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A.
A. GENERAL
G E N E R A L DATA
D A T A ON
O N THE
T H E SEGMENT
SEGMENT
1. THE
T H E SEGMENT
SEGMENT STUDIED
STUDIED
The
The Ecuadorian
Ecuadorian Andes
Andes comprise
comprise the
the southernmost segment of
southernmost segment of the
the
ECUADO RIAN
ECUADORIAN Northern
Northern Andes
Andes,
which border
Andes which
Colombia and
border the
and Venezuela.
the Guayana
Venezuela. They
Guayana Shield
They adjoin
the northernmost segment
Andes, the
adjoin and
segment of of the
through Ecuador,
Shield through Ecuador,
and impinge
impingeupon
the Southern
Southern Andes
upon the
the Peruvian
Peruvian
Andes bordering
bordering the
the
ANDES
ANDES Brazilian Shield. They
Brazilian Shield.
sion that extends
sion that
They are
are flanked
flanked to
into Colombia
extends into Colombia and
to the
the west
west byby a structural depres-
and to the east by the Oriente
depres-
Oriente Basin,
Basin,
a Sub-Andean
Sub-Andean depression extending from
depression extending from southern
southern Colombia
Colombia through
through
Ecuador
Ecuador into north-eastern
north-eastern Peru.
Peru.
COLIN
COLIN JOHN
JOHN CAMPBELL
CAMPBELL Segment: this
Segment: thisdescription
descriptionrelates
relatestotothe
the 750
750km km long
long section
sectionof
ofthe
theAndes
Andes
Hawksgrove,
Ha wksgrove, Hawkswood Lane.Gerrards
Hawkswood Lane, GerrardsCross,
Cross, Buckinghamshire
Buckinghamshire in Ecuador. TheThe orogen
orogen is from
from 130
130 to to 230
230km kmwide.
wide.Its
Itseastern
easternmargin
margin
is defined
defined byby thrusts
thrusts and
and abrupt flexures
flexures separating
separating the Andean
Andean foot-
foot-
hills from
from the
the Sub-Andean
Sub-Andean province
province to to the
the east.
east. The
The western
western margin
margin isis
CONTENTS
CONTENTS drawn along
along aa partly
partly faulted
faulted flexure
flexure where
where Mesozoic rocks dip
Mesozoic rocks dip beneath
beneath
the Tertiary
Tertiary and
and Quaternary
Quaternary strata
strata of
ofthe
theCoastal
Coastal Depression.
Depression. De-
De-
A. General data on
on the
the segment
segment 725 formation extends into the
extends into the structural
structural depressions bordering the
depressions bordering the Andes;
Andes;
in the east
east it
it is
is limited to mild foldings, whereas to
foldings, whereas to the
the west
west important
important
C. Data on
on individual
individual structural
structural zones
zones 731 faulting isis present.
present.
1. Western
Western Andes:
Andes: 73I
faulting
731
a. Cordillera
Cordillera Occidental
Occidental Zones: four
Zones: four principal
principal zones
zones are
are recognized
recognized as follows. Western Andes
follows. Western Andes
b. Amotape-Chanchán
Amotape-Chanch~in Belt
Belt (zone 1)—with Mesozoic eugeosynclinal
1)--with Mesozoic eugeosynclinalsediments
sedimentsandandlate
lateCretaceous-
Cretaceous-
2. Intermontane
Intermontane Depression:
Depression: Quito-
Quito- 731 Palaeocene syn-orogenicsediments,
Palaeocene syn-orogenic sediments,intruded
intrudedby by diorite
diorite and
and grano-
grano-
Cuenca Depression diorite intrusions.
intrusions. Intermontane Depression
Depression (zone 2)—containing
2)--containing non-non-
Cuenca Depression
3. Central
Central Andes:
Andes: Cordillera
Cordillera Real 732 marine Tertiary strata and with major Quaternary vulcanism. Central
vulcanism. Central
4. Eastern
Eastern Andes:
Andes: 732 Andes (zone
Andes (zone 3)--ranges
3)—ranges of ofmetamorphic
metamorphicrocks rockscapped
cappedby byQuaternary
Quaternary
a. Napo
Napo Uplift
Uplift volcanoes. Eastern Andes
volcanoes. Eastern Andes (zone
(zone 4)--the
4)—the frontal
frontal ranges
ranges of thethe Andes,
Andes,
a. with folded
folded and and thrust
thrust Mesozoic-Tertiary
Mesozoic-Tertiary sequences,
sequences, comprising
comprising thethe
b. Cutucü
Cutucfi Range
Range
c. Cordillera
Cordillera de Condor
C6ndor uplifted western
western flank of the Sub-Andean province.province.
D. References
References 732 History: the
History: the segment
segmenthas hasbeen
beenaffected
affectedbybyintermittent
intermittent orogenic
orogenic activity
activity
since the Pre-Cambrian.
since the Pre-Cambrian. Probably
Probably at no no time
time has
has itit been
been tectonically
tectonically
dormant,
dormant, but the
the main
main phases
phases of
of deformation occurred inin the
deformation occurred the mid-
mid-
Palaeozoic, the
Palaeozoic, the early
early Mesozoic,
Mesozoic, the
thepre-Albian
pre-Albian (or
(or U.
U. Aptian),
Aptian), the
the pre-
pre-
Campanian,
Campanian, the pre-Eocene and the
pre-Eocene and the pre-U.
pre-U. Miocene.
Miocene. Insufficient is
Insufficient is
known the Andes
known of the Andes of
of Ecuador
Ecuador to
to date all the
the movements
movements accurately.
2. SHAPE OF THE
SHAPE OF THE OROGEN
O R O G E N IN PLAN
PLAN
16The
16 The orogen
orogen continues into
continues into Colombia
Colombia to
to the
the north
north with
with little
littleinterrup-
interrup-
tion.
tion. The
The southern
southern boundary
boundary however
however borders the Huancabamba
borders the Huancabamba
Deflection in northern
Deflection in northern Peru,
Peru, which forms aa major
which forms major break
break between
between the
the
Northern Andes bordering
Northern Andes bordering the
the Guayana
Guayana Shield
Shield and
and the
the Southern
Southern
Andes bordering the Brazilian
Andes bordering Brazilian Shield,
Shield, which
which in many
many respects
respects consti-
consti-
tute totally
totally different
different orogenic
orogenic belts.
belts. The
The Huancabamba
Huancabamba Deflection
Deflection
itself correspondswith
itself corresponds withaa palaeogeographic
palaeogeographicgapgapinin the
the Andes,
Andes, the
the
Marañón
Marafidn Portal,
Portal, that
thatappears
appearstotobe
beaawesterly
westerly extension the Amazon
extension of the Amazon
Graben, which
which separates
separates the
the two
two shields.
shields.
Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Université Laval on June 28, 2015
726 ECUADORIAN
ECUADORIAN ANDES
ANDES
I I
STRUCTURAL ZONES
I
Ic
WESTERN ANOES
WESTERN ANDES
Cordillera Occidental O/L L 00 M
M B
B II AA
Amotapa. Chanchan Belt
INTERMONTANE D E P R E S S I O N /
Ou~to. Cuence Depress,on
CENTRAl ANDES
CENTRAL ANDES
Cotdilletl Real
EASTERN
EASTERN ANDES
ANDES
N•pO Upldt
Cutuc~ Range
R. ~¢
~x
+
¢
¢
÷
ECUADOR
ECUADOR x +
x
,#
#
x
% xxx
Guayaquil A==x
xx ~(
~rJr'tr
~r~'~
~ jrjr "1¢4"4"
4TJr'tr
%
"V" ACTIVE
ACTIVE VOLCANO
VOLCANO
J~ D O R M A N T VOLCANO
~ vv~
+vvvvvvvvv IGNEOUS
I G N E O U S INTRUSIONS
INTRUSIONS
vvvvvvvvv
~vvvvvvvv
~vvvvvvvv
/,,
v v v '.,
°fU;
vvv',
"vvvvvvvv~
~+÷vvvvvv~
~vvvvvv~
~Vvvx+~V~
/vvv~
~vv~
KILOMETERS
KILOMETERS
50
100
1O0 200
i J
PER U 0 50
MILES
100 SOUTH
S O U T H AMERICA
AMERICA
80" 78"
I I, l I
Figure
Figure 1.1. Structural
Structural zones in the Andes
zones in Andes of
of Ecuador.
Ecuador.
Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Université Laval on June 28, 2015
ECUADORIAN
ECUADORIAN ANDES
ANDES 727
727
2 J"fevadan orogeny.
Nevadan orogeny. ByBy analogy
analogy withColombia
with Colombiait itisispresumed
presumedthat
that the
the south-westwards
south-westwards through through thethe Western
Western Andes,
Andes, where
where itit m maya y be
be clearly
Ecuadorian Andes
Andes were affected by strong orogenic movements in
orogenic movements in observed
observed at at the
the surface.
surface. It It then
then almost
almost certainly
certainly continues
continues along along the
the
late Jurassic times, prior
Jurassic times, prior to
to the
the Tithonian
Tithonian stage. In the west
stage. In west they
they southern
southern shore
shore of the Gulf Gulf ofof Guayaquil,
Guayaquil, probably
probably being being responsible
responsible
are
are thought
thought to
to be
beresponsible
responsible for
for the
the onset
onsetofofeugeosynclinal
eugeosynclinal for the complex faulting in
complex faulting in the
the Gulf
Gulf ofof Guayaquil
Guayaquil and and on on the
the coast
coast ofof
deposition (Piñon Fm).
deposition (Pifion Fm). In
In zones
zones lb, 22 and 33 they may
m a y have led to
have led to north-west Peru. It continues
north-west Peru. continues offshore and apparently
offshore and apparently causes causesaa dextral
dextral
the metamorphism
metamorphism of of pre-existing
pre-existing rocks,
rocks, whose age has
whose age has not
not how-
how- offset at the
offset at the northern
northern end end ofof the
the Peruvian
Peruvian Trench.
Trench.
ever yet been
ever yet been determined;
determined; andand in
in zone
zone 4 and
and the
the Sub-Andean
Sub-Andean Although
Although the the fault
fault has
has not
not been
been mapped
mapped in in detail
detail and and is in manymany
province, uplift associated
province, uplift associatedwith
withthis
thisorogeny
orogenymmaya y bebe in
in part
part areas obscured
obscured below
below Quaternary
Quaternary sediments,
sediments, itit isisinterpreted
interpretedasasaamajor major
responsible for the
responsible for the hiatus
hiatus between
between the
theJurassic
JurassicChapiza
ChapizaFm Fm and
and dextral transcurrent fracture
fracture system
system forming part of a great shear zone
forming part zone
the Cretaceous.
Cretaceous. bordering
bordering the the South
South American
American continent.
continent. Furthermore,
Furthermore, as shown shown on on
11 Hercynian
Hercynian orogeny.
orogeny.Again onon
Again regional
regionalgrounds,
grounds,it itisispresumed
presumedthat
that the crustal
crustal model
model in in Fig.
Fig. 2, it is believed
believed to to mark
mark the the western
western limit
limit ofof
the Ecuadorian
Ecuadorian Andes
Andes were
were affected by important
affected by important movements
movements in in Pre-Cambrian
Pre-Cambrian continental
continental crust.
crust.
early Triassic
Triassic times. Such movements
times. Such movements mmay have caused
a y have caused the
the meta-
meta- The second
second tectonic line--the
line—the Cotopaxi-Bafios
Cotopaxi-BaflosFFault—may
a u l t - - m a y bebetraced
traced
morphism of pre-existing
morphism of pre-existingrocks
rocksininzones
zonesl b,
1 b,2 2and
and33 and
and the
the from the Pichincha
from the Pichincha volcano
volcano near near Quito,
Quito, through
through the the Cotopaxi
Cotopaxi volcano,
volcano,
emplacement
emplacement of of alkali
alkali granites
granites on
on the
the eastern
eastern margin
margin ofof zone
zone 3, to the intersection
intersection of of the
the Rio
RIo Santiago
Santiagoand and the
the Peruvian
Peruvian frontier.
frontier.TheThe
but the
the rocks concerned have
rocks concerned have not
not been
been dated.
dated. In
In zone
zone 44 an
an uncon-
uncon- Andes
Andes areare deflected
deflectedon on this
this line,
line, and
and aa number
number of offsetsoffsets and and abrupt
abrupt
formity below the
formity below the Liassic
Liassic Santiago
SantiagoFm Fmmmay
a y bebe related
related toto this
this structural changes
changes m may
a y be observed, including: the
observed, including: the offset
offset of ofthe
the thrust
thrust
phase of mobility.
phase of mobility. belt bordering
bordering zonezone 3; the the offset
offset ofof the
the Dolores-Guayaquil
Dolores-GuayaquilFault; Fault; and
and
87—9
8~-9 ToTo definethetheinitiation
define initiationofofmobility
mobilityassociated
associatedwith
withthe
the Mesozoic-
Mesozoic- the southern
southern termination
termination of of zone
zone 4b,4b, which
which isis offset from the
offset from the Cerros
Cerros dede
Tertiary
Tertiary orogeny
orogeny would
would be be misleading as it would
would give undue emphasis
give undue emphasis
Campanguiz,
Campanguiz, its extensioninin Peru.
its extension Peru. Although
Althoughitit has has notnot been
been mapped
mapped
to
to an arbitrary
arbitrary limit
limit in
in aa region
region that
that has
has been
been subjected
subjected to
to almost
almost on the ground itit is is suggested
suggested thatthat this
this line
line mmay correspond with
a y correspond with aa major
major
continuous mobility throughout
continuous mobility throughout Phanerozoic
Phanerozoic time.
sinistral transcurrent fault.
sinistral transcurrent fault. The
The alignment
alignment of volcanic
volcanic centrescentres toto the
the
south further suggests
suggests thatthat it is made
made up of a series
series ofoffaults
faultsrather
rather than
than
78 In zones
~8 In zones lb,
lb, 2,
2, 33 and
and 4 'basement' consists of Pre-Cambrian
consists of Pre-Cambrian igneous
igneous a single
single fracture. It may
fracture. It m a y be
be significant that this
significant that this postulated fault is
postulated fault is
and
and metamorphic rocksforming
metamorphic rocks formingpart
part ofof the
the continental crust of
continental crust of approximately parallel with
approximately parallel with the
the Santa
Santa Marta
M a r t a Fault
Fault ofof Colombia,
Colombia, also
also
northern South
South America.
America. In zone
zone 1l aa and
and the
the region to the
region to the west
west of
of the
the considered
considered to to be
be aa sinistral transcurrent fault.
sinistral transcurrent fault.
Andes
Andes 'basement'
'basement' is
is thought
thought to
to consist
consist of
of early
early Mesozoic
Mesozoic oceanic
oceanic Both
Both the the Dolores-Guayaquil
Dolores-Guayaquil and and the
the Cotopaxi-Baños
Cotopaxi-Bafios Faults Faults are
are
deposits that are in the
deposits that the process
process of being
being welded
welded to
to the
the continent.
continent. almost
almost certainly stillstill active, being responsible
active, being responsible for for current
current seismic
seismicandand
volcanic activity. If
volcanic activity. If the Dolores-Guayaquil
Dolores-Guayaquil Fault Fault coincides
coincideswith
with the
the
9. REVIEW
R E V I E W OF
OF OROGENIC
O R O G E N I C DEVELOPMENT
DEVELOPMENT edge
edge of of Pre-Cambrian
Pre-Cambrian continental
continental crust,
crust, it isis reasonable
reasonable to to suppose
suppose
133
133
that itit has
has been
been active
active throughout
throughout Phanerozoic
Phanerozoic time. time. Although
Although both
both
TRAN5cURRENT
TRANSCURRENT FAULTING
FAULTING IN
INECUADOR
ECUADOR
faults
faults have
have probably
probably had
had aa long
long history
history of
of movement,
movement, the the Cotopaxi-
Cotopaxi-
The
The role of transcurrent
transcurrent faulting in the tectonics
faulting in of the
tectonics of the Andean
Andean region
region Bafios Fault
Baflos appears to displace
Fault appears displace the Dolores-Guayaquil Fault, suggest- suggest-
is discussed
discussedininthe
theprevious
previousarticle
articleon
on Colombia.
Colombia.Although
Although the
the evidence
evidence ing that
that its
its main
main phase
phase ofof movement
movement m may have occurred
a y have occurred during
during the
the
in Ecuador is even more limited
even more limited and
and open
open to differing interpretations,
differing interpretations, Andean orogeny,
orogeny, whereas the main phase of movement movement on on the
the Dolores-
Dolores-
transcurrent
transcurrent faulting
faulting is believed
believed toto have
have also
also played
played aa significant
significant part
part Guayaquil Fault may
Guayaquil Fault m a y have
have occurred
occurred during
during Laramide
Laramide or
or earlier
earlier
in
in the
the structural
structural evolution
evolution of the
the Andes
Andes inin this
this segment.
segment. TwoTwo major
major orogenies.
orogenies.
transcurrent
transcurrent fault
fault systems are tentatively
systems are tentatively recognized:
recognized: the Dolores-
Dolores- It isis very
very difficult
difficult to estimate
estimate the amount
amount of of displacement
displacement on these
these
Guayaquil Fault
Fault system
system and the the Cotopaxi-Baños Fault.
Cotopaxi-Bafios Fault. little known
known faults.
faults. The
The Cotopaxi-Baflos Fault appears
Cotopaxi-Bafios Fault appears to
to offset the
offset the
In the
the northern
northern part
part of
of the
the Cauca
Cauca Basin
Basin of
of Colombia
Colombia aa major
major fault
fault thrust belt on the eastern margin of zone zone 33 by
by about
about 50
50 km.
km. If
If the
the Gulf
Gulf
known
known as as the
the Dolores
Dolores (or
(or Romeral)
Romeral) Fault
Fault forms
forms the
the eastern
eastern margin
margin ofof of Guayaquil
Guayaquil shouldshould reflect
reflect the
the Guayaquil
Guayaquil Fault,
Fault, displacement
displacement ofof the
the
the basin.
basin. Towards
Towards the south
south parallel faults within
parallel faults within the
the basin
basin gradually
gradually coast
coast line,line, which
which itself
itself is
is presumably
presumably geologically controlled, would
geologically controlled, would
take
take up
up the
the displacement
displacement so so that
that by
by the
the time
time Ecuador
Ecuador isis reached
reached the
the point to to aa dextral
dextral movement
movement of of about 300
300 km.
km.
dominant fracture
fracture has
has shifted
shifted toto the
the western
western margin of the basin, which
which Volcanic activity.
Volcanic activity. TheEcuadorian
The EcuadorianAndesAndesare arecapped
capped byby a succession
succession
is
is here
here designated
designated asas zone
zone 2. ThisThis system
system ofof faults
faults almost
almost certainly
certainly of volcanic
volcanic peaks
peaks rising
rising above
above thethe snow
snow line
line to
to altitudes in excess
altitudes in of
excess of
continues southwardstoto the
continues southwards the latitude
latitude ofof Guayaquil.
Guayaquil. TheThe course of the
course of the 5000
5000 m.m. They
They are presently
presently in aa state
state of
of quiescence
quiescence although
although many
many
faults is indicated
faults is indicated byby linear
linear belts
belts of
of volcanic
volcanic centres,
centres, although
although the
the violent eruptions
eruptions have occurred
occurred in in historic
historic times, some within
times, some within the
the last
last
surface traces themselves
surface traces themselvesareare largely
largely obscured
obscured below
belowaa cover
cover of
of lava
lava hundred years.
years. In
In addition
addition to
to these
these volcanoes, whose craters
volcanoes, whose craters and
and cones
cones
and
and ash.
ash. At
At the
the latitude
latitude of
of Guayaquil
Guayaquil thethe principal
principal fracture
fracture swings
swings remain
remain intact, areare other
other more
more deeply
deeply eroded
eroded volcanic
volcanic centres
centres repre-
repre-
Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Université Laval on June 28, 2015
ECUADORIAN
E C U A D O R I A N ANDES
ANDES 729
MIOCENE M
L
24 zL I . ...e... 0. . Cfla
OLIGOCENE
EOCENE
U
M
L
38
olistostrome
BBIpan.
;-: ?
Lv v v v v vJ
54 Gallo Norm [v_vv_v_v_vJ EUGEOSYN CLINAL. ROCKS
[v V V V V V(
Guayaquu =h7
PAL EOCENE I
65
Maestrichtian INTERBEDDED SANDSTONE & SHALE:
Campanian - SYNOROGENIC SEDIMENTS
0'U Santonian
76
-
C)
v_y_v_v_v_v \ v_v_v_v_v_v_v_v_v_v.y_v_v_v_v_v_v_vL_.
— I- V_V_V.Y_V.Y_V_ 'V_V_V_VV_V-Poyango -..... LOW
w UAptian 109 V_vjI_V_v_V_V_v_V v_vy_v v_v_v_v_v_v v_v v_v_vj,_v_v.y_v_v - HoIjun
. - GRADE
V VV V V V_VY_V '/_LV_V_V_V — - — xx x METAMORPHIC ROCKS
L.Aptian my.
N 0 I fl
0 —
Berriasian ',',',',',',"',',',',',_v_V_v_V_V', v_v_v_v v_v —
136 d_V_V_V_y_V. Y V_V_4/_V_V 'I_V
Tithonian —- V LIMESTONE. SHALE
c, 2 U SANDSTONE & CONGLOMERATE
Cl) 157
'U U)
< M u mmt
172 A A.XAA•X.A'
L X X X X X IGNEOUS INTRUSIONS
—,
IC'.- xxxx
xxx xx
XXX XXX XXX
TR IASSIC X7X 57X X?X
SK 0t XX CHEATS & SILICEOUS
PER MIAN - ARGILLITE
cARBONIFER0Ur
ORDOVICIAN
4: ffiiFf2
Pumbo,
——
ROCKS OF GUAVANA SHIELD
O
i40 CAMBRIAN
5101
c((((, ________ SEDIMENTS
PR ECA M BR (AN -+
+ ++++++++++++++++++ +
++++++++++ +
Figure 2.
Figure 2. Diagram
Diagram of the
the stratigraphical
stratigraphical sequences in the
the separate
separate regions
regions of Ecuador.
Ecuador.
Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Université Laval on June 28, 2015
730 ECUADORIAN
ECUADORIAN ANDES
ANDES
ECUADORIAN
ECUADORIAN ANDES
ANDES 731
731
generally coarse-grained
generally coarse-grained continental
continental sediments,
sediments,that are, however,
that are, however, tion
tion of the
the zone and are thought
zone and thought to to be
be ofof Eocene
Eocene age.
age. The The southerly
southerly
mainly
mainly obscured
obscured below
below aa cover
cover of
of Pliocene
Pliocene to Quaternary
Quaternary volcanic
volcanic attenuation
attenuation of thethe zone
zone is in part
is in part due
due toto recent
recent subsidence,
subsidence, for for Creta-
Creta-
rocks.
rocks. In zone
zone 4 and the
the adjacent
adjacent Sub-Andean
Sub-Andean province
province fiuviatile and
fluviatile and ceous rocks identical
ceous rocks identical toto those
thoseinin the
the mountains
mountains lie lie atat shallow
shallowdepth
depthinin
lacustrine
lacustrine clays, silts and
clays, silts and minor
minor sands
sands were
were deposited.
deposited. Conglomerates
Conglomerates the eastern part of of the
the Coastal
Coastal Depression.
Depression.
with some
some tuffaceous intercalations are
tuffaceous intercalations are however
howeverfound
foundatat thethe base
base ofof Zone lb, Amotape-Chanchdn Belt.
ib, Amotape-Chanchdn Belt. Thisisisa asomewhat
This somewhatill-defined
ill-defined struc-
struc-
the sequence
sequence inin zone
zone 44 adjacent
adjacent to
to the source areas.
source areas. tural unit
unit which
which extends
extends forfor aa distance
distance of of 250
250 km
km fromfrom thethe Dolores-
Dolores-
(vii)
(vii) Pliocene—quaternary.
Pliocene--Quaternary. TheThe Andean
Andean orogeny
orogeny at atthe
theend
endofof the
the Guayaquil Fault to
Guayaquil Fault to the Peruvian
Peruvian frontier
frontier andand ranges
ranges in in width
width from
from
Miocene period gave
Miocene period gave the
the country
country its
its present
present structure
structure andand caused
caused the
the about 40
40 km
km in thethe north
north to to 150
150 km in the the south.
south. The oldest rocks in
oldest rocks in
uplift of the Andean
Andean ranges. The orogeny
ranges. The orogeny alsoalsoled
led toto the
the outbreak
outbreak of of the zone
zone are gneisses and schists,
gneisses and schists,probably
probablyof ofPre-Cambrian
Pre-Cambrian age. age. TThey
hey
volcanic
volcanic activity which
which hashas persisted
persisted to
to the
the present
present day:
day: the volcanoes
volcanoes are overlain
overlain by low-grade metamorphic rocks
low-grade metamorphic rocksthatthat are
are correlated
correlated with
with
are located
located on major faults
on major faults that
that cut and border
border zone
zone 2. Zone
Zone 4 which
which the Amotape
Amotape Fm Fm of ofPeru
Peruwhich
whichhas hasyielded
yieldedCarboniferous
Carboniferous fossils.
fossils.
had
had hitherto
hitherto been
been part
part of
ofthe
theSub-Andean
Sub-Andean sedimentary
sedimentary basin
basin was
was Above
Above follows
follows aa thick
thick sequence
sequence of eugeosynclinal Mesozoic rocks
eugeosynclinal Mesozoic rocks with
with
uplifted to form
form thethe Andean
Andean foothills.
foothills. some
some intercalations
intercalations of shelf limestones and
shelf limestones and sandstones, the Puyango
sandstones, the Puyango
Erosion
Erosion ofof the
the uplifted
uplifted mountain
mountain chains led to
chains led to the
the deposition
deposition of
ofwide-
wide- Fm,
Fm, belonging
belonging to the
the miogeosynclinal province toto the
miogeosynclinal province the east.
east. Capping
Capping
spread tuffaceous
tuffaceous terraces
terraces on both
both sides
sides of the Andes.
Andes. these
these various
various rock
rock sequences are littoral
sequences are littoral deposits and extensive
deposits and pyro-
extensive pyro-
clastic sheets. The
clastic sheets. The latter
latter are mainly
mainly of of Recent
Recent age,
age, although
although Eocene
Eocene
components may
components m a y also
also be
be locally
locally preserved.
preserved.
C. DATA
D A T A ON
O N INDIVIDUAL
I N D I V I D U A L STRUCTURAL
STRUCTURAL The zone
zone includes
includes aa large
large number
number of intrusions
intrusions ofofdioritic
dioriticand
and gran-
gran-
ZONES
ZONES itic composition that, unlike
composition that, unlike those
those of zone
zone 1l a,a, appear
appear toto follow
follow no
particular structural trend.
particular structural trend. The
The intrusions are probably
intrusions are probably mainly
mainly ofof
The Andes
The within the
Andes within the segment
segment under
under consideration
consideration may
m a y be classified
classified Eocene age,
Eocene age, although
although some
some were
were emplaced
emplaced during
during Subhercynian
Subhercynian
as follows
as follows (see
(see Fig.
Fig. 1):
1): orogenic movements inin the
orogenic movements the late
late Cretaceous.
Cretaceous. (A(A radiometric
radiometric age
age deter-
deter-
mination
mination of 111 +30 m.y.
111 4-30 m.y. has
has been
been made
made on samples from aa grano-
samples from grano-
WESTERN ANDES
WESTERN ANDES diorite 25 km
diorite 2"5 km north
north of
of Macará.)
Macar~.)
Zone
Zone la Cordillera
Cordillera Occidental
Occidental The
The zone
zone is cut
cut by SW-trending faults that
SW-trending faults that probably
probably belong
belong to
to the
the
Zone
Zone lb Amotape-Chanchán
Amotape-Chanch~n Belt
Belt Guayaquil
Guayaquil Fault
Fault system.
system. InIn the south
south of
of the
the zone,
zone, however,
however, another
another
INTERMONTANE DEPRESSION
INTERMONTANE DEPRESSION system of
system of faulting
faulting with
with aa strong
strong easterly
easterly component
component isis recognized
recognizedandand
Zone
Zone 22 Quito-Cuenca
Quito-Cuenca Depression
Depression is thought
thought to bebe related
related to
to the
the MaraIión
Marafidn Portal,
Portal, described
described previously.
previously.
CENTRAL ANDES
CENTRAL ANDES
Zone
Zone 33 Cordillera
Cordillera Real
Real
ZONE
Z O N E 2.
2. INTERMONTANE
I N T E R M O N T A N E DEPRESSION
DEPRESSION
EASTERN ANDES
EASTERN ANDES
Zone 4a Napo
Zone 4a Napo Uplift
Uplift This is the Quito-Cuenca Depression—a direct extension
Depression--a direct extension of
of the
the Cauca
Cauca
Zone 4b Cutucü
Zone 4b Cutucfl Range
Range Basin of Colombia.
Basin of Colombia. ItIt extends
extends 450
450 km
km from
from the
the Colombian
Colombian frontier
frontier to
to
Zone 4c Cordillera
Zone 4c Cordillera de
de Condor
C6ndor a point
point near
near Cuenca,
Cuenca, has
has an
an average
average width
width of
of approximately
approximately 50 50 km
km
and
and is
is filled with a sequence
filled with sequence ofof nonmarine
nonmarineTertiary
Tertiary strata
strata that
that are,
are,
ZONE
Z O N E 1.
1. WESTERN
W E S T E R N ANDES
ANDES
however, in many
however, in m a n y areas
areas obscured below aa cover
obscured below cover of
of Quaternary
Quaternary
volcanic
volcanic rocks. The zone
rocks. The zone is strongly faulted by
strongly faulted by the two
two major systems
systems
The Western
Western Andes
Andes are divided
divided into
into two
two discrete zones—the Cordillera
zones--the Cordillera discussed previously, which
discussed previously, which have
have formed
formed lines
lines of weakness
weakness controlling
controlling
Occidental
Occidental and
and the
the Amotape-Chanchán
Amotape-Chanch~n Belt—by
Belt--by the
the Guayaquil-
Guayaquil- the
the location
location of volcanic activity.
of volcanic activity. In
In detail,
detail, a number
number of ofcross-highs
cross-highs
Dolores Fault.
Dolores Fault. divide
divide the zone
zone into
into sub-basins
sub-basins with topographic
topographic expression.
expression.
Zone la,
la, CordilleraOccidental.
Occidental. Thisis is
This ananarcuate
arcuatebelt
belt400
400km
kmlonglongand
and A series of striking
series of striking volcanic
volcanic cones
cones(Cotopaxi,
(Cotopaxi,5287 5287m; m;Tungurahua,
Tungurahua,
between
between 20 and 80
20 and km wide
80 km wide and
and isis aa direct
direct continuation
continuation of of the
the Cordil-
Cordil- 5016 m; Pichincha 4794 4794 m) as well as more
well as more deeply
deeply eroded
eroded older
older centres,
centres,
lera Occidental
Occidental of Colombia. The east
Colombia. The east margin
margin of the zonezone coincides
coincides including
including Chimborazo
Chimborazo (6269 (6269 m),
m), the
the highest
highest peak
peak inin the
the Ecuadorian
Ecuadorian
with the Guayaquil-Dolores
Guayaquil-Dolores FaultFault and
and the westwest margin,
margin, which
which isispartly
partly Andes,
Andes, dominate the the landscape
landscape ofof zone
zone 2.2. Between
Between these
these eminences lie
eminences lie
obscured
obscured byby terrace material, is
terrace material, is probably
probably cut cut by
by thrusts.
thrusts. The
The zone
zone is depressions filled with
depressions filled with ash
ash deposits,
deposits, pumice
pumice beds,
beds, and
and Plio-Pleistocene
Plio-Pleistocene
built mainly
mainly of of strongly
strongly deformed
deformed eugeosynclinal
eugeosynclinal Mesozoic submarine
Mesozoic submarine gravels and lacustrine
gravels and lacustrine strata.
strata. Furthermore, the the remains
remains of four different
of four different
lavas
lavas and
and oceanic
oceanic sediments, overlaininin the
sediments, overlain the east
east by
by late
late Cretaceous
Cretaceous phases
phases of Pleistocene
Pleistoceneglaciation
glaciationcan
can bebe found.
found. During
During these
these the
the perma-
perma-
and Palaeocene
Palaeocene syn-orogenic sediments.ItIt isis invaded
syn-orogenic sediments. invaded byby aa sequence
sequence of of nent
nent snow
snow level
level lay
lay approximately
approximately 1500 m lower
1500 m lower than
than its
its present
present
diorite and granodiorite
granodiorite intrusions,
intrusions, which follow the arcuate
follow the arcuate configura-
configura- position of between
between 4600 and 4800
4600 and 4800 m above
above sea
sea level.
level.
Downloaded from http://sp.lyellcollection.org/ at Université Laval on June 28, 2015
732
732 ECUADORIAN
E C U A D O R I A N ANDES
ANDES
ZONE
Z O N E 3.3. CENTRAL
C E N T R A L ANDES
ANDES Cutting obliquely across the
obliquely across the Napo
Napo Uplift
Uplift and
and the
the thrust
thrust zone
zone isis aa line
line
The
The Cordillera
Cordillera Real
Real is a direct
direct extension
extension ofof the
the Cordillera
Cordillera Central
Central of
of of
of three
three volcanic centres: Sumaco
volcanic centres: Sumaco (3900
(3900m), in), Pan
Pan de
de Azficar
Azücar andand
Colombia
Colombia and
and extends through Ecuador
extends through Ecuador for a distance
distance of 650
650 km
km into
into Reventador
Reventador (3458 m), the
(3458 m), the latter
latter being still active.
being still active. The
The alignment
alignment ofof
northern
northern Peru.
Peru. It
It has
has aa relatively
relatively uniform
uniform width
width of about 45
of about 45 km
km and
and these
these volcanoes suggeststhat
volcanoes suggests thatthey
they mmay overlie aa basement
a y overlie basement fault,
fault,
is built of high-grade
similar
similar to the
the Cotopaxi-Baños
Cotopaxi-Bafios Fault, discussed
discussed previously.
previously.
is built of high-grade metamorphic
metamorphic rocks
rocks capped
capped locally
locallyby
byQQuaternary
uaternary
Zones lb and It:
Zones 4b 4c:Cutucü
Cutuc~tRange
Range and
and Cordillera de Cdndor.
Cordillera de Condor.TheTheCutucfi
Cutucü
volcanoes, including
volcanoes, including Sangay
Sangay (5290
(5290m)m)and
and Altar
Altar (5319
(5319m).
m). The
The meta-
meta- Range
Range is a complex structural uplift
complex structural uplift marking
marking thethe northern
northern termination
termination
morphic
morphic complexes havenot
complexes have not been
been investigated
investigatedinin detail,
detail, but
but may
may
of the
the virtually
virtually unexplored
unexplored Cordillera del COndor
Cordillera del C6ndor thatthat runs
runs into
into Peru.
Peru.
include
include rocks of widely
rocks of widely different
different ages,
ages,the
the oldest
oldestof
ofwhich
whichare
areprobably
probably
Pre-Cambrian. The southern
Pre-Cambrian. The southern extremity
extremityofofthe
the zone
zone isis invaded
invaded by
by L. Palaeozoic phyllites (Pumbuiza
Palaeozoic phyllites (PumbuizaFro)
Fm) inin the
the core of the
core of the uplift
uplift are
are
intrusions similar to
intrusions similar to those
those found
foundininzone
zone 1lb. An important
b. An important belt of high-
high- overlain
overlain byby Carboniferous limestones((Macuma
Carboniferous limestones Fm) inin turn
M a c u m a Fm) turn succeeded
succeeded
angled
angled thrusting
thrusting marks the eastern
marks the eastern margin
margin of ofthe
thezone.
zone.InIn the
the north
north itit by aa full
full Mesozoic
Mesozoic and
and Tertiary
Tertiary succession.
succession.
attains aa width
width of
of as
as much
much asas 20
20 km which
which is described
described under
under zone 4a.
zone 4a.
On
O n the
the east
east of
of the
the uplift,
uplift, the
the very
very large
large Macuma
M a c u m a and
and Cangaime
Cangaime
The zone
zone is
is also
also cut and apparently
apparently deflected
deflected by the
the Cotopaxi-Baflos
Cotopaxi-Bafios
Anticlines are flanked
Anticlines are flanked byby a zone
zone ofof reverse
reverse faulting
faulting separating
separating thethe
Fault, described
described previously.
previously.
uplift
uplift from the Sub-Andean
from the Sub-Andean basin basin to
to the
the east.
east. In
In the
the west
west isis the
the more
more
Fault, strongly deformedand
strongly deformed andfaulted
faultedcore
coreofofthethe uplift,
uplift, which
whichisisinin turn
turn
bordered
bordered by thethe postulated
postulated Cotopaxi-Baflos
Cotopaxi-Bafios Fault.Fault. Still
Still farther
farther west
west
ZONE
Z O N E 4. EASTERN
E A S T E R N ANDES
ANDES lies
lies a broad
broad zone
zone ofof Mesozoic
Mesozoic rocks
rocks whose structure isis virtually
whose structure virtually un-
un-
From
From a historical
historical and
and stratigraphic
stratigraphic standpoint
standpoint the
the Andean
Andean foothills
foothills
known. At the
known. At southern end
the southern end ofof this
this tract,
tract, to
to the
the east of Loja,
east of Loja, isisanother
another
form
form the
the west
west flank of the
flank of the Oriente
Oriente Basin,
Basin, aa part of
of the
the Sub-Andean
Sub-Andean large
large granite body intruded
granite body intruded intointo the
the thrust
thrust belt
belt bordering
bordering zone
zone3.3.InIn
province that was uplifted
uplifted during all probability
probability it
it belongs
belongs toto the
the same
same phase
phase of
of igneous activity as
igneous activity as the
the
province that was during the end-Tertiary Andean
the end-Tertiary Andean orogeny.
orogeny.
granite
granite in the
the thrust
thrust belt
belt west
west of thethe Napo
Napo Uplift.
Uplift.
From
From a structural
structural point of view
view on
on the
the other
otherhand,
hand, they
they are
are the
the frontal
frontal
ranges
ranges of the
the Andes.
Andes. TThey
h e y exhibit
exhibit certain
certain similarities with the
similarities with the Cordil-
Cordil-
lera Oriental
Oriental of
of Colombia
Colombia andand in
in aa regional
regional sense
sense may
m a y be
be classified as
classified as
belonging
belonging toto the
the Eastern
Eastern Andes.
Andes. T They fall into
h e y fall into three
three sub-zones: the
sub-zones: the
Napo
Napo Uplift in the
Uplift in north and
the north and the
the Cutucü
Cutucfi Range
Range andand the
the Cordillera de
Cordillera de D.
D. REFERENCES
REFERENCES
Condor in the
Cdndor in the south,
south, which are separated
which are fromeach
separated from eachother
otherby
by aa
structural depression, knownasasthe
depression, known thePuyo
PuyoRe-entrant.
Re-entrant.The
Thestratigraphy
stratigraphy CAMPBELL,C.
CAMPBELL, J.
C.J. 1970.
1970. Guide
Guide to to the
the Puerto
Puerto Napo
Napo area,
area,Eastern
EasternEcuador
Ecuadorwithwithnotes
notes
of this
this zone has been
zone has been described
described in in detail
detail by
by Tschopp
Tschopp (1953).
(1953). regional geology
on the regional geology of thethe Oriente Basin. Quito (Ecuadorian
(Ecuadorian Geol.
Geol. Geophys.
Geophys.
Zone 4a: J'tfapo
Zone 4a: Upljfl.This
Napo Uplift. Thisisisa abroad
broad domal
domal feature,
feature, 170 km long
170 km long Soc.), 40 pp.
and
and 3535 km
km wide,
wide, which,
which, for
for convenience
convenience of of description here, will
description here, will be
be GUBLER, Y.Y.H& ORTYNSKI,
GUBLER, ORTYN5KI, I. I.1966.
1966.Informe
Informegeol6gico
geológicopreliminar
preliminar sobre las posibili-
posibili-
dades
dades petrolIferas
petroliferas de de las
las cuencas sedimentariasdel
cuencas sedimentarias del Ecuador.
Ecuador. Quito
Quito (Mlii.
(Min.
taken
taken toto include
include a 2020 km
km wide
wide thrust
thrust belt
belt separating
separating the uplift
uplift from
from Comercio), 94 pp.
Industrias y Comercio),
zone
zone 3. Jurassic
Jurassic rocks
rocks (Chapiza
(Chapiza Fm) Fm) areare exposed
exposed in deep
deep gorges
gorges cut
cut HAM, C. C. K. & HERREEA,
HERRERA,L.J. L. J. 1963.
1963.Role
Role ofof Sub-Andean
Sub-Andean Fault Systemin
Fault System in Tectonics
Tectonics
through
through thethe axial part of
axial part of the
the uplift
uplift and
and are overlain by a Cretaceous
overlain by Cretaceous of Eastern Peru and Ecuador.
Eastern Peru Ecuador. In: Childs,
Childs,0. O.E.E.&&Beebe,
Beebe,B.B.W. W.(Eds.),
(Eds.),Back-
Back-
succession, made up of sandstones
succession, made sandstones of of the
theHollln
HollIn FFm below and
m below and shales
shales and
and bone ofof the Americas.Mem.
theAmericas. Mem. Am. Ass. Petrol.
Am. Ass. Petrol.Geol.
Geol.2,2,47—61.
47-61.
LEwis, G.
LEwIs, G. E.,
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& MARKs, 1956.Ecuador.
Ecuador.In: In: Jenks, W. F. (Ed.),
(Ed.),
limestones of the
limestones of theNapo
NapoFFm above.Lower
m above. LowerTertiary
Tertiarystrata
strata outcrop
outcrop on on the
the Handbook of South American Geology.Mem.
AmericanGeology. Mem. geol. Soc.Am.
geol. Soc. Am.65, 65,251—88.
251-88.
margins of the uplift.
margins uplift. MApA GEOL6GICO
MAPA GEoLóGsco DE DE LA REPt~BLICA
REPISBLIcAEEL DEL ECUADOR
EcUADOR (Scale
(Scale1:1:1,000,000).
1,000,000). 1969. Quito,
1969. Quito,
The eastern
eastern flank
flank of the uplift
uplift is cut by by aa zone
zone ofof reverse
reverse faulting,
faulting, Servicio Nacional de Geologia y Minerla.
Servicio Mineria.
extending
extending outwards into the basin
outwards into basin for as much
for as much as as 40
40 km.
km. The
The faults
faults dip
dip MAPA SisMIco SIsMICOY TECT6mCO DEL
y TEcTóNIco DEL ECUADOR
EcUADOR(Scale (Scale1:1:1,000,000).
1,000,000). 1959.
1959. Comitfi del
Comité del
towards the mountains
towards the mountains and and in many
m a n y cases border broad
cases border broad asymmetrical
asymmetrical Afio Geofisico Internacional
Ano Internacional del Ecuador (with (withaccompanying
accompanying memoir).
memoir).
MARcHANT,
MARCHANT, S. 5.1961. 1961.AAphotogeological
pbotogeologicalanalysisanalysisofofthethe structure
structure of the
the Western
Western
anticlines. Transverse faults
anticlines. Transverse faults atat the
the northern
northern endend ofof the
the uplift
uplift are
are inter-
inter- GuayasProvince,
Guayas Province,Ecuador.
Ecuador. Q. Q.
31 J1 geol.
geol. Soc.
Soc. 115,
Lond.115,
Lond. 317-38.
3 17—38.
preted
preted as dextral tear faults.
faults. The NapoNapo Uplift
Uplift is
is separated
separated from
from zone
zone 3 SAUER, W.
SAUER, W.1957.
1957.E1 ElMapa
Mapa Geol6gico
Geológico del del Ecuador (accompanying memoir).
Ecuador (accompanying memoir). Quito.
Quito.
by
by an
an important
important thrust
thrust zone
zone in
in which
which are
are exposed
exposed slivers
slivers of
of many
many 74 pp.
different
different rock
rock types, including low-grade
types, including metamorphic rocks
low-grade metamorphic rocks believed
believed 1965. Geologia
1965. Geolog{adel Ecuador.Ouito
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(Mm. Educaci6n),
Educación), 383383 pp.
pp.
- - 1 9 7 1 . 1971. Geologie Ecuador.Berlin
vonEcuador.
Geologie von Berlin(Borntraeger).
(Borntraeger). Beitr~tge regionalen
Beitrage zur regionalen
to be of
of L. Palaeozoic age; an
Palaeozoic age; an alkali
alkali granite
granite tentatively
tentatively considered to
considered to Geologic der
Geologic der Erde.
Erde. Band
Band II.
be
be of
of Triassic
Triassic age;
age; and
and strongly
strongly deformed
deformed Cretaceous and Jurassic
Cretaceous and Jurassic TscHoPP, H.
T5cH0PP, H. J. 1953.Oil
J. 1953. Oil exploration
explorationininthe theOriente
Orienteof of Ecuador
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strata.
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Geol.37, 2303-47.