Hercynian compressional deformations of the Ahnet±Mouydir

Basin, Algerian Saharan Platform: far-®eld stress effects

of the Late Palaeozoic orogeny
H. Haddoum1, R. Guiraud2 and A. Moussine-Pouchkine2
1
IST, Universite des Sciences et Techniques Houari Boumedienne, BP 32, Bab Ez Zouar, Alger, AlgeÂrie; 2GTS, UMR 5573 CNRS-UM2,
Universite Montpellier2, 34095 Montpellier Cedex5, France

ABSTRACT
N±S to NW±SE-trending faults and reverse faults occur within synchronous deformations registered in the neighbouring
the Palaeozoic Ahnet±Mouydir Basin of the Algerian Saharan regions, and more speci®cally around the West African Craton,
Platform, located to the east of the West African Pan-African illustrates the mechanical coupling between intraplate tectonics
suture zone. Deformation and stratigraphic analysis show that and the Hercynian plate margins orogenies.
this basin underwent a NNE±SSW to ENE±WSW shortening at
about the Carboniferous/Permian transition or, more probably, Terra Nova, 13, 220±226, 2001
during the Early Permian. A brief review of the more or less

series (Fig. 2). It consists of sand- 1998) results in the determination of

Introduction
stones and shales and a few limestone the shortening directions.
Compressional stresses can be trans- intercalations, both of dominantly
mitted to distant continental plate marine origin. Some major N±S-
N±S-trending strike-slip faults
interiors (Zoback and Zoback, 1989) trending Late Pan-African fault zones
and produce microscale to regional- were rejuvenated during the Palaeo- The main N±S-trending fault zone
scale structures (Hinze et al., 1988; zoic and could in¯uence both the occurring in the studied area separates
Park and Jaroszewski, 1994). Far-®eld sedimentological and tectonical his- the Ahnet and Mouydir domains
shortening-induced structures inclu- 1 tory (Beuf et al., 1971). Folding, (Fig. 1). We refer to it as the Arak
ding large-scale faults and folds have strike-slip faulting and reverse faulting fault swarm as it corresponds to a set
been recognized, most notably in the occurred by the latest Palaeozoic, of important, generally vertical, faults.
Alpine foreland (Ziegler et al., 1995) resulting in the development of struc- The best outcrops are located in the
and the North American craton tures which are unconformably sealed Djebel Azaz area where a N±S- to
(Craddock et al., 1993). In some cases, by Mesozoic formations (Boote et al., NNW±SSE-trending segment of this
these compressional features can be 1998). In this paper we ®rst analyse swarm exhibits several slickensides
correlated with orogenic events that these structures and then summarize and associated microstructures indica-
occurred around the margin of the the more or less synchronous defor- ting dextral strike-slip. Southwards, in
plate and within the orogenic belts, mations registered in the neighbouring the Foum Belrem area, the large N±S-
e.g. the `Santonian event' registered regions of north-western Africa. Our striking western branch of the swarm
both into the African±Arabian and study illustrates the mechanical coup- corresponds to a major vertical strike-
European plates (Guiraud and Bos- ling between the North African intra- slip fault accompanied by drag folds
worth, 1997). plate domain and the Hercynian consistent with dextral movement.
We focus here on the Palaeozoic orogenic systems that developed along Locally, the strike-slip faults evolve
Ahnet±Mouydir Basin, which forms the plate margins. into reverse faults, which attest to
part of the Algerian Saharan Platform local transpression.
(Fig. 1). It overlies an arm of the Late Along the western limit of the
Deformation analysis
Proterozoic Pan-African Belt that Ahnet Basin, the Azzel Matti fault
developed against the West African We summarize hereafter the main char- (Fig. 1) is also accompanied by drag
Craton, along the Pan-African suture acteristics of the signi®cant structures folds that imply transcurrent move-
zone. The Palaeozoic sedimentary involving the Cambrian to Early ments. In the southern Ahnet Basin
cover thickens northwards and west- Moscovian series of the Ahnet±Mouy- the Adrar Tighessouine spur shows
wards (Reggane Basin), and includes dir Basin, associated with the Hercy- relays of N±S-trending dextral
Late Cambrian to Late Carboniferous nian deformations. We successively strike-slip faults, underlined by
describe N±S strike-slip faults, NNW± horse-tail patterns (Fig. 3). Nearby,
Correspondence: A. Moussine-Pouchkine, SSE- to N±S-striking reverse faults and the North-Meredoua fault zone pre-
GeÂophysique, Tectonique et SeÂdimentolo- folds. This analysis, based on ®eld sents a similar pattern. Finally, we
gie, CNRS-UM2, Universite Montpellier 2, observations, on the interpretation of underline the fact that if the dextral
34095 Montpellier Cedex 5, France. Tel.: 1 : 200 000 geological maps (Ben Salah strike-slip of the N±S-trending faults
+33/467144598; Fax: +33/467523908; et al., 1972) and on the interpretation is documented, the amounts of the
E-mail: alexis@dstu.univ-montp2.fr of seismic re¯ection pro®les (Badsi, horizontal o€sets remain uncon-

220 Ó 2001 Blackwell Science Ltd

Terra Nova, Vol 13, No. 3, 220±226 H. Haddoum et al. · Hercynian compressional deformation, Algeria
.............................................................................................................................................................

Fig. 1 Schematic structural map of the Ahnet±Mouydir Palaeozoic Basin.

strained. This is partly due to the area (Fig. 5). Minor reverse faults, asymmetric, as a consequence of the
discontinuity of the major faults, exhibiting o€sets ranging from metres damping in the upper part of the series
which are often o€set by NNE±SSW- to tens of metres, are frequent as well of reverse faults affecting the older,
striking dextral or NW±SE-striking as transpressive faults, with both brittle layers as revealed by the seismic
sinistral faults. reverse and strike-slip components. pro®les (e.g. Fig. 5). These folds can
The latter, analysed on some stations also show undulated axes, which re-
and interpreted according to the P- ¯ect the in¯uence of strike-slip faults
NNW-SSE- to N±S-trending reverse
and T-dihedra method (Angelier and shifting the basement.
faults
Mechler, 1977), denote NNE±SSW to
Numerous NNW±SSE- to N±S-trend- ENE±WSW shortening (Fig. 1).
Structural synthesis
ing reverse faults a€ect the Palaeozoic
cover of the Ahnet±Mouydir Basin The previous analysis shows that the
Folds
(Fig. 1). They are well expressed in the Palaeozoic Ahnet±Mouydir Basin was
lower, brittle part of the sedimentary In addition to drag folds associated a€ected by a dense net of faults and
series and tend to damp in the thick, with strike-slip faults and bends ac- folds. The major structures cor-
incompetent Late Devonian shales. companying outcropping reverse respond to N±S-trending dextral
They can be either east-dipping or faults, numerous folds are observed, strike-slip faults, and NNW±SSE- to
west-dipping. The best exposed one is especially in the northern Ahnet N±S-trending reverse faults and folds.
responsible for the Djebel Idjerane (Fig. 1). They exhibit variable sizes Minor NE±SW-trending dextral or
spur, which corresponds to a local and geometries (Donzeau et al., 1981). NW±SE-trending sinistral strike-slip
fault-bend involving the Cambrian to We emphasize the following charac- faults cut the N±S-trending faults.
Middle Devonian layers (Fig. 4). Sev- ters. The largest and most frequent The thick, incompetent Late Devo-
eral reverse faults were recognized by folds trend NW±SE to N±S. Folds nian shales produce disharmony
seismic re¯ection studies (Badsi, involving Late Devonian and Car- between a lower brittle unit, including
1998), e.g. in the El Gaa Taatzebar boniferous formations are usually Cambrian±Ordovician and Early

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Hercynian compressional deformation, Algeria · H. Haddoum et al. Terra Nova, Vol 13, No. 3, 220±226
.............................................................................................................................................................
mation is more intense along two
major N±S-striking fault swarms: (i)
the Arak fault swarm between the
Ahnet and the Mouydir subbasins,
and (ii) the Bled el Mass-Azzel Matti
fault swarm bounding westwards the
Ahnet Basin. These two major fault
zones correspond to rejuvenated Pan-
African sutures (Black et al., 1979;
Caby, 1987; Takherist, 1991). Finally
both mesoscale and microtectonic
data are consistent with a NNE±
SSW- to ENE±WSW-trending major
shortening direction.

Age of deformations
In the Ahnet±Mouydir Basin, the
most recent faulted and folded
Palaeozoic layers are Early Mosco-
vian (Conrad, 1984). However, west-
wards, in the Reggane Basin
continental sedimentation lasted until
the Stephanian (Bonnet et al., 1960;
Conrad, 1984). The oldest levels un-
conformably overlying the faulted/
folded Palaeozoic series of the Ah-
net±Mouydir Basin are Jurassic ter-
rigenous continental sediments: (i)
Early to Middle Jurassic in the deep
northern Ahnet Basin (Logan and
Duddy, 1998); (ii) post-earliest Juras-
sic in the Reggane area where the
overlying formation includes pebbles
of dolerites considered as originated
from the regional magmatic event
which pre-dated the opening of the
Central Atlantic Ocean around
200 ‹ 2 Ma (Logan and Duddy,
2 1998; Wilson and Guiraud, 1998).
3
Fig. 4 Schematic geological and struc- North-eastward of the Ahnet±Mouy-
tural map of the Adrar Tighessouine. dir Basin, in the Oued Mya and Illizi
Note the strike-slip faults and their basins Early Triassic series uncon-
horse-tail terminations. formably overlies the folded/faulted,
poorly dated Late Carboniferous to
Fig. 2 Schematic lithostratigraphic col- Devonian sandstones, and an upper Early Permian Tiguentourine series
umn of the Ahnet±Mouydir Basin. ductile unit. On another hand, defor- (Lefranc and Guiraud, 1990). There-

Fig. 3 Geological cross-section of the Djebel Idjerane (from ®eld observations). 1, basement (metagreywackes); 2, Ordovician
(sandstones); 3, Silurian (shales); 4, Early Devonian (sandstones); 5, Middle Devonian (calcareous mudstones); 6, Late Devonian
(shales); 7, Latest Devonian and Earliest Carboniferous (shaly sandstones); 8, Early Carboniferous (shales).

222 Ó 2001 Blackwell Science Ltd

Terra Nova, Vol 13, No. 3, 220±226 H. Haddoum et al. · Hercynian compressional deformation, Algeria
.............................................................................................................................................................
Correlations and conclusions
The Late Palaeozoic deformations of
the Ahnet±Mouydir Basin form part
of the broad deformation pattern of
the entire Saharan Platform as sum-
marized in Boote et al. (1998), and
may be correlated with approximately
synchronous deformations registered
north-westward and westward along
the margins of the West African
Craton (Fig. 6). These deformations
include polyphase folding and thrust-
ing of the large Ougarta±Saoura±
BeÂchar Range (Donzeau et al., 1981;
Hervouet and DueÂe, 1996). In this
area, the NW±SE-trending Cam-
brian±Devonian Ougarta±Saoura rift
and the Carboniferous to Early Per-
mian BeÂchar Basin were inverted dur-
ing the Late Carboniferous to Early
Permian (Fabre, 1976; Ziegler, 1988,
1989; Ziegler et al., 1995). Shortening
was NE±SW directed along the
Ougarta belt, turning northwards to
N±S in the BeÂchar region. To the west,
the Hercynian fold belt extends
through the Anti-Atlas. Along the
eastern Anti-Atlas, deformations re-
mained weak and resulted in a large
anticlinorium. In the western Anti-
Atlas strong folding was accompanied
by low-grade metamorphism and east-
vergent thrusts. Timing is poorly con-
strained. However, an early event may
be early Late Devonian and the main
event latest Carboniferous (300 Ma)
5 (Michard, 1976; Bonhomme and Has-
senforder, 1985; Pique et al., 1991).
The Hercynian structures of the west-
ern Anti-Atlas continue into the Zem-
mour region of southern Morocco,
6 where Sougy (1964) described NNE-
trending folds and thrusts, with
eastward vergence. Finally, in the
Mauritanide Orogen and its northern
(Adrar Soutouf) extension, domi-
nantly east-vergent thrusts, accom-
panied by metamorphism and folding
of the foreland western Taoudenni
Basin, occurred from the Late Visean
to Early Permian times (LeÂcorcheÂ
et al., 1991; Villeneuve et al., 1991).
North of the Ahnet±Mouydir Basin
Fig. 5 El Gaa Taatzebar area (see Fig. 1); a, geological and structural map of the the Hercynian deformations are
area; b, schematic section along the line AA (from seismic section and ®eld poorly constrained in the Algerian
observations). Saharan Platform though they were
fore we consider that the folding/ the Early Permian. Local reactivation recognized from seismic re¯ection
faulting event we described for the of some faults has occurred during the studies (Boote et al., 1998), specially
Ahnet±Mouydir Basin occurred Cretaceous and the Cenozoic (Gui- along some highs. Along the Saharan
around the Carboniferous/Permian raud and Maurin, 1992; Guiraud and Atlas and the Algerian High Plateaus
transition or, more probably, during Bellion, 1995). the Palaeozoic outcrops are very local

Ó 2001 Blackwell Science Ltd 223

Hercynian compressional deformation, Algeria · H. Haddoum et al. Terra Nova, Vol 13, No. 3, 220±226
.............................................................................................................................................................
(Hatcher, 1989; Ziegler, 1989;
Dallmeyer, 1991; Ziegler, 1993;
Ziegler et al., 1995). Figure 6 shows
that far-®eld deformations then affec-
ted the whole West African intraplate
domain. The distal compressional/
transpressional structures of the
Ahnet±Mouydir Basin are located
2000/2500 km to the east of the
contemporaneous Mauritanide±Zem-
mour thrust front. They provide an
illustration of intracontinental defor-
mation as emphasized by Hinze et al.
7 (1988), Zoback and Zoback, (1989)
and Park and Jaroszewski (1994).

Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the French-
Algerian Cooperation Agreement (CMEP
Fig. 6 Early Permian intraplate deformation of the Saharan platform forming the Project) # 95 MDU 332 (Universite Mont-
foreland of the Mauritanides orogen, modi®ed and completed from Villeneuve et al. pellier 2 and Universite des Sciences et
(1991) and Ziegler et al. (1995). 1, major fault; 2, major strike-slip fault; 3, rift; 4, Late Techniques Houari Boumedienne, Algiers).
Carboniferous thrust belt; 5, Early Permian thrust belt; 6, Late Carboniferous to We thank J.-P. Burg, Ph. Matte and P. A.
Early Permian fold belt; 7, major upwarped arch; 8, Late Carboniferous shortening Ziegler for their constructive reviews, and
direction; 9, Early Permian shortening direction. The stippled area corresponds to the A. Nicolas for his editorial comments.
Ahnet±Mouydir Basin. AS, Adrar Soutouf; G, Gharian Arch; HM, Hassi Messaoud;
IB, Illizi Basin; MM, Moroccan Meseta. References
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