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Natural Monument of the Volcano of Cancarix, Spain: A Case of Lamproite Phreatomagmatic Volcanism

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Abstract

The Natural Monument of the Volcano of Cancarix (south Spain) is of great scientific interest due to the particular lamproitic nature of the geological materials that constitute it. The Cancarix volcano and similar lamproite volcanoes in the southeastern parts of the Iberian Peninsula were emplaced during the Miocene in connection with transtensive structures at the north end of the Betic Cordillera. These structures reactivated older basement faults, which facilitated the ascending circulation of highly enriched Mg–K magma. Two episodes of material emission can be distinguished: (1) explosive volcanism due to the interaction between magma and groundwater from the karstic system of the host carbonate rocks, generating a phreatomagmatic complex as the final product (breccias and lavas); and (2) effusive volcanic activity with crystal-rich magma responsible for the lamproitic body. The tectonic structure, the main features of the phreatomagmatic ring, and the vertical columnar jointing at the edge of the volcanic constitute a wide spectrum of geological phenomena that justify its educational scientific value and its protection as a Natural Monument. Two geotrails present this natural space not only as an interpretive resource but also as an instructive reference for the conservation of a valuable part of Spain’s geological heritage. Further, the remarkable exhibition of materials along the two geotrails provides an excellent framework for promoting geology at different levels of knowledge.

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Acknowledgments

This work was carried out in the context of a project from the Instituto de Estudios Albacetenses “Don Juan Manuel” (Diputación de Albacete). We thank the Delegación Provincial de Medio Ambiente y Desarrollo Rural de Albacete for their authorization to work in the Monumento Natural del Pitón Volcánico de Cancarix. M.R. holds a Ramón y Cajal research contract from the Ministry of Science and Technology of Spain. We would like to thank two anonymous reviewers for their interesting comments and remarks that improved the original manuscript. We are grateful to a native English speaker (Jean Louise Sanders, Chicago) for reviewing the grammar.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Geología, Universidad de Jaén, Campus Las Lagunillas, 23071, Jaén, Spain

    Matías Reolid, Mario Sánchez-Gómez & Isabel Abad

  2. Consejería de Medio Ambiente y Desarrollo Rural (Servicio de Espacios Naturales Protegidos), Junta de Castilla-La Mancha, Paseo de la Cuba 27, 02071, Albacete, Spain

    M. Elena Gómez-Sánchez

  3. Instituto de Estudios Albacetenses “Don Juan Manuel”, Diputación Provincial de Albacete, Apartado 404, 02080, Albacete, Spain

    Julian de Mora

Authors
  1. Matías Reolid
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  2. Mario Sánchez-Gómez
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  3. Isabel Abad
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  4. M. Elena Gómez-Sánchez
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  5. Julian de Mora
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Correspondence to Matías Reolid.

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Reolid, M., Sánchez-Gómez, M., Abad, I. et al. Natural Monument of the Volcano of Cancarix, Spain: A Case of Lamproite Phreatomagmatic Volcanism. Geoheritage 5, 35–45 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-012-0072-2

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