Journal of the Geological Society

Cretaceous to Eocene volcanic arc activity in the Andes of northern

Ecuador
W. G. Hendenson

Journal of the Geological Society 1979; v. 136; p. 367-378

doi:10.1144/gsjgs.136.3.0367

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Notes

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© 1979 Geological Society of

London
 Jl g a l . Soc. hnd.Vol. 136,1979, pp. 367-378, 4 f&., 1 table. Printed in Northern Ireland.

Cretaceous to Eocene volcanic arcactivity in the Andes

of northernEcuador

W.G. Hendenson
SUMMARY: During the Cretaceous to Eocenethe W. part of N. Ecuadorreceivedthe
tholeiitic and &-alkaline magmatic products of one volcanic arc, which built up on a thin or
dense basement, at least partly of oceanic origin. Accumulation of this arc was preceded by
early Cretaceous volcanicity and flexuringin the E. and was brought to a close by late Senonian
to Eocene orogenic movements. The partly ensimatic arc of N. Ecuador contrasts markedly
withthetotallyensialic arc of S. Ecuador and Peru,andsuggests an important change in
basement type near 2”30’S (the latitude of Guayaquil). Oceanic basement in N. Ecuador was
probably trapped in the Lower Cretaceous by initiation of subduction at a trench in approxi-
mately the same relative offshore position as at present.

Ecuador is divided into three NNE trending physiog- Recent WO&

raphic belts: the relatively low-lying Costa,the moun-
tainous Sierra, and the Oriente, which forms part of
the upper Amazon basin (Fig. 1).A loosely defined
line through the Gulfof Guayaquil and Bucay, at
2”10’5, where the Andes change trend, separates
‘northern’ and ‘southern’ Ecuador. In N. Ecuador the
Costa is 150 k m or more wide and in the Sierra a
well-delined inter-Andean depression separates the
Western and Eastern Cordilleras. S . Ecuador is dis-
tinguished by a narrow Costa, only some 20h wide,
and by the absence of a clear inter-Andean depres-
sion.
Geological investigations in Ecuador
Preview WO*
Extrusive and intrusive basic to intermediate igne-
ous rocks and volcanic sediments, dominantly of Cre-
taceous age, are the oldest rocksin the C o s t a and
Western Cordillera ofN. Ecuador, and, together with
broadly similar rocks in S . Ecuador, were described
first byWolf (1892)and then by Tschopp(1948)
and Sauer(1965)among others. Goossens & Rose
(1973) summarised most of the present knowledge of
the Costa rocks (the ‘Piiih’), but they also grouped
the volcanicrocks of the Sierra, later named the
Macuchi and Celica Formations, with the Piii6n of the
Costa as a basic igneous complex, and suggested that
this complex is similar to, inter alia, the Nazca plate.
The scant attention paid in the past to the volcanic
rocks of Ecuador is understandable because the moun-
tain slopes are highly vegetated, and mineralization is
not as apparent as in neighbouring Peru and
Colombia.
0016-7649/79/050Q-O367.$02.00
@ 1979 The Geological Society
Since 1973, systematicgeologicalmappingin the
Sierra on 1: 100,000 and 1:50,000 scales has shown
that the Cretaceous rocks there differ markedly from
the S 6 n of the Costa, and Pichler et al. (1974)
identified calc-alkaline lavas within whatis now called
the Macuchi Formation. New formational names or
redefinition of previous names werepresented by Bris-
tow & Hoffstetter (1977).
During 1975 and 1976 the author workedin the
Western Cordillera of N. Ecuador and helped produce
four 1:100,000 and two 1:50,000 geological maps,
which are available for reference atthe Direcci6n
General de Geologia y Minas, Quito. The chief ad-
vanceswere the recognition of the importance of
volcanic sediments in the Macuchi Formation, and the
identification by palaeontologists of the British
Museum (Natural History) of Eocene fossils from the
Macuchi and Yunguilla Formations W.of Latacunga.
Cretaceous to Eocene
volcanic arc
Western cordillera
The main evidence for the existence of a volcanic
arc in N. Ecuador in Cretaceous to Eocene times
comes from the Western Cordillera. Three formations,
the Macuchi, Silante, and Yunguilla, are involved, and
their distribution, thicknesses, and lithologies are
shown in Figs. 2 and 3. Figure 3, which shows large
facies changes, is the author’s preferred interpretation
of the complicated stratigraphical relationships be-
tween these formations. Other interpretations involv-
ing,say,faulting,localunconformities, or different
age-ranges, might be developed when more reliable
data becomes available.
The Macuchi Formation is the main component of
368 W.G. Herderson

-X- Axis of Peru-Chile trench

'Boundary in dispute

FIG.1. Geological setting and physiography of Ecuador

the volcanic arc. It is affected by albitisation, prehnit- quartz-andesites with about 61% SiOz. They do not
isation, and zeolite growth indicative of zeolite facies contain quartzphenocrysts, and it is probable that the
metamorphism, but original depositional features are moreacidicvolcanismin the arc, being the more
generally visible exceptin the S . part of the Cordillera explosive, was not preserved as lava flows.
where post-Eocene quartz-diorite batholiths have Many of the lavas of the Macuchi Formationappear
contact-metamorphosedlargeareas. The Macuchi, to have spilitic affinities with high (>5%) NazO and
Silante, and YunguillaFormations are folded, but very low (c0.1%) KzO (see Supplementary Publica-
schistose rocks are developed only locally. tion 18027, which is available from the British Library
Lending Division, Boston Spa, Yorkshire, or from the
Geological Society Library). However, it is possible to
Macuchi Formation
select analyses (including those of Pichler et al. 1974)
The most important rock-type is tu& whichcom- with more 'normal' alkali values or to reject analyses
monly occurs in planar, graded beds up to lm thick. withhighvolatilevalues. The resulting 11 relatively
The tu& are poorly sorted greenish, tough, recrystal- fresh lavas range from olivine and quartz-tholeiites to
lized rocks occasionally containing marine microfossils.quartz-andesites with noundersaturation and generally
The angular grains were formed by the fragmentation highnormativeorthopyroxene. The mostcommon
of material similar to the lavas of the Macuchi Forma- lava type overall appears to be basaltic-andesite.
tion. Thebroken crystals of plagioclaseandclino- The analyses of these relativelyfreshlavaswere
pyroxenein the tuffsmatchupwith the plagioclase used to determine the discriminant functions F,, F,,
(bytownite-andesine) and clino-pyroxene phenocrysts and F3, derived by Pearce (1976) to categorise differ-
of the lavas. Apart fromvesicular and porphyritic ent basalt types. This method achieves a high success
Macuchilavafragments,sometuffs,especially the rate indiscriminating
between
fresh
ocean-floor
finer-grained ones, also contain quartz shards. The basalts and fresh volcanic arc basalts. The plots in Fig.
most acidic of the Macuchi lavas so far analysed are 4 show that the Mkcuchi lavas fall dominantlyinto the
 Volcanic am activify in the Andes of N. Ecuador 369

1- QUARTZ-DIORITE (Post-Eocene)
20 40

COLOMBIA
60km

..........
KHNTHollln, Napo, and Tena Fms
METAMORPHIC "X

VOLCANIC ARC ASSEMBLAGE

MAINLY EPICUSTIC
KTY Yunguilla Frn KCA Cayo Frn
Ks
Silante Frn
EXTRUSIVE
KTM Macuchi Frn KCE Celica Frn
" KP PIiion Frn Kv Undivided

@ Borehole (withdepthtoKv)
.-.-e Major Fault

RG.2. Geology of N.Ecuador

l COSTA
'J /SIERRA
 W.G. Henderson
Riobamba
Quito Nono Latacunga Guaranda
Mindo
Santo
Doming0 Quevedo Babahoyo
NORTH SOUTH

LOCATION M A P
LATER INTRUSION
,=/,:,;,+;
<-I_* Hornblendebiotitequartl-diorite. White and
unfoliated
r,2r%i,:,$,
. ,,,
CRETACEOUS-EOCENE VOLCANIC ARC ASSEMBLAGE
......... YUNGUILLAFORMATION: CAYORUMIMEMBER: Buff-coloured
epiclastic conglomerates, sandstones and siltstones deposited mainly
by density flows. Probably entirely marine.
YUNGUILLA FORMATION: 'LOWER'MEMBER : Blackvolcanicsiltstones
and rhythmically-bedded turbidites. Some limy beds and7 lavas.
rare
SIIANTE FORMATION:Green and red volcanic sandstones, Babahoyo~
conglomerates and purple siltstones, with lavas neartop. Marine and
7 continental.

f-1
L, 1
MACUCHI FORMATION:Redeposited marine tuffs and coarse laharitic
deposits with andesitic-basalticlavas,occasionallypillowed.Rare
bioclastic
limestones. I
A
A

FIG. 3. GeneralisedverticalsectionalongtheWestern Cordillera with interpretation of lithostratigraphyand

chronostratigraphy

volcanic arc basalt field. Note that, with the exception
of one plot in Fig. 4b, ocean-floor basalts appear to be
absent.
The Macuchi Formation contains pillowlavas,
mostly of basaltic composition. The external portions
of the pillows are frequently vesicularsuggestinga
relatively shallow depth of water. The formation only
rarely contains purely pelagic sediment; fine-grained
green siliceous sediments are recrystallized acidic tu&.
The base of the Macuchi is not seen. Deposition was
mainly in a marine environment, as the well-bedded
turbiditic tuf€s, marine fossils, and associated pillow
lavas show, but at times parts of the arc must have
built above sea level. Deposits formed terrestrially
would, naturally, stand less chance of preservation
than material deposited in marine basins. Submarine
basaltic volcanicitywould have generallyproduced
pillow lavas and c o m e breccias whichwouldhave
built up flattened edifices with high lava: tuff ratios.
Submarine andesitic volcanicity would have tended to
result in steeper-sided strato-volcanoeswithlower
1ava:tuff ratios. The andesitic submarine pyroclastic
activity would have been much as described by Fiske
& Matsuda (1964), withsecondary distribution of
fallen tephra by density currents away from the vol-
cano flanks into deeper water.
Fossils collectedfrom the Macuchi Formation W. of
Quito havegiven Upper Cretaceous ages(e.g. the
bivalve Inmeramus pencanus, Faucher &
Savoyat 1973; and the foraminifer Globotruncana sp.,
Sigal 1968). 60 km S., to the W. of Latacunga, Eocene
fossils (e.g.the foraminifera Nurnrnulites nummulitifor-
rnis Rutten, and Amphistegina spp.) were identifiedby
palaeontologists of the British Museum (Natural His-
tory) in samples fromthe Macuchi Formation. Cotecc-
hia and Zezza (1969) reported a K-Arisotopic age of
51.5 *2.5 Ma (Lower Eocene) from an inlier of rocks
lithologically similar to the Macuchi Formation to the
 Volcanic arc activity in the Andes of N.Ecuador 371

X\
0,3 0,4 0.5-1.5 F1 -1.6 -1.4 -1.3 M
I
*
-2.3 l" X

-2.4 OCEAN.\ 'G, - SHO

X
<
X

-2.5

X Macuchi
Formation @ P i R h Formation Cayo Formation

CAB Calc-alkali basalt field SHO Shoshonitefield

LKT Lowpotassium tholaiitef l l d WPB Within-plate basalt

RG.4. Plots of Disaiminant Functions (Peare 1976) for lavas of the

F, = 0-0088Si0,- 0*0774TiO2+0*O102Al,O3+O.O066FeO
Macuchi.
€"h, and Cayo Formations

-0~0017Mg0-0~0143Ca0-0~0155N~0-0~~7~0
F,= -0~0130Si02-0~0185Ti02-0~0129Al,03-0~0134Fe0
-0*03Mg0-0~0204Ca0-0*0481N~0+0-0715~0
F3= -O~0221Si0,-O~0532TiO~-O~0361Al~03-O~W16Fe0
-0~031Mg0-0~0237Ca0-O~0614N~O-O-0289K20.

NE of Ambato in the inter-Andean depression. The
Macuchi Formation has not yet provided evidencefor
Palaeocene or Maastrichtian ages but an age range of
Upper Cretaceous to Eocene for the formation seems
justified from the data now available.
Silante and Yunguilla Formations
The Silante Formation is mainly an epiclastic de-
posit and, judging from the fragments in the conglom-
erates and sandstones, was derived from erosionof the
Macuchi Formation. Some volcanic sandstones have a
restricted range of grain types and may be redeposited
tufEi. Lavas occur near the top of the formation. The
depositional environment is problematical; the author
does notfollowthe view(e.g. Faucher & Savoyat
1973) that the red beds in the sequencenecessarily
imply a terrestrial environment of deposition. If the
source area providedoxidised,reddenedgrains, the
resultingdeposit,whethermarine or non-marine,
would also have had a good chance of being red. The
grading, poor sorting, generalabsence of cross-
lamination, and rare occurrence of foraminifera sug-
gest a marine environment possibly receiving density
flow material.
Whatever the depositional environment of the
Silante Formation, such a great thickness of rapidly
depositedsedimentneededasubsidingbasinanda
rising terrestrial source area. The maximum thickness
of the Silante, 5400 m, is attained in the Nono-Mind0
area near the equator, where there is a small but clear
deflection of the Andes. This deflection, therefore, ap-
pears to originate fromsomefundamental structure
created before or during Silante Formation times.
Between Nono and Mind0abundant way-up criteria
stronglyindicate that the red beds of the Silante
Formation are overlain by the flysch-likeYunguilla
Formation. Previously (e.g. Faucher & Savoyat 1973),
theseredbedsweregroupedwith the Cayo Rumi,
the conglomeratic member at the top of the
Yunguilla Formation. The correlation was based on a
supposedlithologicalsimilaritybetween the Silante
372 W. G. Henderson
and the Cayo Rumi, and a presumed lateral passage rocks.Analyses of these quartz-diorites showthey
from one into the other. Lithologidy, however, the are more acidic (mean 65% SiO,, see Supplementary
two units are appreciablydifferent, the maindiffer- Publication)thanlavasin the MacuchiFormation.
encesbeing the rarity of volcanicfragmentsin the K-Arisotopic age determinations on hornblende and
Cayo Rumi conglomerates,and of gneissoseand biotite from the Las Guardias batholith gave 19.2*
quartzitic fragments in the Silante Formation. There 3 Ma, Lower M i e n e , on hornblende, and 30.8* 1,
also appears to be no unbroken lateral passage from Oligocene, on biotite(Table 1). This suite of acidic
the Silante into the Cayo Rumi, and the author prefers intrusives, therefore, appears topost-date the Cretace-
a new interpretation in which the Yunguilla separates ous to Eocene arc.
the Silante below from the Cayo Rumi above. One additional suite of plutonic rocks is associated
The Yunguilla Formation is remarkably uniform in with the MacuchiFormation.These are basicand
character from the equator in the N. to Cuencain ultrabasic in composition and the best-known is the
S . Ecuador. Black volcanic siltstones may represent fine- fault-bounded Saloya Complex,which outcrops on the
grained marine tu&, and fine-grained andesitic rocks old Quito-Santo Doming0 road only a few kilometres
between Riobamba and Guaranda may be lavas. Thus W. of the Cordilleracrest. This body is more than
the Yunguilla Formation sediments are probably de- 2.5 km wideandcompriseswehrlite, gabbronorite,
rived in part from volcanic arc rocks in the vicinity. anorthosite, and dunite whichshowsall degrees of
W. of Latacunga, howev,er,the sandstones in theYun- serpentinization. Disturbed
and
faulted
cumulate
guillaFormationincreaseupwardsingrain-size and banding is seen fromplace to place.Several other
frequency and the overlyingCayoRumiMember is basicandultrabasicplutonicbodies are known. In
marked by the influx of conglomerates. Clasts in the Quebrada Pissisi, 10.5 km WNW of Latacunga, there
conglomerates are of schist, quartzite, and gneiss and are extensive outcrops of brecciated serpentinite, and
are typical of the lithologies seen in the metamorphic small coarse-grained hornblende-gabbro bodies occur
belt of the Eastern Cordillera. It seems, therefore, that in many places
in the Cordillera. No contact-
erosion of the metamorphics of the Eastern Cordillera metamorphiceffects are seen around these plutonic
provided another, non-volcanic input to the Yunguilla rocks and insufficient chemical data exist to show if
Formation. N. of Ibarra in northernmost Ecuador, they all belong to one suite. Their age is unknown.
preliminary studies indicate that the Yunguilla Fonna-
tion is of a rather different, less volcanic, facies; rhyth-
mic, turbiditic bedding does occur, but non-volcanic COSCP
rock-types such as quartzitic siltstones and graphitic The mainvolcanicrock-unitin the Costa is the
shales are often found. Piii&n, which rangesin age from Senonian down to at
least Albian or Aptian (see Bristow 1975). Despite the
Plutonic rocks considerable work that has taken place on the Costa,
Stocks and batholiths of uniform, white, unfoliated, the FWhn remains poorly known. It appears to com-
hornblende-biotite-quartz-dioriteintrude the Macuchi prise a succession of basaltic lavas at least 2 km thick,
andSilanteFormations. Chlontic, epidotic, andac- frequently pillowed,withagglomeratesandbasic to
tinolitic mineral growths appear in the xenoliths and ultrabasicintrusives.Evans BC Arguello (1977) have
contact-metamorphosed Macuchivolcanic country shown that in the Jama area the overlyingshales,

TABLE1:K - A r age determinations of rocks from Equador. AW548: pink granite from Rio Zuiiac bridge
near Abitagua, Baiios-Puyo road, Tungurahua Province 78"10'W, 1'24's; K23 is a hornblende-biotite-
quartz-diorite from the Los Guardiasbatholith.Huapuloma,Guaranda-Balzapambaroad, Boliuar
m i n c e , 79"06'W, l"48'S.

Sample No. Analysls No. Mineral %K "Ar

rad nllg % Atmor Age + Error Me

AW 548 31 Biotite
13.3173 3.838 50.4 85.0k 7 (Senonian; 7 Coniacian)

K23 29 Biotite 6.564 8.1393 30.8*

23.7 1 (Oligocene)

K23 29 Hornblende 0.4378 0.3377 77.0 19.2* 3 (Lower Miocene)'

Decayconstanal' = 0 . 5 6 4 ~10"a'
1' = 4.72X 10 *U'

'Preferred age for sample K23

 Volcanic arc activity in the Andes of N. E c u a d o r 373
greywackes,conglomerates, and cherts of the Cayo down mostly as sediments inAptian to Senonian times
Formation (Senonian, or possibly Danian; Bristow and metamorphosed in latest Cretaceous or early Ter-
1975) also contain pillow basalts and basaltic necks. tiary times, but previous authors (e.g. Tschopp 1953)
This indicates that magmatism continued in the Costa considered them to be of Palaeozoic or Precambrian
throughout much of the Cretaceous. age.
The Bougueranomalygravitymap of Ecuador The lower flanks of the Cordillera are formed
(Feininger 1977) shows large positive anomalies over mainly from 4 Jurassic and Cretaceous formations, the
areas underlain by the PiMn. The anomalies reach a Chapiza, Hollin,
Napo, and Tena. The Chapiza
maximum to the W. of Daule, N. of Guayaquil, with (Jurassic?Lower Cretaceous) comprises red continen-
values of more than 160 mGal over an area of about tal beds and has the Misahaulli volcanic member at
2OOkm’. Feininger,inhis explanation of the map, the top. The Hollin and Napo Formations (Aptian-
suggested from the magnitude of the Daule anomaly Campanian) rest uncomformably on the Chapiza, and
that the basement rocks (i.e. the Piii6n) are oceanic in comprise a non-volcanic platform sequence of sand-
character. stones, black shales, and bituminous limestones,which
Despite extensive mapping, little data exists to sup- attains its maximum thickness of 600 m to the E. in
port an oceanic crust origin for the Piii6n. The lack of the Oriente. The Nap0 is overlain by the red beds of
vesiculation in the Piii6n pillow lavas noted by Evans the Maastrichtian Tena Formation. Variousgranitic
Argiiello (1977) indicates deep water but not intrusions occur within the Cordillera.
necessarily abyssal extrusion. Pelagic sedimentsand/or
umbers (iron-manganese sediments), like those com-
Misahaulli Member of the
monly found in layer 1of the ocean floor,are not seen
Chapiza Formation
resting on the Piii6n; the Cayo Formationis of turbidi-
tic origin except for the uppermost beds, the Guaya- According to Tschopp (1953) the Misahaulli
quil chert, whoseorigin is unknown. There is no Member comprises upto 2000 m of red beds, volcanic
evidence of a pre-Cayo Formation unconformity rep- sediments, and lavas of Upper Jurassic age. Bristow
resenting an erosional episode during which such & Hoffstetter (1977), however, reported that Lower
pelagic sediments could have been removed. There are Cretaceous pollen has been identified from the Upper
no reports of 100% dyke swarms like those described Chapiza, and the Misahaulli may therefore be re-
frommany ophiolite complexes around the world garded as a part of the volcanic arc exemplified by the
which are thought to represent segments of oceanic Macuchi Formation to the W. On the other hand, the
crust. Finally, the one analysis of a Pifi6nlava that overlying Hollin and Nap0 Formations, equivalent in
does exist.(Goossens & Rose 1973, No 7122) plots age to part of the Macuchi,show no evidence of
among volcanicarc lavas inthe low potassium tholeiite contemporaneous volcanicity. Further, the Hollin rests
field in Fig 4b. unconformably on the Misahaulli,suggesting that
The interpretation preferred by the author is that Lower Cretaceous diastrophism occurred. Thisdias-
the F%6n represents the tholeiitic,primitiveand trophism and the lack of continuity of volcanism in the
oceanward part of the volcanic arc more fully rep- same place indicatethat the Misahaulli volcanicity had
resented by the calc-alkaline and tholeiiticMacuchi a development rather different from that of the main
Formation to the E. This type of zonation is found in part of the Cretaceous to Eocene arc to the W.
mostvolcanicarcs around the world(e.g.Coleman
1975). This interpretation also permits the basic mag-
Greenschists
matism noted in the Cayo Formation to be explained
as continuation of the same oceanward volcanic arc The greenschists inthe metamorphics of the Eastern
activity. The density flow material, which makes up Cordillera
havetholeiitic
and andesitic chemical
much of the Cayo, could well have been derived by characteristics (Herbert 1977), and it is possible that
erosion of the main part of the arc to the E. as it built they are metamorphosed equivalents of Macuchi-like
up. The large positive Bouguer anomalieswould result or Misahaulli-likevolcanicrocks. Apart frombeing
in part from an accumulation of basaltic arc lavas (the pre-Tertiary, however, the age of these greenschists is
PG6n) and in part from an unexposed relativelydense unknown, and theymay be unrelated to the Cretaceous
basement similar to oceanic crust. to Eocene arc.

Eastern Cordillern Granite intrusion

The higher parts of the Eastern Cordillera of
N. Ecuador are underlain by an extensivebelt of poorly-
knownmetamorphicrocks,includingbiotite-gneiss,
muscovite-schist, and greenschist.Feininger (1975)
suggested that these metamorphicrockswerelaid
The pink granite of Abitagua, between Ambato and
Puyo, has faulted contacts with the surrounding Cre-
taceous sediments of the Nap0 and Tena Formations.
K-Ar age determinations on biotite from the granite
gave 178+7 Ma (Lower Jurassic; Herbert 1977) and
374 W. G. Henderson
85 *7 Ma (Senonian, and ?Coniacian; see Table 1 and Macuchi, Silante,
andYunguilla
Formations are
chemical analysis in Supplementary Publication). It is stronglyfolded, but because the style of folding is
not known how to interpret these dates. essentially similar ineach of the formations, it appears
that only one, Upper Eocene or later, deformational
episode occurred. The rapid facies changes depicted in
Ending of Cretaceous to Fig. 3 suggest differential uplift and subsidence from
-ne arc activity and Senonian times, but there is no evidence for angular
subsequent diastrophism unconformities between the 3 formations.
The structural style implies a brittle deformational
In the Western Cordillera volcanism became less in- regime. Folds are upright and the fold limbs are planar
tense and was accompanied by epiclastic sedimenta- to within a surprisingly short distance (perhaps 20 m)
tion as early as the Senonian locally, with deposition of the axial planes. The axialplanesthemselves are
of the Silante Formation, and in Maastrichtian times spacedmore than 5 km apart in the Macuchiand
more generally,when the YunguillaFormationacc- SilanteFormations, which are relatively competent
umulatedoverawide area. Intense volcanism, rep- and only rarely show small folds. The spacing of major
resented by the Macuchi Formation, persisted until the folds decreases to about 2 km in the Yunguilla Forma-
Eocene only W. of Latacunga. tion, which is often intricately folded because of the
In the Costa, the basalCayoFormationcontains internal competence differences caused by the thinly-
volcanics, but these appear to become less common up bedded sandstoneshale sequences. The interlimb
the sequence. Volcanicityin the Costacontinued angle of the folds is oommonly about 50". Axial planar
sporadically into the early Tertiary; (K-Ar age deter- cleavage commonly develops in the Silante and Yun-
mination on the same sample gave 65 +20 Ma and guilla Formations, and some axial planes follow fault
54* 5Ma, Goossens& Rose 1973).The Eoceneforma- lineaments. The importance of awidespread brittle
tions of the Costa are mainly fine-grained claystones, deformational styleimplies to the author one short,
turbiditic siltstones,andlimestones,and the only relativelyrapidorogenicphase rather thansteady
suggestion of synchronous volcanic activity is the pres- deformation over a long interval. For this reason, the
ence of some diatomaceous and cherty beds. deformational event in the WesternCordillera was
The declineinvolcanicity was accompanied by Upper Eocene or more recent in age.
diastrophism whichwas most intense in the Eastern Certain poorly-dated but presumably post-Eocene
Cordillera. Uplift of the Cordillera probably began in intermontane basinal deposits, such as the Tigua For-
the late Campanian. Clastic material for the Aptian- mation to the W. of Latacunga, are affected by folding
Campanian Hollin and N a p Formations of the which appearstobe similar to that in the pre-
Oriente was derived from the Guayana and Brazilian Oligocene formations of the Western Cordillera, and
Shields to the E. (Campbell 1970), but the red beds of the strong folding of the Miocene sediments of the
the Maastrichtian Tena Formation represent an abrupt Cuenca and Loja basinsin S . Ecuador argues for a
change in sedimentary facies. major post-Miocene deformational episode.
The Napo-Tena contact is disconformable and The Costa escaped strong deformation and
probably represents a short erosional episode metamorphism, but strong late Cretaceous and/or
(Tschopp 1953), but no angular unconformity is seen. early Tertiary differential movementsare suggested by
Major uplift of the Eastern Cordillera occurred the unconformity below the San Eduardo Formation
around Palaeocene times and gave rise to the coarse, (Middle Eocene), whichlocallycuts out muchand
mainly continental, clastics of the Tiyuyacu and sometimes all, of the underlying Cayo Formation in
Cuzutca Formations which rest unconformably on the the Jama area (Evans & Argue110 1977). The Upper
Tena. Along the W. side, uplift of the Cordillera is Eocene of the Progreso Basin saw the creation of an
also recorded by the Maastrichtian to Eocene flysch- olistostromic complex (Colman 1970)when Eocene-
like Yunguilla Formation, in particular the Cayo Rumi strata slid off a rapidly rising basement ridge along the
Member. The 4 K-Ar isotopic age determinations on line of the Chongon-Colonche Hills.The Oligocene of
micas from gneisses and schists inthe Eastern Cordill- N. Ecuador apparently was a time of general uplift
era gave 1 Senonian date (80* 3 Ma; Kennerley, in and only in the N.of the Costa, around Esmeraldas,
press) and 3 Palaeocene dates (59-6f 2.2 Ma, 59.1 * were some Oligocene sediments deposited.
2.2 Ma and56-5*2.1Ma;Herbert 1977). The To what extent the widespread uplift
in the
Palaeocene dates probably represent cooling and con- Oligocene was related to deformation and
sequent closing of the radiometric systems by tectonic metamorphismin the WesternCordillera is notyet
uplift. clear. Despite this doubt, there is a clear association
In the WesternCordillera there was probably no between lessening of volcanic arc activity in the West-
correspondingdeformational or metamorphicevent ern Cordillera and Costa and the metamorphism and
beforetheUpperEocene.The Cretaceous-Eocene uplift of the Eastern Cordillera.
 Volcanic am activity in the Andes of N.Ecuador
Geological synthesis
Geologid change near 2"WS
A fundamental change in the geology of Ecuador
occurs near 2"30'S. Gansser (1973) distinguished be-
tween the Central and Northern Andes, but chose a
more southerly boundary at the Huancabamba deflec-
tion of the Andes in N. Peru. Sillitoe (1974) was first
to place the change accurately.
The maindifference is that old,Palaeozoicand
Precambrian, metamorphics outcrop in S . Ecuador to
within a short distance of the coast(Fig. 1). These
metamorphicscontinue into the coastal Amotape
range of northernmost Peru. In N. Ecuador, however,
old 'basement' metamorphics are seen neither in the
Costa nor in the WesternCordillera,althoughthey
maybe represented in the Eastern Cordillera. The
Cretaceousvolcanic arc rocks of S . Ecuador, the
Celica Formation, thus rest on a sialic crust, but no
sialicbasementrocks are known to the P56n or
Macuchi Formations.There are other distinctions. The
lithologies of the Macuchi and Celica Formations ap-
pear to differ; the volcanic sandstones and siltstones
that characterisemuch of the MacuchiFormation
are not reported from the S . nor are the pillow lavas,
but coarsevolcaniclasticrocks appearto bemuch
more common. A further distinction is that the PiMn
Formation is not represented in the S . but appears to
terminate in the hills around Guayaquil. The huge
positive Bouguer anomaly near Daule is likewise li-
mited. The Olistostromic Complex andthe deepProg-
resoBasindeveloped around 2O3O'S. The arc-like
sweep of the Chong6n-Colonche hills occurs at about
2"s but could well reflect a change at 2"30'S. A small
change in foldtrends occurs fromNE in S . Ecuador to
NNE in the N. Quaternary rhyoliticvolcanics, the
Tarqui Formation,cover an extensive part of the
S . Sierra but rhyolitic volcanicsare minor in extent to
the N.
Activevolcanoes occur N. of 2"30'S, butdonot
OCCUT in S . Ecuador or the N. half of Peru.This
observation,however,appears to be related to the
present position of the Carnegie Ridge and subduction
of the Nazca plate (Barazangi KC Isacks 1976).
Although lithological dzerences exist, the fact that
Cretaceous arc volcanism continued acrossthe latitude
of 2"30'S without great deflection suggests that these
changes reflect pre-Cretaceous basement differences.
The basement to the S . was continental and the arc
mayhavebuiltupunderdominantly terrestrial or
shallow marine conditions. To the N. the arc built up
on a different basement type.
B-rnent type m the western part
of a~rthernEcuador
The large positive Bouguer anomalies on the Costa
strongly support the idea that the crust of the Costa is
375
essentially oceanic (Feininger 1977). This crust would
have been trapped by initiation of subduction in the
Lower Cretaceous at a trench to the W.of the Cre-
taceous to Eocene volcanic
arc. The Bouguer
anomalies become negative over the Sierra and given
that the presentcrustalthickness of the Sierra is
estimated at between 40 and 50 km (see Meissner er
al. 1976 andFrancis et al. 1977), it doesnotseem
likely that the crust there is of oceanic character. It
could be argued that the scattered basic and ultrabasic
igneous
bodies
in the Western Cordillera of
N. Ecuador represent segments of an oceanic basement
subsequently tectonically emplaced at a higher level,
but little is known about thesebodies;they may
merely be intrusive equivalents of the Cretaceous or
younger basic volcanic rocks.
This does not imply, however, that the crust of the
WesternCordillera of N. Ecuador is of asimple
continental character. The basement to the Macuchi
Formationfails to outcrop and the Cretaceous to
Eocene volcanic arc that accumulatedupon it was
deposited largely in a deep-water marine environment.
This contrasts markedly withthe relationship between
the Celica Formation and the continental basement of
S . Ecuador. The inability of the basement of the
Western Cordillera of N. Ecuador to protrude to high
levels could reflectan unusually dense or thin nature.
The reduced volume of granitoidbatholith
in
Ecuador compared withthat in Peru might also bedue
to the relatively thin Ecuadorian crust in Mesozoic and
Tertiary times. Rising magmas fromthe mantle wedge
above the descendinglithosphericplate wouldhave
risen rapidlyto the surface, undergoinglittle fractional
crystallization or interaction with the lower crust.
Post-Eocene volcanic arc activity
Active and dormant volcanoes at present fall E. of
the higher parts of the Western Cordillera and border
the inter-Andean depression. In the Western Cordill-
era the quartz-diorite stocks and batholithsare proba-
bly p o s t - k n e and duringrecent mapping a number
of partially eroded volcanic centres have cometo light.
The distribution of post-Eocenevolcanicitywas,
therefore, similar to that of the Cretaceous to Eocene
volcanicity. If any shift in volcanicity can be seen it is
an eastward movement in the concentration of activity
from the Western Cordillera in Cretaceous to Eocene
times to the inter-Andean valley in post-Eocene (and
especially Pliocene to Recent) times. The conclusion is
that the ocean trench off Ecuador has remained more
or -less in the samepositionrelative to mainland
Ecuador since Lower Cretaceous times.
ACKNOWLBDGEMENTS. Determinations by Dr. John Whit-
taker and otherpalaeontologists of the British Museum
(NaturalHistory)were invaluable and I am grateful to them
for permitting publication of their results. Thanks are due to
C O ka
gU s in the Institute of Geological sciences: D. P. F.
e
 376 W.G. Henderson
Darbyshire of the Isotope Geology Unit supplied the K-& mann norms were provided very kindly by Professor Hans
results, D. Hutchison and A. E. Davis of the Analytical and Pichler of the University of Tubingen, West Germany.
Ceramics Unit provided the chemical data, and C. R. Bristow This paper is published with the permission of the Duec-
and E. J. Cobbing commented on an early draft. The Ritt- tor, Institute of Geological Sciences.

References
BARAZANGI, M. & ISACKS,B. L. 1976. Spatial distribution of and North Chile. Earth Planet. Sci. btt. 37, 197-202.
earthquakes and subduction of the Nazca plate beneath GANSER, A. 1973. Facts and theories on the Andes. J. geol.
South America. Geology 4,686-692. Soc. Lond. 129, 93-131.
B m w , C. R. 1975. On the age of the Cayo Formation, Gossms, P.J. & ROSE,W. I. 1973. Chemical composition
Ecuador. Newsl. Stratigr. 4, 169-173. and age determination of tholeiitic rocks in the Brwic
- & H o m T E m , R. 1977. Lexique Stratigraphique Igneous Complex, Ecuador. Bull. geol. Soc. Am. 84,
International 5 Fasc. 50, I(2nd ed.). Centre National dela 1043-1052.
Recherche Scientihue, Paris. HERBERT,H. 1977. Die Griinschkfer der Ost-Kordillere
CAMPBELL,C. J. 1970. Guide tothe Puerto Napo area, Ecuadors und ihr metamorpher Rahmen. Doctoral Dis-
eastern Ecuador. Ecuadorian geol. and geophys.Soc., sertation, University of Tubingen.
West Germany.
Quito. 19oPP.
CASE,J. E., DUM, S . L. G., h p = , A. R. & MOORE,W. R. KENNERLEY, J. B. (inpress). Outline of the geology of
1971. Tectonic investigations in Western Colombia and Ecuador. Inst. Geol. Sci., London.
Eastern Panama. Bull. geol. Soc. Am. 82, 2685-2712. WSSNER, R. O., %m, E. R. STIBANE,
F. R. & BERG,E.
CO-, P. J. 1975. On island arcs. Earth Sci. Reu. 11, 1976. Dynamics of the active plate boundary in south-
47-80. west Colombia. Tectonophysics 35, 115-136.
C o w , J. A. R. 1970. Guidebook to the geology of the mcx, J. A, 1976. Statistical analysis of major element
SantaElena Peninsula. Ecuadorian geol. and geophys. pattern in basalts. J. Petmlogy 17, 15-43.
Soc., Qwto. R-, , R. & WEYL,R. 1974, Basische
H., S ~ B A N E F.
,- V. & ZEZZA, F. 1969. The Eocene basement Magmatismus und Krustenbau im siidlichen
Mit-
of the interandean corridor in the Latacunga-Ambato telamerika, Kolumbienund Ecuador. Neues Jb. Geol.
trough (Ecuador). Geol. Appl.Idrogeol. 4, 43-46. Paliiont. Mh. 2, 102-126.
EVANS, C . D. R. & AF~GIJELLO, C. 1977. Geological map of SAUER, W. 1965. Geologia del Ecuador. Ministen’o de
sheet 10 (Jarna), 1 : 100 000.Dir. Gen. de Geol. y Minas, Educacibn, Quito. 383pp.
Quito. SIGAL, J. 1968. Estratigrafia micropaleontologica del
FAUCHER, B. & SAVOYAT, E. 1973. Esquisse gbologique des Ecuador. Seruicio Nacional
de Geologia Minena,
y
Andes de 1’Equateur. Reuue. Giogr. phys. Giol. dyn. 15, Quito.
115-142. SILLITOE, R. H. 1974. Tectonic segmentation of the Andes:
FEININGER, T. 1975. Origin of petroleum in the Oriente of implications for magmatism and metallogeny. Nature,
Ecuador. Bull. Am. Ass. Petrol. Geol. 59, 1166-1175. hnd.250, 542-545.
- 1977. Bouger anomaly map of Ecuador. Inst. Geogr. TSCX-IOPP, H. J. 1948. Geologische Skizze von Ecuador. Bull.
Militar, Quito. Verein.schweiz. Petrol. -Geol. U. -Zng. 15, 14-45.
%m, R. S . and MATSLJDA, T. 1964. Submarine equivalents - 1953. Oil explorations in theOriente of Ecuador.
of ash flows in the Tokiwa Formation, Japan. Am. J. Sci. Bull. Am. Ass. Petrol. Geol. 37, 2303-2347.
262, 76-106. WOLF,F. 1892. Geografia y geologia de Ecuador. Casa de la
FRANCIS, P. W.,MOORBATH, S. & THORPE, R. S . 1977. Cultura Ecuatoriana, Quito.
Strontium isotope data for recent andesites in Ecuador

Read 4 October 1978; received 4 May 1978; revisedtypescriptreceived 26

August 1978.
W. G. HFNDERSON,Institute of GeologicalSciences,Murchison House, West
Mains Rd., Edinburgh EH9 3LA.

DR R. BRISTOW writes: Mr Henderson is to be con- detract fromthe author’s main conclusions, but
gratulated onthe presentation of this stimulating neverthelessthey may have importantimplications
paper. In it much new information is presented and it concerning the timing and duration of arc activity in
allowsone of the first quantitative studies of arc Ecuador.
activity in Ecuador to be made. Basically, Mr. Hendersonbelieves thatthereare
However, I have to disagree with the interpretation three diachronous units-Macuchi Formation, Yun-
placed on some of the facts contained in this paper. guiUa Formation, and Cayo Rumi Member, which
These are stratigraphical queries which shouldnot range in age from Cretaceous to Eocene. I maintain
 Volcanic arc activity in the Andes of N. Ecuador 377
that there h no evidence of diachronism,only that be produced, i.e. Cretaceous rocks exposed in some
there are Eocene deposits, both marine and volcanic, places, and similar-looking Eocene rocks elsewhere.
which have a common lithology with Cretaceous de- This raises the question of nomenclature. The au-
posits, but separated from them by a time gapof some thor is here either introducing a new name, Macuchi
20 m.y. To take the Andean Yunguilla Formation, Formation, or enlarging the originalconcept of the
because it is the best documented, as an example: at a YunguillaFormationandCayoRumiMember, to
number of points (Loja, Cuenca, near Riobamba, and embrace the time interval Maastrichtian-Middle
at the Yunguillatypelocalityin the N) the black Eocene. I maintain that for each lithology there is a
flysch sediments of the formation are of Maastrichtian Cretaceous and an Eocene formation, each ofwhich
age; at one point only, near Pilal6, lithologically simi- needs to be carefully defined to avoid future confu-
lar rocks have been dated as Middle Eocene in age sion. Two of these units are already covered by the
(Bristow & Hoffstetter 1977, p. 350). Nowhere are existingnomenclature: the Yunguilla Formation, a
there flysch sediments of Palaeocene or Lower Eocene flysch faciesMaastrichtian sediment, and the Cayo
age, and it is thus impossible to demonstrate that the Rumi Member of that formation. The Eocene
Yunguilla Formation is diachronous from Maastrich- analoguFs in the Pilal6 area have yet to be formally
tian to Middle Eocene. named. The MacuchiFormationneeds to be re-
I think that the true sequence is represented by two stricted, presumably to the Eocene volcanics, and a
periods of arc activity and sedimentation, one Cretace- new name introduced for the Cretaceous volcanics-
ous and one Eocene. Unfortunately, in the Andes the this perhaps is covered by the Celica Formation.
two sequences are not seen in superposition, except
possibly inthe new Santo Doming0 road cutting where MR HENDERSON REPLIES:The above comments arise
basic rocks are overlain by Senonian sediments, which from a different interpretation of the stratigraphical
in turn are overlain by Macuchi volcanics (Savoyat er relationships in the Andes, and invokeonlyslight
al. 1970, Cuadro 126; Bristow & Hoffstetter 1977, pp. changes facies
in throughout the W. part of
81-2). However, I think that it is relevant to examine N. Ecuador. I consider, however,that in active volcanic
the better exposed and better known coastalsequence: regions accumulation of material is closely linked to
here the Cretaceous (pre-Aptian-Senonian) Piii6n many difEerent features (e.g. structure, tectonism, type
Formation is overlain by the Senonian-Maastrichtian of volcanism) which would vary throughout the vol-
Cayo Formation (Bristow1975). The upper part of the canic belt. At any one time, therefore, strong facies
Cayo Formation, the Guayaquil Member, is of Maas- changes may be expected not only across the trend of
trichtian age and very similar in lithologyto the Yun- any volcanic chain but also parallel to it. Dr. Bristow,
guilla Formation. Onthe margin of the Progreso Basin on the other hand, in refemng to the Cretaceous
the Guayaquil Member is overlain with apparent con- to Eocene formations of the Andes maintains that:
formity by well-bedded calcilutites. These calcilutites, ‘. . .there is no evidence of diachronism . . .’
which locally pass into bedded limestones, have been But there is. The flysch-like YunguillaFormation, in
dated as Middle Eocene and are knownas the San its type locality between Nono and Mindo, is Maas-
Eduardo Formation. There is thus a 20 m.y. gap be- trichtian and is underlain by a 5.5 km thick succession
tween the two formations. In the absence of fauna, of volcaniclastic rocks,the Silante Formation, which in
earlier geologistsgrouped the two deposits as one; turn rests on Macuchi Formation volcanics (Longo er
there is now no question of uniting these two, not al. 1978). On the Riobamba to Guaranda road, how-
dissimilar, short-ranged formations into on? long- ever, the Yunguilla Formation, again reliably dated as
ranging formation. Further N. in the Manabl Basin, Maastrichtian, is underlain not by the Silante Forma-
where the Piii6n is alsooverlain by Maastrichtian tion but by the MacuchiFormation (see Fig. 3 in
sediments, the Piii6n and these sediments are cut by paper). The top of the Macuchi Formation, therefore,
Palaeocene and Lower Eocene basaltic dykes (Goos- has to be diachronous, and, since the Silante was being
sens & Rose 1973). These dykes and the Piii6n (and deposited at the same timeas part of the Macuchi
by inference the sediments of the Cayo Formation) Formation, strong lateral facieschangesmusthave
havebeenunited under the name [Basic] Igneous taken place. At present it is not possible to demon-
Complex (Goosens 1968; Goossens & Rose 19731, strate diachroneity in the Yunguilla Formation, but I
an unwieldy name which luckily has now fallen into suggest that Dr Bristow is precipitate instating:
disuse (Bristow & Hoffstetter 1977). The importance ‘Nowhere are there flysch sediments of Palaeocene or
of this coastal stratigraphy is to show that there was a Lower Eocene age’; in N. Ecuador only 3 sections
Cretaceous period of igneousactivity(Pifion) and have provided reliable dates for the Yunguilla Forma-
sedimentation (Cayo) followed byan Eocene period of tion.
igneousactivity
(dykes) and sedimentation (San Dr Bristowderives support for hismodelby at-
Eduardo). If this coastal sequence were covered with a tempting to show that 2 cycles of igneous activity and
layer of thick volcanic debris, and then partially dis- sedimentation occur on the Costa. However, he has
sected, a situation similar to that in the Andes would managed to create these cycles by quoting only part of
378 W. G. Henderson
the age data of Goossens & Rose (1973),ignoMg 2
whole-rock age determinations of 74 f 10Ma and 72 f
6 Ma (Campanian) on a basalt from within his sup-
p e d Cretaceous sedimentation cycle. He also omits
the evidence of Evans & Argue110 (1977) that basal-
tic necks occur within the Cayo Formation (Senonian)
in the Jamadistrict. Evidencefor an ‘Eocene period of
igneousactivity’ is drawn fromthe occurrence of
scattered dykes giving 65 f 5 Ma (earliest Palaeocene)
and 56+4 Ma (Palaeocene/Eocene boundary. Data
from Analyst’s Report, quoted in part by Goossens
& Rose 1973).
The comparisons of the igneous activity and
sedimentation between Costa and Andes proposed by
Dr Bristow are oversimplified. The Cayo Formation
(Senonian) of the Costa comprises an epiclastic sequ-
ence, in part derived from a volcanicsource, but in the
Andes,and especially in theSanto Domingoroad
section, Senonian sediments include huge volumes of
redeposited tu& with intercalated lavas. Here again,
then, largefacieschanges are operating, inthisin-
stance between Costa and Andes, as they must again
in the Palaeocene and Eocene when the few dykes,
carbonates, and epiclastic rocks of the Costa contrast
with the vastaccumulation of lavas,volcaniclastic
rocks,and flysch-like sediments of the Andes. Because
of these demonstrably important changesinfacies
between the two regions, it cannot be valid to chal-
lenge stratigraphy in theAndes usingrelationships
deduced from the Costa.
The main point against Dr Bristow’s model is that
mapping at 1:100 000 scale (Sheets 46,47,48,49,50,
66, and 67) shows the Macuchi Formation of Eocene
age around Macuchi to be in continuitywith pre-
Maastrichtian Macuchi volcanics both to the N. (e.g.
Santo Domingo road section) and the S . (Guaranda).
No sediments attributable to either the Silante Forma-
tion (up to 5.5 km thick) or the YunguiUa Formation
(up to 3-5km thick) have been found tointervene, and
there is no evidence for the large faults or important
unconformity that would be needed to explain their
non-appearance. Erosion is no explanation since
nowhere is the Macuchi Formation eroded through to
a basement: indeed no basement to the formation is
known.
Finally nomenclatureof lithostratigraphic units must
be based on lithostratigraphy, not chronostratigraphy.
To restrict a poorly-fossiliferous formationto one time
interval (e.g. the Yunguilla to the Maastrichtian) is
contrary to modem stratigraphical practice. New work
could show that such a formation contains rocks out-
side the defined time interval, and additional names
would then have to be introduced for the same litho-
stratigraphical unit. To attempt toprovide a new name
for the Cretaceous part of the Macuchi Formation,
whichincidentallyisremarkablysimilar to Eocene
Macuchi, is to invite confusion; there are no known
geologicalboundariesdividingCretaceousMacuchi
from Eocene Macuchi. The Celica Formation, as out-
lined in mypaper, appem to belithologidy different
to the Macuchi andthe name would not besuitable for
use in N. Ecuador.
Although I would readily agreethat modifications to
the stratigraphical model proposed in my paper might
becomenecessarywith the advent of morereliable
data, Dr Bristow’s proposals do notprovide a satisfac-
tory alternative.
References (additional)
Goass-, P. S. 1968. La geologfa de la costa
ecuatorianaentre Manta y Guayaquil. Bol. Esrudim
geob5gicos, Sem. NW. Geol. Min., Quito, No. 1, 5-17.
LONGO, R. HENDERSON, W. G., SoSA, J. & SALAZAR. E.
1978. Geological map of sheet 65NE (Nono). 1 :50 000.
Dir. Gm de Geol. y Minas, Quito.
SAVOYAT,E., V -, R., SIGAL,J., M m = , C.,
GRANJA,J. & GUEVARA,G. 1970. Formaciones
sedimentariasde la Sierra tednica andina en e1
Ecuador. Inst. Fmnch P e b 6 b ; Scm. Nac. Geol. Min.,
Quito.