The felsic magmatic province in East Gondwana: implications for Pan-African tectonics

Abstract

The East Gondwana crustal fragments, namely southern India, Sri Lanka, Madagascar, East Antarctica and Western Australia, preserve evidence for a prominent Pan-African felsic magmatic event represented by feldspathoidal syenites, alkali granites and syenites emplaced proximal to fault lineaments. In Peninsular India, late or post-kinematic alkaline plutons ranging in age from 864 to 600 Ma characterize the Eastern Ghats belt, whereas a strong Pan-African imprint is provided by 550–750 Ma alkali granites and syenites in the southern granulite segment. In Sri Lanka, alkali granites occur in all major geologic units, with radiometric ages in the range of 550–760 Ma. In Madagascar, alkali granites and syenites with late Proterozoic to Palaeozoic ages are reported. Felsic magmatic activity in East Antarctica is characterized by post-tectonic granitic and syenitic plutons in Enderby Land and Queen Maud Land, showing an age range of 550–770 Ma. Pan-African felsic plutons in Western Australia define ages of 550–570 Ma. This paper summarizes the petrologic, geochemical and geochronologic characteristics of felsic plutons in the various East Gondwana fragments. Many of the intrusives represent anorogenic A-type magmas generated in rift-related environments of high heat flow and abundant volatile activity, correlative with an extensional tectonic regime and probably including melts generated from both upper mantle and lower crustal sources. This paper identifies a major Pan-African felsic magmatic province in East Gondwana, which, in association with their petrogenetic significance, is considered to be suggestive of a geodynamic signature of East Gondwana during the Pan-African period.