Three-dimensional structure of the Alpine Fault zone in the region around the Waitangi-taona and Whataroa Rivers

R. J. Norris, A. F. Cooper, V. Toy, S. Read and L. Easterbrook

Dept. of Geology, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin. New Zealand
richard.norris@otago.ac.nz

169°0'0"E 170°0'0"E 171°0'0"E

The region around the Waitangi-taona and Whataroa rivers in central West- 0 50 100

Geological map
km

land north of Franz Josef encompasses one of the best-studied outcrops of

the Alpine Fault zone at Gaunt Creek. The first Alpine Fault drilling project
(DFDP-1) was undertaken in this area and is where the deeper DFDP-2 is pro- 43°0'0"S Data on this geological map of the area is taken from Read (1994), Easterbrook (2007), Toy (2010), Barth et al.
posed. The fault zone here demonstrates serial partitioning, where oblique
43°0'0"S

(2012); and Cooper and Norris (unpublished data). Representative data are selected as all structural measure-
thrust sections are linked by strike-slip faults, as proposed by Norris and ments are too numerous to present at this scale. The mylonite/schist transition is a gradational contact and so
Cooper (1995) and supported by recent Lidar data (Barth et al., 2012). A syn- its position is approximate. Data from the Western Province rocks are not shown.
thesis of surface mapping data shows that the fault zone with a complete
cataclasite/mylonite sequence forms a c. 060° striking, 40° SE-dipping, 44°0'0"S
44°0'0"S

oblique thrust zone south of Gaunt Creek, with near surface parallel parti-
tioning of part of the strike-slip onto a steeply dipping fault in the hanging 169°0'0"E 170°0'0"E 171°0'0"E

wall. North of Gaunt Creek, the fault zone swings to the NNE (025°) and dips
at a lower angle of 20-30° SE. Here, just south of “Big Knob”, which is composed of granitoids and country rock of
the Western Province, the thrust-dominated fault zone links with an ESE striking (075°) steep fault zone which
runs back towards the Whataroa River. There are at least two prominent lineaments within this fault zone, and
creek deflections suggest dextral strike-slip. The fault rocks exposed immediately south of these features change
from cataclasite and mylonite at the western end to proto-mylonite and “curly” schist at the eastern end. Expo- Barth et al. 2012 and
Luke Easterbrook Purcell-
Virginia Toy
sures near to the main lineament show steeply dipping crush and gouge zones with sub-horizontal striations. unpublished Field data Gaunt Creek map
Gaunt Creek map Stephen Read
collected by
North of the Whataroa River, the fault is not well exposed but strikes again at around 055° as an oblique thrust Richard Norris and
Gaunt Creek-Cataclasite
Creek map
zone. Using these field observations, and models of fault zone segmentation, a 3-D model of the Alpine Fault in Alan Cooper
this region is presented. 1391000

McCullough’s Creek

Structure contour map

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Structure contours have been constructed on the basal Alpine Fault surface using the following assumptions and
20 31 100m

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20 39 46

constraints: 1387000
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1) The geometry is based on the serial segmentation model of Norris and Cooper (1995) as also demonstrated

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by Barth et al. (2012); i.e. the apparent offset of the range-front and change in strike of the fault is due to a 1386000

“tear” in the basal fault plane leading to oblique thrust segments linked by a dextral strike-slip segment. 1385000
39 40
38
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2) The 200m structure contour is drawn from surface outcrops (and the short 300 m one also), and the 30
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48
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100m contour north of the Whataroa.

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62 64
56

3) The dip of the fault is based on surface outcrops, being 39° SE at Gaunt Creek and shallower
north of there to a minimum of 25°SE. North of the Whataroa the fault is assumed to dip at 1384000

40° based on foliation dips similar to those south of Gaunt Creek.

4) The strike of the foliation above the fault is assumed to be on average parallel to
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38

the fault strike and the dip is generally similar to or slightly steeper than that of 1383000 80
44
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44 1394000

the basal fault. This is approximate as structures within the mylonite/schist

32
60
tonalite
40
32

may cause local departures but average trends are used.

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5)The thickness of the mylonite zone may be used in conjunction with

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the mylonite/schist transition to provide a crude constraint on 1382000

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depth to the basal fault.

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42

6) The basal fault is smoothly curved and can only steepen 42

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67
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downwards; i.e. it cannot be in the form of ramps and

29 West of Whataroa R.
25 1391000
18 25
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flats. 32
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7) Surface variation in structure converges down-

26

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wards to a single planar fault at the shallow-

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est depth compatible with the constraints
100m
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49
above. 1A 1B 47
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47
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47 48 1388000
Legend 1379000 38
48
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DFDP holes
Foliation North of Gaunt Creek

Fault zone transitions 1387000

16 Gaunt Creek
um-m 70
88
m-pm 76
55
pm-sch
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61 56
60
70 Quaternary
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Fault type, Accuracy 80
1386000 Schist
Mylonite
Western
Strike slip, Accurate 56
Province
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Strike slip, Approximate 100m
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Thrust, Accurate 1391000
40 31
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Thrust, Approximate 40
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42 1390000 1392000
Geological map 34
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Metres
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Scale: 1:25,000 1384000
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Purcell Creek 0 1394000
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BOW 00 00
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WHATAR
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0 HIG H WA Y 700 1200

30 -300
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Arthur 0
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Creek
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Creek
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Darnley Creek
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Duncan
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300 0
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River
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Legend Waitangitaona
Mount
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River
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DFDP holes 100

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Basal thrust surface 5

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Named features 700

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Walking and Vehicle Tracks 1380000 20 10 800

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Roads 10 Big

1A 1B0 000 Creek 1389000

Rivers -2
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Lakes/Wide River sections 0

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100m Contours Gaunt

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Creek
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Structure contour map

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Whataroa River
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Scale: 1:25,000 1
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Darnley
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References
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Wha
-15 ta roa R
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iver Barth, N. C., V. G. Toy, R. M. Langridge, and R. J. Norris (2012), Scale dependence of oblique plate-boundary partition-
ing: New insights from LiDAR, central Alpine fault, New Zealand, Lithosphere, 4(5), 435-448, doi:doi:10.1130/L201.1.
5197000

0 0 1383000 Gaunt Creek

-20 14 Easterbrook, L. (2010), The Alpine Fault zone along the Waitangi-taona River, West Coast, New Zealand. Unpublished
1100 00
Darn MSc thesis, University of Otago 210 pp.
60 12
1380000 0 00 ley C
reek
1000 Norris, R. J., and A. F. Cooper (1995), Origin of small-scale segmentation and transpressional thrusting along the Alpine
1382000
900 fault, New Zealand, Geological Society of America Bulletin, 107(2), 231-240.
80
0
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Read, S. E. (1994), Alpine Fault segmentation and range front structure between Gaunt Creek and Little Man River, near
1000 Whataroa, central Westland, New Zealand. Unpublished BSc (Honours) thesis, University of Otago. 109 pp.

Toy, V. G. (2007), Rheology of the Alpine Fault mylonite zone: deformation processes at and below the base of the
seismogenic zone in a major plate boundary structure. Unpublished PhD thesis, University of Otago. 629 pp.