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Kinematic and geochronological constraints on shear deformation in the Ferriere-Mollières shear zone (Argentera-Mercantour Massif, Western Alps): implications for the evolution of the Southern European Variscan Belt

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Abstract

In the Western Alps, a steeply dipping km-scale shear zone (the Ferriere-Mollières shear zone) cross-cuts Variscan migmatites in the Argentera-Mercantour External Crystalline Massif. Structural analysis joined with kinematic vorticity and finite strain analyses allowed to recognize a high-temperature deformation associated with dextral transpression characterized by a variation in the percentage of pure shear and simple shear along a deformation gradient. U–Th–Pb dating of syn-kinematic monazites was performed on mylonites. The oldest ~ 340 Ma ages were obtained in protomylonites, whereas ages of ~ 320 Ma were found in mylonites from the core of the shear zone. These ages indicate that the Ferriere-Mollières shear zone is a still preserved Variscan shear zone. Ages of ~ 320 Ma obtained in this work are in agreement with ages of the dextral transpressional shear zones occurring in the Maures-Tanneron Massif and Corsica-Sardinia. However, transpression in the Argentera-Mercantour Massif started earlier than in other sectors of the southern Variscan Belt. This is possibly caused by the curvature of the belt triggering the progressive migration of shear deformation. Our data allow a correlation between the Argentera-Mercantour Massif and other segments of the Southern European Variscan Belt, in particular with Maures-Tanneron Massif and Corsica-Sardinia, and contribute to fill a gap in the age of activity and in the kinematics of the flow of the system of dextral shear zones of the southern portion of the EVSZ.

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Acknowledgements

Research supported by funds from Torino University (Ricerca Locale 2014, 2015), Pisa University (PRA 2016) and PRIN 2016 (Prot. 2015EC9PJ5_004; resp. R Carosi and C. Montomoli). We thank Michel Corsini and an anonymous reviewer for their careful revision that significantly improved the quality of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Torino, via V. Caluso 35, 10125, Torino, Italy

    Matteo Simonetti & Rodolfo Carosi

  2. Dipartimento di Scienze della Terra, Università degli Studi di Pisa, via S. Maria 53, 56126, Pisa, Italy

    Chiara Montomoli, Enrico D’Addario & Elisa Mammoliti

  3. IGG-CNR PISA, via Moruzzi 1, Pisa, Italy

    Chiara Montomoli

  4. IGG-CNR U.O.S. of Pavia, Via Ferrata 1, Pavia, Italy

    Antonio Langone

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  1. Matteo Simonetti
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Correspondence to Matteo Simonetti.

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. Chemical quantitative analyses of the monazites of the sample ARG 19, ARG 21, ARG 27, ARG 29 and ARG 48b. (XLSX 104 KB)

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Simonetti, M., Carosi, R., Montomoli, C. et al. Kinematic and geochronological constraints on shear deformation in the Ferriere-Mollières shear zone (Argentera-Mercantour Massif, Western Alps): implications for the evolution of the Southern European Variscan Belt. Int J Earth Sci (Geol Rundsch) 107, 2163–2189 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00531-018-1593-y

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