Geologic evolution of the Adrar Souttouf Massif (Moroccan Sahara) and its significance for continental-scaled plate reconstructions since the Mid Neoproterozoic

Located in the south of the Moroccan Sahara, the Adrar Souttouf Massif is the northern continuation of the Mauritanides at the western margin of the West African Craton. The massif itself exhibits a complex polyphase geologic history and contains four geologically different, SSW-NNE trending main units named from west to east: Oued Togba, Sebkha Gezmayet, Dayet Lawda, Sebkha Matallah. They are thrusted over each other in thin-skinned nappes with local windows of the discordantly overlain Archaean Reguibat basement. The eastern margin of the massif is bordered by the Tiris and Tasiast-Tijirit areas of the Reguibat Shield as well as its (par-) autochthonous Palaeozoic cover sequence, termed Dhloat Ensour unit. More than 5.500 U-Th-Pb age determinations and over 1.000 Hf isotopic measurements on single zircon grains from igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rocks of all the massifs units and its vicinity have yet been obtained. Most of the zircons were studied with respect to their morphological features. This method improves the accuracy of provenance studies by detecting varying zircon morphologies in space and time. These data are accompanied by U-Th-Pb age determinations on apatite as well as rutile. Together, they allow proposing a model of the geologic evolution of this poorly mapped area for the last 635 Ma. A combination of the obtained data with extensive zircon age databases of the surrounding cratons and terranes facilitates continental-scaled palaeogeographic reconstructions. Regarding the geologic evolution of the Adrar Souttouf Massif, the assembly of the first units began prior to 635 Ma. Although containing all the major zircon age and Hf-isotope populations of the West African Craton as well as some Mesoproterozoic grains, the Sebkha Gezmayet unit lies to the west of the Dayet Lawda unit of oceanic island arc composition. Hence, the Sebkha Gezmayet unit must have been rifted away from the craton prior to the formation of the oceanic unit within the West African Neoproterozoic Ocean at about 635 Ma. Recently published Hf and zircon age data of this unit suggest that the island arc was derived from a juvenile mantle source. Subsequently, the accretion of precursors of the Oued Togba and Sebkha Gezmayet units as well as a partial obduction of the oceanic Dayet Lawda unit and the Neoproterozoic sediments of a foreland basin (Sebkha Matallah unit) onto the Reguibat Shield took place. Peak metamorphism in the obducted oceanic rocks was reached at about 605 Ma. Magmatism in the western units between 610 and 570 Ma suggests on-going tectonic activity. The Early and Middle Cambrian is characterised by the erosion of the Ediacaran orogen and deposition of thick sedimentary sequences at the Sebkha Matallah unit, which acted as foreland basin. These sediments show a mostly West African zircon record with only some Mesoproterozoic grains provided by the westernmost parts of the massif. Initial rifting of the Oued Togba and Sebkha Gezmayet units from the remaining areas presumably occurred during the Late Cambrian. Coeval granitoid intrusions occurred on both sides of the rift. The two rifted units were likely involved to the polyphased Appalachian orogenies, which is emphasised by Devonian magmatism. Thus, and with respect to the isotopic data, the Oued Togba unit is interpreted to be of Avalonia affinity, while the Sebkha Gezmayet unit can likely be linked to Meguma. The units which remained at the West African Craton underwent intense sediment recycling during the entire Ordovician to Devonian times. Final accretion of all units and formation of the current massif was achieved during the Variscan-Alleghanian orogeny. This was accompanied by magmatism in the Sebkha Gezmayet unit and intense metamorphism of the Reguibat basement, whose zircons often show lower discordia intercepts of Carboniferous or Permian age. The post-Variscan period is characterised by erosion of the orogen and subjacent alternating cycles of sedimentation and deflation. The Adrar Souttouf Massifs importance for palaeogeographic reconstructions is given by the striking differences in the zircon age and Hf-isotope record of its westernmost Oued Togba unit and the remaining area. The results obtained from the Oued Togba unit resemble the published data of the Avalonia type terranes including prominent Mesoproterozoic, Ediacaran-Early Cambrian, as well as Early Devonian age populations. Many Mesoproterozoic zircons, which are exotic for the West African Craton prior to 635 Ma, form a ca. 1.20 to 1.25 Ga age peak that is an excellent tracer for detrital provenance studies and source craton identification of the sedimentary rocks. This is also valid for some sedimentary samples that do not show ages younger than 700 Ma, but large quantities of Mesoproterozoic zircon. These rocks can be correlated to similar sediments in Mauritania and W-Avalonia and are thought to be of pre-pan-African", i.e. pre-Ediacaran or even pre-Cryogenian age. They may give direct insights to the source area in Early to Mid Neoproterozoic times. Accordingly, comparison with published data of Amazonia and Baltica, allows setting up new hypotheses for the pre-Ediacaran history of the Avalonian type terranes. Lacking of magmatism in Amazonia between ca. 1200 and ca. 1300 Ma favours Baltica as source craton for the Avalonian terranes and requires a new point of view for the Neoproterozoic palaeogeography