Serrania Del Interior Research Articles

Lithospheric expression of cenozoic subduction, mesozoic rifting and the Precambrian Shield in Venezuela

We have combined surface wave tomography with Ps and Sp receiver-function images based on common-conversion-point (CCP) stacking to study the upper mantle velocity structure, particularly the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary (LAB), beneath eastern and central Venezuela. Rayleigh phase velocities in the frequency range of 0.01–0.05 Hz (20–100 s in period) were measured using the two-plane-wave method and finite-frequency kernels, and then inverted on a 0.5°×0.5° grid. The phase velocity dispersion data at grid points were inverted for 1D shear velocity profiles using initial crust-mantle velocity models constructed from previous studies. The 3D velocity model and receiver-function images were interpreted jointly to determine the depth of the LAB and other upper mantle features. The tomographic images revealed two high velocity anomalies extending to more than ∼200 km depth. One corresponds to the top of the subducting Atlantic plate beneath the Serrania del Interior. The other anomaly is a highly localized feature beneath the Maturin Basin. The LAB depth varies significantly in the study region: It is located at ∼110 km depth beneath the Guayana Shield, and reaches ∼130 km at the northern edge of the Maturin Basin, which might be related to the downward flexural bending due to thrust loading of the Caribbean plate and pull from the subducting Atlantic plate. Immediately to the west, the lithosphere is thin (∼50–60 km) along the NE-SW trending Espino Graben from the Cariaco basin to the Orinoco River at the northern edge of the craton. The LAB in this region is the top of a pronounced low velocity zone. Westward, the lithosphere deepens to ∼80 km depth beneath the Barinas Apure Basin, and to ∼90 km beneath the Neogene Merida Andes and Maracaibo block. Both upper mantle velocity structure and lithosphere thickness correlate well with surface geology and are consistent with northern South American tectonics.

Ophiolite-Related Ultramafic Rocks (Serpentinites) in the Caribbean Region: A Review of their Occurrence, Composition, Origin, Emplacement and Ni-Laterite Soil Formation

Ultramafic rocks, mainly serpentinized peridotites of mantle origin, are mostly associated with the ophiolites of Mesozoic age that occur in belts along three of the margins of the Caribbean plate. The most extensive exposures are in Cuba. The ultramafic-mafic association (ophiolites) were formed and emplaced in several different tectonic environments. Mineralogical studies of the ultramafic rocks and the chemistry of the associated mafic rocks indicate that most of the ultramafic-mafic associations in both the northern and southern margins of the plate were formed in arc-related environments. There is little mantle peridotite exposed in the ophiolitic associations of the west coast of Central America, in the south Caribbean in Curacao and in the Andean belts in Colombia. In these occurrences the chemistry and age of the mafic rocks indicates that this association is mainly part of the 89 Ma Caribbean plateau province. The age of the mantle peridotites and associated ophiolites is probably mainly late Jurassic or Early Cretaceous. Emplacement of the ophiolites possibly began in the Early Cretaceous in Hispaniola and Puerto Rico, but most emplacement took place in the Late Cretaceous to Eocene (e.g. Cuba). Along the northern South America plate margin, in the Caribbean mountain belt, emplacement was by major thrusting and probably was not completed until the Oligocene or even the early Miocene. Caribbean mantle peridotites, before serpentinization, were mainly harzburgites, but dunites and lherzolites are also present. In detail, the mineralogical and chemical composition varies even within one ultramafic body, reflecting melting processes and peridotite/melt interaction in the upper mantle. At least for the northern Caribbean, uplift (postemplacement tectonics) exposed the ultramafic massifs as a land surface to effective laterization in the beginning of the Miocene. Tectonic factors, determining the uplift, exposing the peridotites to weathering varied. In the northern Caribbean, in Guatemala, Jamaica, and Hispaniola, uplift occurred as a result of transpresional movement along pre-existing major faults. In Cuba, uplift occurred on a regional scale, determined by isostatic adjustment. In the south Caribbean, uplift of the Cordillera de la Costa and Serrania del Interior exposing the peridotites, also appears to be related to strike-slip movement along the El Pilar fault system. In the Caribbean, Ni-laterite deposits are currently being mined in the central Dominican Republic, eastern Cuba, northern Venezuela and northwest Colombia. Although apparently formed over ultramafic rocks of similar composition and under similar climatic conditions, the composition of the lateritic soils varies. Factors that probably determined these differences in laterite composition are geomorphology, topography, drainage and tectonics. According to the mineralogy of principal ore-bearing phases, Dominican Ni-laterite deposits are classified as the hydrous silicate-type. The main Ni-bearing minerals are hydrated Mg-Ni silicates (serpentine and “garnierite”) occurring deeper in the profile (saprolite horizon). In contrast, in the deposits of eastern Cuba, the Ni and Co occurs mainly in the limonite zone composed of Fe hydroxides and oxides as the dominant mineralogy in the upper part of the profile, and are classified as the oxide-type.

Present-day deformation along the El Pilar Fault in eastern Venezuela: Evidence of creep along a major transform boundary

The right-lateral strike-slip El Pilar Fault is one of the major structures that accommodate the relative displacement between the Caribbean and South-America Plates. This fault, which trends East–West along the northeastern Venezuela margin, is a seismogenic source, and shows numerous evidence for active tectonics, including deformation of the Quaternary sediments filling the Cariaco Gulf. Because the main El Pilar Fault strand belongs to a set of strike-slip faults and thrusts between the stable Guyana shield (South) and the Caribbean oceanic floor (North), a GPS network was designed and installed to measure the relative motion of the El Pilar Fault and other faults. The results obtained from the comparison of 2003 and 2005 surveys indicate: (i) a lack of significant displacement (especially shortening) in the Serrania del Interior (Neogene cordillera overthrusted above the Guyana craton), (ii) an eastward displacement (relative to fixed south America plate) up to 22 mm/year of benchmarks located north of the El Pilar Fault. Velocities simulations using dislocations in an elastic half-space show: (1) the concentration along the El Pilar Fault of the whole Caribbean-South America relative displacement, (2) the existence of an important component of aseismic displacement along the upper part of the El Pilar Fault. Between 12 km depth and the surface, only 40% of displacement is locked for the western segment and 50% for the eastern segment. This last phenomenon may be related to the existence of serpentinite lenses along the fault zone as observed for segments of San Andreas and North Anatolian faults.

A 3-D lithospheric model of the Caribbean-South American plate boundary

A 3-D structural model of the Caribbean-South American plate boundary was constructed by gravity modeling. The model was constrained by four wide-angle seismic refraction sections, Moho depth estimations from receiver functions, and additionally seismological hypocenters, surface geology, and geodynamic information. Density values were calculated from empirical velocity-density functions, and mineralogical-chemical composition considering specific P/T conditions. We tested different structural models for Western and Eastern Venezuela. In the final model, the fit of the measured and modeled gravity fields for a long Caribbean slab in Western Venezuela was better than the fit obtained for a short one. This interpretation is consistent with the constraining data. The slab is interpreted to extend further to the south beneath Northern Colombia and culminates in the area of the seismic cluster of the Bucaramanga nest. The modeling estimates a slab dip angle under Maracaibo and Merida Andes of 15°, which increases to 32° below 100 km depth. The dip direction of approx. N150°E ± 5 increases lightly eastward. In Eastern Venezuela, considering its short wavelength, lineaments analyzed from gravity data (by curvature methods and Euler deconvolution) seem to be related to shallow structures and density contrast in the Serrania del Interior and not from a deep detached slab beneath the continental crust. It is deduced from modeling results that this slab configuration has a very small influence on the gravity field. The slab was modeled according to the subduction-transform propagation model with purely westward subduction and a slab break off along a vertical dip-slip tear through the lithosphere.

Tectonostratigraphic evolution of the Morichito piggyback basin, Eastern Venezuelan Basin

The Morichito piggyback basin (MPB) is a SW–NE-oriented depocenter in the Eastern Venezuelan Foreland Basin (EVFB). This piggyback basin formed by overlying the Pirital thrust during the middle to late Miocene as a result of oblique collision between the Caribbean and South-American Plates. The MPB covers an area encompassing approximately 1000 km 2 between the Serrania del Interior range and the Pirital high, which is a hanging wall uplift along the Pirital thrust that acts as a confining barrier on the southern boundary of the MPB. Previous studies have tried to address the tectonostratigraphic significance of the MPB, but new biostratigraphic information and recently acquired 3D seismic data have allowed us to expand the understanding of this basin. The MPB occupies a relatively small area of the EVFB; however, the MPB contains a valuable stratigraphic record that can be used to unveil the timing of the main deformational events that took place in the EVFB. This work presents the tectonostratigraphic evolution of the MPB by defining four tectonostratigraphic sequences (T1–T4). Each sequence was defined on the basis of integration of well logs, biostratigraphy, and seismic geomorphological interpretations. T1 (24–16 Ma) (late Oligocene to middle Miocene), which was deposited in shallow-marine environments, extends to the south of the Pirital high beyond the boundaries of the MPB. T1 is equivalent to the early foredeep stage of the EVFB, having been formed when structural deformation and uplifting were already occurring to the north on the proto-Serrania del Interior range (∼24–16 Ma) and the Pirital thrust was active (∼22 Ma). T2 (16–11 Ma) (middle to late Miocene) is composed of alluvial-fan deposits derived from the proto-Serrania del Interior range. The geometry and internal configuration of T2 indicate that during this time the basin was transitioning from an open-foreland basin to a confined piggyback basin. During deposition of T2, the Pirital fault was active as an out-of-sequence thrusting event (16–∼11 ma). T3 (late Miocene) and T4 (early Pliocene to Recent), composed of shallow-marine and fluvial deposits, were deposited in an already restricted piggyback basin. The Pirital high was already in place during deposition of T3 (∼11–9.3 ma). T3 and T4 represent the final phases of MPB infilling, when tectonic activity and subsidence were at their lowest rates. MPB sedimentary infilling dates the activity of thrusting events in the proto-Serrania del Interior (∼24–16 Ma), timing of maximum deformation associated with the Pirital out-of-sequence thrusting event (16–∼11 Ma), timing of final emplacement of the Pirital high (∼11–9.3 Ma), and the beginning of tectonic quiescence (<5.2 Ma).

Receiver function study of the crustal structure of the southeastern Caribbean plate boundary and Venezuela

We have investigated crustal thickness and composition across the southeastern Caribbean plate boundary with the receiver function technique. We used teleseismic data recorded by a temporary broadband array deployed under the BOLIVAR project and the permanent national seismic network of Venezuela. We used the primary P‐to‐S conversion and crustal reverberations to estimate crustal thickness and average crustal VP/VS ratio over the region. We observe large variations in crustal thickness and Poisson's ratio. Estimated Moho depth ranges from ∼16 km beneath the southeastern Caribbean Sea to ∼52 km beneath northeastern Venezuela and the Venezuelan Andes. There is a good correlation between crustal structure and tectonic terranes. Data from the Precambrian Guayana Shield suggest that the underlying crustal structure is relatively uniform with a moderate thickness (∼37 km) and an intermediate composition. A thick crust is found below the foreland basins. The two mountain systems in northern Venezuela, the Serrania del Interior and the Serrania del Falcon, have a thin crust with arc composition and are likely dynamically supported by elastic rebound or underthrusting of the oceanic plateau that characterizes the southern Caribbean. On the other hand, the Venezuelan Andes and Perija Range on the western side of the country are probably isostatically balanced by thick crustal roots.

Hydrocarbon systems of Northeastern Venezuela: plate through molecular scale-analysis of the genesis and evolution of the Eastern Venezuela Basin

The prolific, oil-bearing basins of eastern Venezuela developed through an unusual confluence of Atlantic, Caribbean and Pacific plate tectonic events. Mesozoic rifting and passive margin development created ideal conditions for the deposition of world-class hydrocarbon source rocks. In the Cenozoic, transpressive, west-to-east movement of the Caribbean plate along the northern margin of Venezuela led to the maturation of those source rocks in several extended pulses, directly attributable to regional tectonic events. The combination of these elements with well-developed structural and stratigraphic fairways resulted in remarkably efficient migration of large volumes of oil and gas, which accumulated along the flanks of thick sedimentary depocenters. At least four proven and potential hydrocarbon source rocks contribute to oil and gas accumulations. Cretaceous oil-prone, marine source rocks, and Miocene oil- and gas-prone, paralic source rocks are well documented. We used reservoired oils, seeps, organic-rich rocks, and fluid inclusions to identify probable Jurassic hypersaline-lacustrine, and Albian carbonate source rocks. Hydrocarbon maturation began during the Early Miocene in the present-day Serrania del Interior, as the Caribbean plate moved eastward relative to South America. Large volumes of hydrocarbons expelled during this period were lost due to lack of effective traps and seals. By the Middle Miocene, however, when source rocks from the more recent foredeeps began to mature, reservoir, migration pathways, and topseal were in place. Rapid, tectonically driven burial created the opportunity for unusually efficient migration and trapping of these later-expelled hydrocarbons. The generally eastward migration of broad depocenters across Venezuela was supplemented by local, tectonically induced subsidence. These subsidence patterns and later migration resulted in the mixing of hydrocarbons from different source rocks, and in a complex map pattern of variable oil quality that was further modified by biodegradation, late gas migration, water washing, and subsequent burial. The integration of plate tectonic reconstructions with the history of source rock deposition and maturation provides significant insights into the genesis, evolution, alteration, and demise of Eastern Venezuela hydrocarbon systems. We used this analysis to identify additional play potential associated with probable Jurassic and Albian hydrocarbon source rocks, often overlooked in discussions of Venezuela. The results suggest that oils associated with likely Jurassic source rocks originated in restricted, rift-controlled depressions lying at high angles to the eventual margins of the South Atlantic, and that Albian oils are likely related to carbonate deposition along these margins, post-continental break up. In terms of tectonic history, the inferred Mesozoic rift system is the eastern continuation of the Espino Graben, whose remnant structures underlie both the Serrania del Interior and the Gulf of Paria, where thick evaporite sections have been penetrated. The pattern of basin structure and associated Mesozoic deposition as depicted in the model has important implications for the Mesozoic paleogeography of northern South America and Africa, Cuba and the Yucatan and associated new play potential.

Deformation history of the blueschist-facies sequences from the Villa de Cura unit (Northern Venezuela)

The Serrania del Interior terrane is located in Northern Venezuela, that represents the southern margin of the Caribbean plate. This terrane includes the Villa de Cura unit, which mainly consists of multiple sub-units of metamorphosed and deformed Cretaceous volcano-sedimentary sequences. These sequences are commonly interpreted as generated in a supra-subduction zone setting. The structural history of the Villa de Cura blueschists-facies units includes four main deformational phases, from D1 to D4. The first D1 phase is mainly represented by a relict S1 schistosity developed under HP/LT conditions. The relic S1 schistosity is deformed by isoclinal to subisoclinal F2 folds showing similar geometry. The F2 folds are characterized by a continuous S2 crenulation cleavage developed under greenschist-facies metamorphism. The parallelism between the A2 axes and the related L2 mineral lineations suggests an interpretation of the F2 folds as sheath folds developed during non-coaxial deformation. The kinematic indicators suggest a top-to-W sense of shear for the D2 phase. The D3 phase is distinguished by asymmetric, parallel F3 folds with a S vergence. Finally, the D4 phase consists of F4 open, gentle folds with high-angle to sub-vertical axial planes. The collected data suggest a complex deformation history, characterized by coupling of strike-slip tectonics and shortening during the retrograde evolution of the blueschist-facies sequences.

Geochronologic Constraints for the Serrania del Interior Foreland Fold and Thrust Belt, North-Central Venezuela: ABSTRACT

Geochronologic Constraints for the Serrania del Interior Foreland Fold and Thrust Belt, North-Central Venezuela: ABSTRACT

Correlation of the Jurassic through Oligocene Stratigraphic Units of Trinidad and Northeastern Venezuela

The Jurassic through Oligocene stratigraphies of Trinidad and the Serrania del Interior of eastern Venezuela exhibit many similarities because of their proximity on the passive continental margin of northeastern South America. A slightly later subsidence in eastern Venezuela, and the generally deeper-water sedimentation in Trinidad, is interpreted to be the result of a serration of the original rift margin, producing an eastern Venezuelan promontory and Trinidadian reentrant. We interpret these serrations to be the result of oblique (NW-SE) spreading of North and South America during Middle and Late Jurassic time. The stratigraphies of northeastern Venezuela and Trinidad contrast in the Hauterivian-Albian interval, with dynamic shallow shelf environments prevailing in the Serrania del Interior and deeper marine submarine-fan deposition in Trinidad. Both areas develop middle to Upper Cretaceous source rocks during a time of eustatic sea level high and widespread oceanic anoxia. A slight lowering of eustati...

Late Cretaceous Source Rocks of a Section in the Eastern Venezuelan Basin

Micropaleontological and geochemical studies of Querecual and San Antonio formations were carried on a section (Cerro Negro) of the Serrania del Interior, in order to establish the imprint of the late Cretaceous [open quotes]Oceanic Anoxic Events[close quotes] (OAE), mentioned by numerous authors. For this purpose, the distribution patterns of microfossil assemblages, variations of organic matter content and, V/Ni ratios have been taken into account to recognize anoxic conditions. This stratigraphic section is characterized by the following: [open quotes]Anaerobic[close quotes] bottom conditions with oxigenated surface waters, indicated by the presence of a well-developed planktonic forms and virtually no benthic foraminifera. These conditions fluctuated along the section, prevailing at its base. Dysaerobic bottom conditions indicated by a low-diversity benthic foraminifera and, a well oxigenated surface waters suggested by high concentration of planktonic biota (foraminifer, radiolaria, and nannoplankton). An increase of organic matter content (TOC: 5-6%) and V/Ni ratios (3.7-4.2) are related to the [open quotes]anaerobic[close quotes] levels. Marine sediments of Brazilian continental margin display similar characteristics, which indicate that deposition of anoxic sediments was extended to the North of South America.

Eastern Venezuela Basin's Post-Jurassic Evolution as a Passive Transform Margin Basin

Passive transform margins are segments of rifted continental margins bounded by transform faults that are active during rifting and that become inactive during drifting. Examples include the northern coast of Brazil and its matching margin along the Liberia-Nigeria coast. We propose that the northern margin of the Eastern Venezuela Basin was dominantly a passive transform margin during the Cretaceous and early Paleogene, rather than a purely passive margin. Published microplate reconstructions of the southern Caribbean show Jurassic separation of the Bahamas platform from northern South America along a northwest-trending transform fault postulated to lie just northeast of Trinidad and the Guianas. We conjecture that the [open quotes]Deflexion de Barcelona[close quotes] (a northwest-trending zone of strike slip faults along the southwestern edge of the Serrania del Interior) is controlled by a basement geofracture that is the onshore expression of Jurassic transform fault southwest of and subparallel to the southwestern Bahamas transform. Implications of this conjecture for the Eastern Venezuela Basin include: (1) absence of McKenzie-type regional crustal stretching, Mesozoic thermal anomaly, and Mesozoic thermal-tectonic subsidence; (2) abrupt rather than gradual seaward changes in crustal thickness; (3)abrupt lateral changes in thickness and facies of Mesozoic sediments, as in the Piaui-Ceara basins ofmore » northern Brazil; (4) tendency for structural styles developed during Neogene compression to include more strike-slip faults and en enchelon fold sets (because of reactivation of Mesozoic transforms) than would be expected by structural inversion of a purely passive margin.« less

Cretaceous to Eocene Passive Margin Sedimentation in Northeastern Venezuela

Twenty two palinspastic paleogeographic maps are presented for the Cretaceous to Eocene strata of the Serrania del Interior of northeastern Venezuela. The mapped lithologies, environmental conditions, and evolving depositional systems record [approximately]90 m.y. of dominantly marine sedimentation on the only observable Mesozoic passive margin in the Western Hemisphere. The depositional systems of the passive margin are heterogeneous at lateral (i.e., along-margin) length scales greater than [approximately]40 km. The primary lateral heterogeneity is caused by a major Lower Cretaceous deltaic system that emanated southwest of the Serrania del Interior. All important intervals, such as the laterally variable Aptian-Albian El Cantil platform limestone and the hydrocarbon source rocks of the Upper Cretaceous Querecual and San Antonio formations, are related to probable causal mechanisms and environmental conditions. Stratigraphic events have been interpreted as of either local or regional extent; based on a combination of outcrop sedimentologic analyses and regional depositional systems interpretation. The 3-dimensional distribution of depositional systems and systems tracts reveals 4-6 regional sequence boundaries separated by 4-20 m.y. Subsidence analyses support the facies interpretation of a passive margin by showing continuous, thermally dominated subsidence during the Cretaceous to Eocene interval. Subsidence and accumulation rates increased and facies changed significantly in themore » Oligocene, indicating the end of passive margin sedimentation and the initiation of foredeep subsidence and accumulation associated with overthrusting the eastward-advancing Caribbean Plate.« less

Generation and Migration of Heavy Oils from Guarico and Southern Maturin Subbasins

Results from an organic geochemical study from the western half of the Eastern Venezuela Basin (west of the Urica Fault) indicate that Cretaceous intervals from the Querecual and Tigre formations are the major source rocks for the naphtenic type oils. The Tertiary La Pascua, Merecure, and Lower Oficina intervals generated the paraphinic crudes. The mixture of naphtenic-paraphinic oils is interpreted to occur during migration or within the reservoirs. The thermal-maturity modeling from 56 wells, applied to the south of the Serrania del Interior frontal thrusts suggests that the active kitchens shifted gradually from the northwest to the southeast throughout the last 20 ma. To the north-northwest, the Cretaceous source rocks reached peak maturation and crudes were expelled prior to 15 ma. The Paleogene rocks reached similar conditions around 9 ma, and the Miocene intervals around 7 ma. The crudes generated between 15 and 18 ma migrated to the Orinoco Belt along unconformities and synthetic normal faults. Between 8 and 3 ma, the crudes followed a similar pathway, partially modified by the development of compactions faults. This later mechanism developed a series of antithetic faults which prevent the lateral migration and facilitate the vertical segregation. Oil in the Great Oficina areamore » was trapped during this time. Oil from the Anaco Trend was also trapped during this time associated with the inversion of a pre-Cretaceous half-graben.« less

Late Cretaceous and Mid-Tertiary Palynological Assemblages from the El Furrial"Area Wells, Venezuela"

The Maturin subbasin, located within the Eastern Venezuelan basin and where the 'El Furrial' field was discovered, has been the subject of great exploration interest, since large amounts of oil were found in the last decade. This paper is part of a multidisciplinary effort to better understand the geology of the area. From the late part of the Paleogene onward, this subbasin developed as a foreland type basin, flanked to the north by a mountain belt: the Serrania del Interior. The stratigraphic nomenclature previously established in the Serrania del Interior was used in subsurface studies, but sometimes with unsuccessful results. An attempt is made in this paper to clarify in part the nomenclature since the biostratigraphic point of view sees the ages determined in subsurface not completely agreeing with those established for the surface formations. The palynological studies carried out on well samples from the 'El Furrial' field have shown the presence of a Late Cretaceous sequence with terrestrial pollen and spores assemblages, and marine microplankton, through which the sequence was dated as Early to Middle Maastrichtian. Toward the top, the sequence contains paleosols, and the palynomorphs are scarce and nondeterminant. The paleoenvironments vary from marine nearshore to subaereal inmore » the Cretaceous. Immediately after a glauconitic section was deposited the first Tertiary (Oligocene) palynomorphs and foraminifers appear, thus showing an important time gap not completely determined as yet. The paleoenvironments suggested for this Tertiary sequence are marine, probably of the shelf of the neritic zone.« less

Preliminary Assessment of a Cretaceous-Paleogene Atlantic Passive Margin, Serrania del Interior and Central Ranges, Venezuela/Trinidad

For several decades, Cretaceous arc collision was assumed along northern Venezuela based on isotopic ages of metamorphic minerals. From subsidence histories in Venezuelan/Trinidadian basins, however, it is now clear that the Cretaceous metamorphic rocks were emplaced southeastward as allochthons above an autochthonous suite of rocks in the Cenozoic, and that the pre-Cenozoic autochthonous rocks represent a Mesozoic passive margin. The passive margin rocks have been metamorphosed separately during overthrusting by the allochthons in central Venezuela, but they are uplifted but not significantly metamorphosed in Eastern Venezuela and Trinidad. There, in the Serrania del Interior and Central Ranges of Venezuela/Trinidad, Mesozoic-Paleogene passive margin sequences were uplifted in Neogene time, when the Caribbean Plate arrived from the west and transpressionally inverted the passive margin. Thus, this portion of South America's Atlantic margin subsided thermally without tectonism from Jurassic to Eocene time, and these sections comprise the only Mesozoic-Cenozoic truly passive Atlantic margin in the Western Hemisphere that is now exposed for direct study. Direct assessments of sedimentological, depositional and faunal features indicative of, and changes in, water depth for Cretaceous and Paleogene time may be made here relative to a thermally subsiding passive margin without the complications of tectonism. Work is underway,more » and preliminary assessments presented here suggest that sea level changes of Cretaceous-Paleogene time are not as pronounced as the frequent large and rapid sea level falls and rises that are promoted by some.« less

Geological Studies in Eastern Venezuela and Trinidad: From Cretaceous Passive Margin to Neogene Transpressional Thrust Belt

Sedimentological and structural analyses of Trinidad's Northern and Central ranges and Venezuela's Serrania del Interior have led to new interpretations of northeastern. South America's tectonic evolution within the Southern Caribbean Plate Boundary Zone. Medial ( ) Jurassic through early Cenozoic passive margin sediments make up the majority of these areas and were deposited somewhat to the WNW (between 80 and 130 km for Northern Range of Trinidad) of their present positions prior to structural shortening. Neogene southeastward displacement of Jurassic-Cretaceous passive slope and rise sediments (Northern Range) drove propagation of thrusts southward into the Serrania and Central ranges. Displacements were driven by migration of the Caribbean Plate relative to South America. Thus, the Serrania and Central ranges are the western hemisphere's only exposed Mesozoic-Cenozoic passive Atlantic margin stratigraphic section. As such, they provide a Cretaceous-Paleogene record of passive margin sedimentation at a thermally subsiding margin where the complicating effects of tectonism are absent. This makes these sections especially suited for studies of eustatic sea level behavior. Preliminary assessments are shown which suggest that sea level changes for Cretaceous to Paleogene time are not as pronounced as the frequent large and rapid sea level falls and rises that are promoted bymore » some.« less

Cenozoic Plate tectonic history of the northern Venezuela‐Trinidad Area

Geological and geophysical data, coupled with recent plate tectonic reconstructions, suggest that the Cenozoic geologic history of the northern Venezuela‐Trinidad area has been dominated by strike‐slip displacement of discrete crustal blocks. Allochthonous terranes within the area include metavolcanic rocks of the Cretaceous Villa de Cura Group and metamorphic rocks of the Precambrian to Cretaceous Cordillera de la Costa. A relatively competent crustal block (Margarita Block) is defined by an outline around the metamorphic basement of Margarita Island, the Araya/Paria peninsula, the Northern Range of Trinidad, and Tobago Island. Reconstruction of the Margarita Block to its original position requires at least partial closure of the Falcon Basin, closure of the Bonaire and Cariaco basins, and restoration of about 50 km of motion on both the Oca and Bocono faults. Post middle Eocene eastward translation of the Caribbean plate caused eastward motion of the Margarita Block. A minor change in relative plate motion during the late Oligocene or early Miocene produced a right step in the Moron fault, forming the Cariaco pull‐apart basin and El Pilar fault zone. Maximum offset on El Pilar fault is estimated to be no more than 125 km, though displacement along the entire fault zone may have been greater. Transpressional stresses between the Caribbean plate and northern South America caused folding of the Serrania del Interior of Venezuela and the Central Range of Trinidad. Eastward migration of transpressional stresses at the southeastern corner of the Caribbean‐South American plate boundary is being accommodated by formation of oblique thrusts, transpressive anticlines, and downwarping of the crust. Bouguer gravity data suggest that Jurassic‐aged Atlantic oceanic crust is being depressed as the Caribbean plate expands into the Demerara Plateau area. This study suggests that the faults and transtensional/transpressional/compressional structures identified in this study are the result of stresses produced during the large eastward translation of the Caribbean plate since the Paleocene, and are not the product of a shear couple.

Development of Caribbean Plate Tectonics: A Contribution from Oil Exploration in Venezuela: ABSTRACT

Following several huge oil and gas discoveries during the mid-1980s in the Northern Venezuela overthrust belt more detailed geological and geophysical studies have increased their perception of structural control on sedimentary basin development. Significant improvements in seismic data quality and seismic lines positioned close to outcrops of the frontal thrust give evidence of Miocene to Pleistocene thin-skinned tectonics as the mechanism of the formation of the overthrust belt of the Serrania del Interior. The authors conclude that the thrust sheet was formed by the effects of major right-lateral transcurrent movements along the El Pilar fault system, which forced metasediments against thick Miocene clastics in pull-apart basins. These basins were created earlier by strike-slip motions of preexisting parallel en-echelon normal faults. The eastwardly mobile Caribbean plate boundary and its evolution from a collision to a transpression zone is documented and a new approach to an evaluation of oil and gas potential is made of multiple reservoirs in stacked, folded thrust sheets.

Summary of Tectonic History of Venezuela: ABSTRACT

Summary of Tectonic History of Venezuela: ABSTRACT