Beni Bousera Research Articles

Metamorphic and chronological records of early Permian continental collision in Beni Bousera granulites (Internal Rif belt): implications for the tectonic evolution of northern Morocco during Pangea construction

This work presents petrological data obtained from shielded mineral inclusions within large garnets from the Beni Bousera metamorphic unit (internal Rif belt, northern Morocco) combined with in situ U‒Th‒Pb dating of monazite inclusions. In the considered Beni Bousera metapelites, the occurrence of mineral inclusions of kyanite + rutile + plagioclase + K-feldspar + quartz ± graphite trapped in garnet cores is diagnostic of high-pressure granulite-facies metamorphism. Geothermobarometry combined with thermodynamic modelling yields minimal P ‒ T conditions of approximately 1.37–1.5 GPa and 780–795°C, consistent with the development of palaeogradients during crustal thickening in collision belts. A concordant U/Pb age of 281 ± 3 Ma is obtained from associated monazite inclusions in the same garnet cores. These new petrochronological data attest to the early Permian continental collision in northern Morocco. The obtained dataset is constrained with petrological and geochronological parameters available on other neighbouring segments of the Variscan belt. Within the framework of recently unified full plate reconstruction models, the presented tectonic scenario suggests that all these orogenic segments were built during the late Carboniferous–early Permian crustal thickening at the northwestern Gondwana margin in response to the convergence of Laurentia and Gondwana during the late stages of Pangaea construction.

Leaf Trait Variability and CSR Strategy Shifts in Mediterranean Woody Species along an Edaphic Gradient

Plant species in Mediterranean ecosystems are expected to exhibit diverse responses to environmental stresses such as climate aridity and challenging soil conditions by adopting various functional strategies. However, intraspecific variability at the local scale has received insufficient attention in the study of CSR strategies. This study aims to evaluate intraspecific variability in leaf traits and CSR strategies of seven woody species growing on ultramafic and non-ultramafic soils in the Beni Bousera region of Northern Morocco. We first conducted a physicochemical analysis to assess differences in soil composition between the two sites. Subsequently, we measured leaf fresh weight, leaf dry weight, and leaf area and calculated CSR strategies for 10 individuals per species. The results revealed significant differences between the two soil types, primarily driven by a moderate serpentine effect characterized by a Ca:Mg ratio <1 in the ultramafic site, along with distinct soil texture. In response to these challenging conditions, we observed substantial intraspecific variability in leaf traits, accompanied by shifts in CSR strategies for certain species. At the ultramafic site, Quercus coccifera adopted an S strategy, while Cistus salviifolius exhibited an S/SC strategy. Lavandula stoechas and Teucrium fruticans displayed notable interindividual variability, whereas Cistus atriplicifolius, Phillyrea latifolia, and Erica arborea maintained consistent strategies across both sites. Our research contributes to the enrichment of CSR databases and highlights the applicability of the CSR strategy framework at the local, intraspecific level, offering a valuable foundation for future ecological studies and plant conservation efforts. Moreover, investigating intraspecific variability in leaf traits and CSR strategies enhances our understanding of plant adaptation mechanisms in extreme environments such as Mediterranean serpentine soils.

P-T evolution of HP migmatitic paragneiss from the Beni Bousera metamorphic unit (internal Rif, Northern Morocco) constrained by phase equilibria modelling and melt reintegration

ABSTRACT The high-pressure (HP) migmatitic paragneiss of the Beni Bousera metamorphic unit (BBMU) from the Beni Bousera Massif underwent granulite-facies metamorphism. They mainly consist of garnet, biotite, kyanite, sillimanite, cordierite, spinel, quartz, plagioclase, K-feldspar, rutile, ilmenite and graphite. These minerals form a sequence of metamorphic assemblages corresponding to five metamorphic events (M1, M2, M3, M4, and M5). The first three events correspond to a latest Carboniferous-earliest Permian metamorphic evolution, while the last two are retrograde and Alpine in age. The p-T conditions of these metamorphic events were estimated using pseudosection calculations in the MnNCKFMASTHO system. Following prograde stage conditions of 9.3–10.9 kbar and 630–665°C (M1 stage), the p-T evolution culminates in melting of the paragneiss which occurred mainly at HP conditions, within the kyanite stability field, at 11.8–14.2 kbar and 820–845°C (M2 pressure-peak); anatexis then continued at high to medium pressure (HMP), within the sillimanite stability field, at 9.9–11 Kbar and 840–860°C (M3 thermal-peak), accompanied by the production of very small proportions of melt. The prograde p-T segment of the inferred clockwise path is characterized by a pressurization related to a post-Variscan collisional event triggered by the closure of the Paleotethys Ocean, and is followed by the exhumation of the granulitic unit to mid-crustal depth, with slight coeval heating. The retrograde Alpine evolution is coeval with the final exhumation of the migmatitic paragneiss and underlying peridotites during back-arc extension related to the westward retreat of the Alpine subduction. It occurred under sub-solidus conditions from 9.5–10.7 kbar and 818–848°C (M4) to 4.9–5.85 kbar and 710–785°C (M5) and corresponds to a near-isothermal and strongly decompressive metamorphic evolution (ΔP ≈ 5 Kbar).

Melt-enhanced strain localization and phase mixing in a large-scale mantle shear zone (Ronda peridotite, Spain)

Abstract. Strain localization in upper-mantle shear zones by grain size reduction and the activation of grain-size-sensitive deformation mechanisms is closely linked to phase mixing. With its mylonitic grain size (50–100 µm) and well-mixed phase assemblage, the kilometer-scale shear zone at the northwestern boundary of the Ronda peridotite is, in this respect, no exception. In transects across the high-strain mylonitic into the low-strain tectonitic part of this shear zone, the following four dominant microstructural domains were identified: (1) olivine-rich matrix, (2) mixed matrix, (3) neoblast tails of clinopyroxene porphyroclasts, and (4) neoblast tails of orthopyroxene porphyroclasts. In these domains, phase mixing and its impact on strain localization were investigated by a combination of microstructural (optical microscopy), textural (EBSD), and geochemical (EPMA) analysis. The dominant microstructural domain of all samples is the mixed matrix composed of olivine, orthopyroxene, and clinopyroxene. Its homogenous distribution of interstitial pyroxenes contradicts mechanical mixing. Instead, extensive phase mixing under near-steady-state conditions is documented by the constant grain size and by phase boundary percentages > 60 % for the entire mylonitic unit and all the microstructural domains. Lobate phase boundaries, homogenous phase mixing, and secondary-phase distribution, as well as continuous geochemical trends that are independent of the microstructural domain, point to a reaction-driven, metasomatic formation of the mixed matrix and pyroxene porphyroclast tails in the entire shear zone. An OH-bearing metasomatism by small fractions of evolved melts is indicated by amphibole abundance in pyroxene neoblast tails, olivine B-type-crystallographic-preferred orientations (CPOs), and the microstructural consistency of the garnet–spinel (grt–spl) mylonites from both major peridotite massifs of the Gibraltar arc, Ronda, and Beni Bousera (Morocco). The established syn-deformational temperature of 800–900 ∘C at 1.95–2.00 GPa suggests that the metasomatism did not reset the equilibrium temperatures. Consistent geochemistry and phase assemblage in mylonites and tectonites but a change from equiaxial (tectonites) to wedge-shaped pyroxenes aligned parallel to the foliation (mylonites) point to a pre- to syn-deformational metasomatism, with the potential annealing of the tectonites. For the mylonitic mixed matrix, wedge-shaped pyroxenes, and neoblast tail formation in pyroxene porphyroclast stress shadows point to the activity of incongruent dissolution–precipitation creep. Apart from the dissolution–precipitation creep, strong CPOs of all major phases (ol, opx, and cpx) suggest dislocation creep as being the major deformation mechanism in the entire shear zone.

Tectonometamorphic Evolution of the Migmatitic Paragneisses of the Filali Unit (Internal Rif, Morocco)

A lithosphere-scale extensional shear zone juxtaposes an underlying sub-continental peridotite body and overlying migmatitic paragneisses of the Filali unit in the Beni Bousera massif (Internal Rif, Morocco). Three stages are recognized in the metamorphic evolution of the aluminous paragneiss, marked by the chemical zoning of garnet porphyroblasts and the evolution of associated mineral assemblages characterized by the presence of kyanite and rutile (M1), sillimanite, k-feldspar and melt (M2), and cordierite (M3). Phase-equilibrium modeling (pseudosections) and multi-equilibrium thermobarometry point to P-T conditions of 7 kbar 750 °C and 3.5 kbar 685 °C for the M2 and M3 stages, respectively. M1 conditions of 9.3 kbar 660 °C were inferred using modeling after the reintegration of melt lost during M2 into the bulk composition. Published geochronological data suggest a Variscan age (250–340 Ma) for the M1 event, whereas M2 and M3 are Oligo-Miocene and related to the Alpine orogeny. The recorded sub-isothermal decompression is related to significant crustal attenuation in the Oligo-Miocene and is responsible for the juxtaposition of the hot asthenospheric mantle and the crustal units, causing the melting of the paragneiss. The exhumation of the gneisses by crustal extension is associated with the westward retreat of an Alpine subduction (slab rollback).

Arable plant communities of ultramafic and non-ultramafic soils in Beni Bousera (North Morocco)

Arable plant communities of ultramafic and non-ultramafic soils in Beni Bousera (North Morocco)

Cordierite-based refractory ceramics from natural halloysite and peridotite: Insights on technological properties

Cordierite-based ceramics were fabricated from Moroccan natural halloysite clay by using a simple and low-cost manufacturing method. To this end, peridotite and halloysite samples, collected from Beni Bousera and Melilla sites, Morocco, were used as raw materials for ceramics manufacturing. A starting mixture was prepared (76.08 wt% of clay and 23.92 wt% of peridotite), molded and heated to the desired temperature (1250, 1300 and 1350 °C) to fabricate cordierite ceramic specimens. Both raw materials (peridotite and halloysite) and final ceramics were analyzed using routine characterization techniques including chemical analysis by XRF, mineralogical analysis by XRD, thermogravimetric analysis, and morphological characteristics using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The prepared ceramics were investigated regarding their mineralogical composition, thermal and technological properties, chemical resistance, and microstructural characteristics. Our results indicated that peridotite sample is mainly composed of silica (40.25 wt%) and magnesia (38.05 wt%) while halloysite is consisted essentially of silica (38.00 wt%) and alumina (34.13 wt%). This was confirmed by XRD, TG-DTA and FTIR analyses. The prepared ceramic specimens at different sintering temperatures (i.e., 1250, 1300 and 1350 °C) have regular cylindrical forms, displaying good ceramic properties. This is consolidated with the main technological tests including porosity (4.56–3.11%), bulk density (2.45–2.78 g/cm3), shrinkage (6.51–10.31%), indirect tensile strength (20.35–27.60 MPa), and low linear thermal expansion coefficient (3.05–2.18 × 10−6/°C). Cordierite specimen prepared at 1350 °C provided the best ceramic sample with the highest technological properties, good chemical resistance and thermal properties. Thus, naturally abundant halloysite and peridotite deposits are potential candidates for cordierite-based ceramic manufacture. Therefore, the achieved results have provided cost-effective ceramic bricks with physical, thermal and mechanical properties that are favorable to be used as refractory bricks.

Sulphide Petrology and Contribution of Subducted Sulphur in Diamondiferous Garnet-Bearing Pyroxenites from Beni Bousera (Northern Morocco)

Abstract This paper explores the unusual sulphide–graphite association of a selection of Beni Bousera garnet clinopyroxenites that initially equilibrated within the diamond stability field. Compared with common graphite-free garnet pyroxenites analysed so far, these rocks display tenfold S enrichment with concentrations up to 5550 μg g–1. Fe–Ni–Cu sulphides (up to 1·5 wt%) consist of large (up to 3 mm across), low-Ni pyrrrhotite (<0·1 wt% Ni) of troilite composition, along with volumetrically minor chalcopyrite and pentlandite. Such assemblages are interpreted as low-temperature (<100 °C) subsolidus exsolution products from homogeneous monosulphide solid solution. Troilite compositions of the pyrrhotite indicate strongly reducing conditions that are estimated to be slightly above the iron–wüstite (IW) buffer. Bulk-sulphide compositions are closer to the FeS end-member (i.e. Cu- and Ni-depleted) than other sulphide occurrences in mantle-derived pyroxenites described so far. Moreover, troilite contains trace metal microphases (Pb and Ag tellurides, molybdenite) that have never been reported before from mantle-derived garnet pyroxenites but occur in diamond-hosted eclogitic sulphide inclusions. Beni Bousera sulphides also show strong similarities to diamond-hosted sulphide inclusions of eclogitic affinity for a wide range of chalcophile–siderophile trace element contents. In view of the widespread molybdenite exsolution, coupled with Mo and S/Se/Te systematics of sulphide compositions (7872 < S/Se < 19 776; 15 < Se/Te < 31), black-shale pyrite is a potential sedimentary component to contribute to the petrogenesis of Beni Bousera garnet clinopyroxenites. Black shales would have recycled along with cumulates from the oceanic crust in the mantle source of Beni Bousera pyroxenites. Pyrite underwent desulfidation and replacement by troilite during subduction and prograde metamorphism, releasing its fluid-mobile elements (As, Sb, Pb) while suffering minimum S loss because of the strongly reduced conditions. Taken as a whole, our body of data supports a common origin for carbon (−27 ‰ < δ13C < −17 ‰) and sulphur and concomitant formation of diamond and sulphides. Both elements were delivered by an extraneous sedimentary component mixed with the altered oceanic crust rocks that was involved in the genesis of Beni Bousera garnet pyroxenites, prior to a Proterozoic partial melting event.

Amphibolite facies metamorphic event within the Upper Sebtides tectonic units (Internal Rif, Morocco): a record of a hyperextended margin at the border of the western Tethys

Located at the westernmost tip of the Mediterranean, the Gibraltar Arc is a segment of the Alpine belt that exhibits peridotite massifs associated with high-grade crustal metamorphic units. The timing and mechanisms of exhumation of these crust–mantle associations are still debated in the Rif in Morocco as well as in the Betic Cordilleras in Spain. A structural, petrographic, and geochronological study ( 40 Ar– 39 Ar method) is performed in the Beni Bousera region (Internal Rif) on the Upper Sebtides units that consist of Paleozoic basement and Permo-Triassic metasedimentary rocks. We point out that, in the metagreywackes, an early assemblage of K-feldspar, plagioclase, quartz, muscovite, biotite, and garnet, which is diagnostic of amphibolite facies metamorphism. By dating white mica porphyroclasts from this metamorphic assemblage, we provide the first evidence of internal Rif metamorphism of Triassic age. We assume that these crustal units belong to the ancient continental margin of the Western Tethys, and thus, we interpret this metamorphic event in the framework of a hyperextended margin that is coeval with the exhumation of the subcontinental mantle during the Upper Triassic. Afterward, these units underwent greenschist facies metamorphism during the Lower Miocene due to a thermal event related to the back-arc opening of the Alboran Basin.

The Beni Bousera marbles, record of a Triassic-Early Jurassic hyperextended margin in the Alpujarrides-Sebtides units (Rif belt, Morocco)

The timing and process of exhumation of the subcontinental peridotites of the Gibraltar Arc (Ronda, Beni Bousera) have been discussed extensively over the last decades. In this work, we contribute to this debate through the first mapping, structural and petrological analyses, and SHRIMP U-Th-Pb dating of high-grade marbles that crop out around the Beni Bousera antiform of the Alpujarrides-Sebtides units of northern Rif (Morocco). These marbles, here termed the Beni Bousera marbles (BBMs), instead of being intercalations in the granulitic envelope (kinzigites) of the Beni Bousera peridotites, as previously described, form minor, dismembered units within a ∼30 to 300 m thick mylonitic contact between the kinzigites and the overlying gneisses of the Filali Unit (Filali–Beni Bousera Shear Zone, FBBSZ). They display silicate-rich dolomitic marbles, sandy-conglomeratic calcareous marbles and thinly bedded marble with interleaved biotite-rich schists. An unconformable contact, either of stratigraphic or tectonic origin, with the underlying kinzigites, is observed locally. Pebbles or detrital grains include K-feldspar, quartz, almandine garnet and zircon. Peak mineral assemblages consist of forsterite, Mg-Al-spinel, geikielite (MgTiO3), phlogopite and accessory zirconolite, baddeleyite and srilankite in dolomite marble, as well as K-feldspar, scapolite, diopside, titanite and accessory graphite and zircon in calcite marble. These assemblages characterize peak HT-LP metamorphic conditions close to 700–750 °C, ≤4.5 kbar. The FBBSZ includes minor ductile thrusts that determine kinzigite horses or slivers carried NW-ward over the marbles. Within the latter, NNE-trending folds are conspicuous. Brittle, northward-dipping normal faults crosscut the FBBSZ ductile structures. Detrital cores of zircon from the BBMs yield two U-Th-Pb age clusters of ∼270 Ma and ∼340 Ma, whereas their rims yield ∼21 Ma ages. Correlations with comparable settings in other West Mediterranean Alpine belts are discussed. The BBMs compare with the Triassic carbonates deposited over the crustal units of the Alpujarrides-Sebtides. The assumed Triassic protoliths may have been deposited onto the kinzigites or carried as extensional allochthons over a detachment in the Early Jurassic during the incipient formation of the Alboran Domain continental margin. Thus, it is concluded that the Beni Bousera mantle rocks were exhumed to a shallow depth during early rifting events responsible for the birth of the Maghrebian Tethys.

Partition behavior of platinum-group elements during the segregation of arsenide melts from sulfide magma

Abstract Evidence of immiscibility between arsenide and sulfide melts has been observed both in experimental studies and natural samples from several localities worldwide (e.g., Ronda, Spain; Beni Bousera, Morocco; Dundonald Beach South, Canada). Platinum-group elements (PGE) have shown to have a strong affinity for arsenide melts, but little is known about their partitioning behavior between arsenide and sulfide melts. In this study, we experimentally determine the partition coefficients of PGE (Pt, Pd, Ir, Ru, and Os) between both types of melt in As-saturated sulfide systems doped with trace amounts of PGE. Results show that all PGE display a strong preference to the arsenide melt with DPGEAs/sulf melts ranging from 20 to 2700, with Ir and Pt showing a marked preference for arsenide melts. These partition coefficients values are similar to estimates made from natural samples and demonstrate that the separation of arsenide melts from sulfide magmas can be an efficient mechanism to scavenge PGE from magmas and to fractionate Os, Ru, and Pd from Pt and Ir.

Hercynian anatexis in the envelope of the Beni Bousera peridotites (Alboran Domain, Morocco): Implications for the tectono-metamorphic evolution of the deep crustal roots of the Mediterranean region

The metamorphic core of the Betic-Rif orogenic chain (Alboran Domain) is made up of lower crustal rocks forming the envelope of the Ronda (Spain) and Beni Bousera (Morocco) peridotites. The deepest sections of the crustal envelopes are made of migmatitic granulites associated with diffuse acidic magmatic products, making these exposure and ideal site to investigate the textural and petrological connection between crustal anatexis and granite magmatism in the contintental crust. However, still debated is the timing of intracrustal emplacement of the peridotite bodies, with models proposing either Alpine (early Miocene) or Hercynian ages, and still uncertain is the linkage between peridotite emplacement and crustal anatexis. In this study, by combining rock textures with whole-rock geochemistry, metamorphic thermobarometry, the U-Pb zircon geochronology and the analysis of the garnet and zircon REE chemistry, we document the P-T-t evolution of the granulite facies migmatites that form the immediate envelope of the Beni Bousera peridotites of the Rif belt. A main episode of Permo-Carboniferous (ca. 300–290 Ma) deep crustal anatexis, melt extraction and migration is documented that we link to the crustal emplacement of the Beni Bousera peridotites during collapse of the Hercynian orogen. Correlation at a regional scale suggests that the Beni-Bousera section can be tentatively correlated with the pre-Alpine (Permo-Carboniferous) basement units tectonically interleaved within the orogenic structure of the Alpine chain. The results of this study provide ultimate constraints to reconstruct the tectono-metamorphic evolution of the Alboran Domain in the Western Mediterranean and impose re-assessment of the modes and rates through which Alpine orogenic construction and collapse occurred and operated in the region.

Neogene polyphase deformation related to the Alboran Basin evolution: new insights for the Beni Bousera massif (Internal Rif, Morocco)

Located in the Internal domain of the Rif belt, the Beni Bousera massif is characterized by a stack of peridotites and crustal metamorphic units. The massif is intruded by granitic dykes and affected by several normal ductile shear zones. Structural, petrological and 40Ar–39Ar dating analyses performed on these two elements highlight that (1) the granitic dykes are emplaced within major N70° to N140° trending normal faults and shear zones, resulted from an NNE-SSW extension (2) the Aaraben fault in its NE part is characterized by N70° to N150° trending ductile normal shear zones, resulted from a nearly N-S extension and (3) the age of this extensional event is comprised between 22 and 20 Ma. Available paleomagnetic data allow a restoration of the initial orientation of extension, which was nearly E-W contemporary with the Alboran Basin opening in back-arc context, during the Early Miocene. At the onset of the extension, the peridotites were somehow lying upon a partially melted continental crust, and exhumed during this event by the Aaraben Normal Shear Zone. Afterward, the Alboran Domain suffered several compressional events.

Western Mediterranean Subcontinental Mantle Emplacement by Continental Margin Obduction

AbstractObduction is the tectonic process that results from thrusting of an oceanic lithosphere section (ophiolite) onto a continent. In contrast, thrusting of subcontinental mantle, observed in several mountain belts, remains a major unknown of plate tectonics. In the western Mediterranean, the Ronda and Beni Bousera peridotites are the largest worldwide subcontinental mantle exposure. From a geological point of view, the Ronda peridotites are exhumed by hyperstretching of the continental lithosphere in a back‐arc immediately followed by thrusting, explaining their present‐day position inside the Alboran crust. Using 2‐D and 3‐D modeling of new gravimetric data combined with local seismic tomography, we show that the Ronda peridotites are rooted inside the Alboran mantle along the entire Gibraltar arc. On these bases, we propose that the emplacement of the Ronda peridotites occurred in a back‐arc setting and corresponds to the thrusting of an entire hyper‐stretched continental margin onto a continent, a process that we define as continental margin obduction. This results from two successive deformation events: continental upper plate extension driven by slab roll‐back, immediately followed by upper plate shortening, likely triggered when a buoyant continental domain enters the subduction. We propose that this process affected the entire western Alboran domain, with peridotite bodies embedded within the crust along the whole Gibraltar Arc. We suggest that other examples such as the Alps Ivrea mantle body could likely represent continental margin obduction at the onset of continental collision.

Genesis of ultra-high pressure garnet pyroxenites in orogenic peridotites and its bearing on the compositional heterogeneity of the Earth’s mantle

We present an integrated geochemical study of ultra-high pressure (UHP) garnet pyroxenites from the Ronda and Beni Bousera peridotite massifs (Betic-Rif Belt, westernmost Mediterranean). Based on their Sr-Nd-Pb-Hf isotopic systematics, we classify UHP garnet pyroxenites into three groups: Group A pyroxenites (Al2O3: 15–17.5 wt.%) have low initial 87Sr/86Sr, relatively high εNd, εHf and 206Pb/204Pb ratios, and variable 207Pb/204Pb and 208Pb/204Pb. Group B pyroxenites (Al2O3 < 14 wt.%) are characterized by high initial 87Sr/86Sr and relatively low εNd, εHf and 206Pb/204Pb ratios. Group C pyroxenites (Al2O3 ∼ 15 wt.%) have depleted radiogenic signatures with relatively low initial 87Sr/86Sr and 206Pb/204Pb, high εNd and εHf, and their 207Pb/204Pb and 208Pb/204Pb ratios are similar to those of Group B pyroxenites.The major and trace element and isotopic compositions of UHP garnet pyroxenites support their derivation from ancient (1.5–3.5 Ga) oceanic crust recycled into the mantle and intimately stirred with peridotites by convection. However, the genesis of these pyroxenites requires also the involvement of recycled continental lower crust with an isotopic composition akin to the lower crustal section of the lithosphere where these UHP garnet pyroxenites now reside in. These oceanic and continental crustal components were stirred in different proportions in the convective mantle, originating pyroxenites with a more marked geochemical imprint of either oceanic (Group A) or continental lower crust (Group B), or hybrid compositions (Group C). The pyroxenite protoliths likely underwent several melting events, one of them related to the formation of the subcontinental lithospheric mantle and continental crust, generating restitic UHP garnet pyroxenites now preserved in the Ronda and Beni Bousera orogenic peridotites. The extent of melting was mostly controlled by the bulk Mg-number (Mg#) of the pyroxenite protoliths, where protoliths with low Mg# experienced higher degrees of partial melting than sources with higher Mg#. Positive Eu and Sr anomalies in bulk rocks, indicative of their origin from cumulitic crustal gabbros, are preserved mostly in high Mg# pyroxenites due to their higher melting temperatures and consequent lower partial melting degrees.The results of this study show that the genesis of UHP garnet pyroxenites in orogenic peridotites requires a new recipe for the marble cake mantle hypothesis, combining significant recycling and stirring of both oceanic and continental lower crust in the Earth’s mantle. Furthermore, this study establishes a firm connection between the isotopic signatures of UHP pyroxenite heterogeneities in the mantle and the continental lower crust.

Mineralogical and geochemical features of the alteration processes of magmatic ores in the Beni Bousera ultramafic massif (north Morocco)

The Beni Bousera ultramafic massif (Internal Rif, Morocco) is characterized by the presence of two types of small-scale magmatic mineralizations (i) a mineralization consisting mainly of chromite and Ni arsenides associated to orthopyroxene and cordierite (Cr-Ni ores), and (ii) a mineralization mainly composed of magmatic Fe-Ni-Cu sulfides containing variable amounts of graphite and chromite associated to phlogopite, clinopyroxène and plagioclase (S-G ores). Theses ores underwent High-T (450–550 °C) and Low-T (150–300 °C) alteration processes.The High-T alteration processes are tentatively related to intrusion of leucogranite dykes. They are preserved in the Galaros Cr-Ni ore deposit where nickeline is partly dissolved and transformed to maucherite, and orthopyroxene alters to phlogopite. Ni and Co were mobilized to the fluid phase, rising up their availability and promoting their diffusion into chromite and phlogopite, which have significantly higher contents in Ni and Co in phlogopite-rich ores than in orthopyroxene- and nickeline-rich ones.The Low-T alteration processes are related to serpentinization/weathering spatially associated with a regional shear zone. They affected both the Cr-Ni and S-G ores. In the Cr-Ni ores, Ni-arsenides were completely leached out while chromite is fractured within a matrix of chlorite, vermiculite and Ni-rich serpentine. In S-G ores, the silicates were altered into amphibole, Fe-rich chlorite and pectolite in clinopyroxene- and plagioclase-bearing ores while sulfides were completely leached out in phlogopite-bearing ores where iron oxides and hydroxides, and Fe-rich vermiculite were deposited. Chromite composition is not affected by the Low-T alteration processes.

Refertilization Processes in the Subcontinental Lithospheric Mantle: the Record of the Beni Bousera Orogenic Peridotite (Rif Belt, Northern Morocco)

Correlations between major and minor transition elements in tectonically emplaced orogenic peridotites have been ascribed to variable degrees of melt extraction and melt–rock reaction processes, leading to depletion or refertilization. To elucidate how such processes are recorded in the subcontinental lithospheric mantle, we processed a large geochemical dataset for peridotites from the four tectono-metamorphic domains of the Beni Bousera orogenic massif (Rif Belt, northern Morocco). Our study reveals that variations in bulk-rock major and minor elements, Mg-number and modal mineralogy of lherzolites, as well as their clinopyroxene trace element compositions, are inconsistent with simple partial melting and mainly resulted from different reactions between melts and depleted peridotites. Up to 30% melting at < 3 GPa and cryptic metasomatism can account for the geochemical variations of most harzburgites. In Grt–Sp mylonites, melting and melt–rock reactions are masked by tectonic mixing with garnet pyroxenites and subsolidus re-equilibration. In the rest of the massif, lherzolites were mostly produced by refertilization of a refractory protolith (Mg-number ∼ 91, Ol ∼ 70%, Cpx/Opx = 0·4) via two distinct near-solidus, melt–rock reactions: (1) clinopyroxene and orthopyroxene precipitation and olivine consumption at melt/rock ratios <0·75 and variable mass ratio between crystallized minerals and infiltrated melt (R), which are recorded fairly homogeneously throughout the massif; (2) dissolution of orthopyroxene and precipitation of clinopyroxene and olivine at melt/rock ratios ≤1 and R = 0·2–0·3, which affected mainly the Ariegite–Seiland and Seiland domains. The distribution of secondary lherzolites in the massif suggests that the first refertilization reaction occurred prior to the differentiation of the Beni Bousera mantle section into petro-structural zones, whereas the second reaction was associated with the development of the tectono-metamorphic domains. Our data support a secondary, refertilization-related origin for most lherzolites in orogenic peridotite massifs.

Spatial variability of pyroxenite layers in the Beni Bousera orogenic peridotite (Morocco) and implications for their origin

The Beni Bousera peridotite contains a diversity of pyroxenite layers. Several studies have postulated that at least some of them represent elongated strips of oceanic lithosphere recycled in the convective mantle. Some pyroxenites were, however, ascribed to igneous crystal segregation or melt–rock reactions. To further constrain the origin of these rocks, we collected 171 samples throughout the massif and examined their variability in relation with the tectono-metamorphic domains. A major finding is that all facies showing clear evidence for a crustal origin are concentrated in a narrow corridor of mylonitized peridotites, along the contact with granulitic country rocks. These peculiar facies were most likely incorporated at the mantle–crust boundary during the orogenic events that culminated in the peridotite exhumation. The other pyroxenites derive from a distinct protolith that was ubiquitous in the massif before its exhumation. They were deeply modified by partial melting and melt–rock reactions associated with lithospheric thinning.

Process of serpentinization in the ultramafic massif of Beni Bousera (internal Rif, Morocco)

The Beni Bousera massif forms part of the Sebtide units in the internal Rif Mountain (Morocco). It is mainly composed of mantle peridotites surrounded by crustal metamorphic rocks (kinzigites, micaschists, and schists). The serpentinization affects all of peridotite massif to various degrees. Serpentinization is concentrated at the top of the peridotites, along the mylonitized zone, and in the NE part of the massif. It is manifested by the formation of mesh and hourglass textures along the tectonic foliation in the highly serpentinized peridotites; and brecciated texture in the least serpentinized peridotites. Pyroxene minerals are still intact hosting few serpentine veins. These petrographic features are consistent with the geochemical data, marked by the increasing of LOI and decreasing of MgO and FeO toward the top of the massif and Aaraben fault. The Raman characterization of serpentine with the brecciated mesh and hourglass textures correspond to lizardite type whereas the serpentine with the vein texture is formed by lizardite + chrysotile.

Oligo-Miocene thinning of the Beni Bousera peridotites and their Variscan crustal host rocks, Internal Rif, Morocco

Deciphering Variscan versus Alpine history in the internal Rif system is a key to constraining the tectonic evolution of the Alboran domain and hence the geodynamics of the western Mediterranean system during the Cenozoic. This study focuses on the evolution of the metamorphic envelope of the Beni Bousera massif and its relation to the underlying peridotites. Combining structural geology, metamorphic petrology, and LA-ICP-MS U-Th-Pb dating of monazite, this study contributes to the understanding of the tectonic history of the western internal Rif. The regional foliation (S2) is characterized by LP/HT mineral assemblages and obliterates a former foliation (S1) developed along a barrovian (MP/MT) metamorphic gradient. The dating of some metamorphic monazite grains from a micaschist and a migmatitic gneiss demonstrates that the crustal envelope of the peridotite recorded two distinct tectonometamorphic episodes. Data from monazite inclusions in S1 garnet suggest that the first event, D1, is older than 250-170 Ma and likely related to the Variscan collision, in agreement with the barrovian type of the metamorphic gradient. The second event, D2, is Alpine in age (at circa 21 Ma) and corresponds to a strong lithosphere thinning allowing subsequent subcontinental mantle exhumation. Such a tectonic context provides an explanation for the LP/HT metamorphic gradient that is recorded in the regional foliation of the western Betic-Rif system. This extension is probably related to a subduction slab roll-back in the western end of the Mediterranean realm during the Oligo-Miocene times. No evidences for a Tertiary HP/LT metamorphism have been identified in the studied area