Late Proterozoic and Silurian Alkaline Plutons within the Southeastern New England Avalon Zone

Abstract

Distinct pulses of quartz-bearing, alkaline plutonism and volcanism are known to have occurred in the Avalon zone of southeastern New England during the Late Ordovician, Early Silurian, Devonian, and Carboniferous. Zircon separates from the Franklin and Dartmouth plutons demonstrate that two additional, previously unrecognized periods of alkaline magmatism occurred. The Franklin pluton yields an age of (Late Silurian), whereas the Dartmouth pluton is Late Proterozoic () and markedly older than the other plutons of alkaline affinity. The new ages further emphasize the episodic nature and long-term duration of such alkaline igneous events within the southeastern New England Avalon zone. The Dartmouth pluton may represent a post-collisional alkaline granite emplaced in the Late Proterozoic, almost immediately after a major period of calcalkaline igneous activity that accompanied plate convergence and continental accretion. The abrupt change from orogenic calcalkaline igneous activity to post-collisional alkaline granite, followed by younger episodes of anorogenic emplacement, is remarkably similar to igneous events reported from Pan-African mobile belts widespread throughout Africa. In addition, parts of the Dartmouth pluton exhibit features indicative of mixing and commingling of felsic and mafic melts that are associated with coevally formed mylonitic fabrics. Because these fabrics are conformable to those in adjacent gneisses, but discordant with Alleghanian fabrics in the nearby Carboniferous Narragansett basin, they represent some of the best candidates for pre-Alleghanian structures thus far identified in the southeastern New England Avalon zone.