Jurassic kimberlites from Picton and Varty Lake, Ontario: Geochemical and stable isotopic characteristics

Abstract

Micaceous ultramafic dikes of Jurassic age from Picton and Varty Lake, Ontario, consist mineralogically of olivine — phlogopite — serpentine — calcite-spinel. The rocks are characterized by abundant Ba-rich phlogopite (up to 6.5 wt.% BaO) and spinels with a diagnostic “kimberlite trend-1”. Compositionally the dikes are characterized by extreme silica-undersaturation (21–30 wt.% SiO2), primitive Mg/(Mg + FeT) ratios (0.75–0.83), large enrichments of volatile components (CO2 and H2O), and relatively high abundances of both incompatible and compatible trace elements. The dikes exhibit pronounced enrichments of light rare earth elements (LREE) (LaN=320–1330) combined with strongly fractionated patterns (LaN/YbN=45–108). Calcite in the dikes is a primary magmatic phase, from textural relations and C-isotopic compositions (δ 13C= −4.0 to −8.3‰). A calcite-rich aphanitic phase of the Picton dike is interpreted to be a late stage magmatic differentiate, which possibly involved olivine fractionation. Although the dikes lack most of the macrocrysts generally considered to be important diagnostic minerals of kimberlite magmatism, the geochemical, mineralogical and C- and O-isotopic characteristics collectively indicate that the dikes are evolved varieties of hypabyssal facies kimerlite.