas, R. Lovera & M. Himi

  4. Ecole Nationale des Sciences Appliquées d’Al Hoceima (ENSAH), Université Mohammed Premier, Ajdir, Al Hoceima, Morocco

    M. Himi

  5. Institut Català de Paleoecologia Humana i Evolució Social (IPHES), Zona Educacional 4, Edifici W3, Campus Sescelades URV, 40007, Tarragona, Spain

    B. Gómez de Soler & G. Campeny Vall-Llosera

  6. Àrea de Prehistòria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV), Avinguda de Catalunya 35, 43002, Tarragona, Spain

    B. Gómez de Soler & G. Campeny Vall-Llosera

  7. Centro de Geociéncias, UNAM Campus Juriquilla, Querétaro, Mexico

    D. Pedrazzi

  8. ICREA Professor, IPHES-URV, Tarragona, Spain

    J. Agustí

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  1. O. Oms
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Oms, O., Bolós, X., Barde-Cabusson, S. et al. Structure of the Pliocene Camp dels Ninots maar-diatreme (Catalan Volcanic Zone, NE Spain). Bull Volcanol 77, 98 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00445-015-0982-3

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