The generation and geometry of transport-parallel cross folds within a mid-crustal Caledonian thrust stack, northern Scotland

Geoffrey Ian Alsop, RE Holdsworth, RA Strachan

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Abstract

Cross folds are typically associated with zones of anomalous foliation trend that lie at high angles to orogenic strike. This case study concentrates on a region of transport-parallel cross folding developed by buckling during Caledonian ductile thrusting within the Moine and Naver Nappes of northern Scotland. Detailed structural analysis reveals a systematic angular relationship between the trend of tectonic transport, fold axes, and the vergence of minor folds. Large-scale cross folding is considered here to be related to wrench-dominated differential shearing during thrust-sense displacements along an important, possibly out-of-sequence structure, here termed the Ben Blandy Shear Zone. This suggests that patterns of folding within the internal parts of the Caledonian orogen in Scotland are principally controlled by the kinematic constraints imposed by low-angle thrusting. Thus, early,'main-phase' folding is associated with the initiation and propagation of ductile thrusts, whilst later, secondary structures, including cross folds can be related to the development of dow perturbations during displacement along well-established, regionally important detachments. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)783-790
Number of pages8
JournalJournal of Structural Geology
Volume18
Publication statusPublished - Jun 1996

Keywords

  • NORTHWESTERN SCOTLAND
  • MOINE NAPPE
  • SUTHERLAND
  • COMPLEX
  • GEOLOGY
  • ROCKS
  • ZONE

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