Detrital zircon and apatite reveal Paleoproterozoic rifting along the eastern margin of the Yilgarn Craton

Abstract

Detrital minerals within Proterozoic basins are commonly an extant record of now-destroyed crust and provide valuable constraints on ancient paleogeography and tectonic processes. However, reconstructing basin histories depends on discriminating potentially exotic, far-travelled (allochthonous) versus locally sourced (autochthonous) detritus. Detrital zircon from the Woodline Formation, a component of the Proterozoic Barren Basin at the margin of the Yilgarn Craton, Western Australia, closely matches the age and Hf isotopic signatures of magmatic units in the Paleo- to Mesoproterozoic Albany–Fraser Orogen (AFO). However, the provenance of some 2300–2000 Ma zircon detritus is not readily accounted for by known magmatism in the AFO nor the wider Western Australian Craton. To help resolve this enigmatic source, we present isotopic data (U–Pb, Lu–Hf) and trace element geochemistry for zircon and limited U–Pb data for scarce apatite collected from sand and rocks of the Woodline Formation. Based on Hf isotopic signatures, some of the detritus appears to be derived from the recently identified 2030–2010 Ma felsic-igneous Moonyoora Suite, representing the oldest known magmatic components of the AFO. Moreover, the isotopic data imply an earlier ca. 2250 Ma episode of mafic rift-related magmatism, potentially offering a glimpse into the earliest rifting stages along the Yilgarn Craton’s eastern margin. While Paleoproterozoic detritus is omnipresent in Woodline rocks, it is conspicuously absent from overlaying regolith, demonstrating that cover atop the Woodline Formation is imported and not locally derived. This disparity is important as it highlights that ongoing exploration efforts analysing unconsolidated regolith may not fully capture basement signatures.