No abstract

The work is a vivid description of the structural relationship between brittle deformation of the Precambrian basement in the southern continental part of the Cameroon Line and intrusive Paleozoic and Mesozoic basalt dykes swarms. A multidisciplinary approach that involves a combination of remote sensing techniques and field studies show that the major trend of brittle structures correspond to well-known regional structures: N70˚E (Adamawa Shear Zone), N135˚E (upper Benue trend) and N30˚E (Cameroon Volcanic Line) corresponding to E-W and N-S directions respectively. Basalt dykes are associated to NE-SW, E-W and NW-SE oriented fractures. An integration of the available information on brittle structures and basalt dykes directions suggest an emplacement of the Mesozoic and Paleozoic basalt dykes structurally controlled by Precambrian structures that were originated through Riedel's fracture kinematic model with dextral strike-slip Adamawa Shear Zone as the main shear zone during late stage of the Pan-African collision. Spatially, the restriction of the basalt dykes to the corridor of the Adamawa Shear Zone indicate that a rejuvenation of Precambrian faults may very well be the origin of the dykes with possibility that they may have been reworked several times during the Phanerozoic eon.

The existence of mafic bodies at mid crustal level beneath the Pan-African Central Cameroon Shear Zone is still a matter of debate. To provide additional constrains on this issue, the crust of the west region of Cameroon has been investigated using gravity data. Analyses of these data show N40-50˚E oriented iso-anomal contours in the Bafoussam area, interpreted as the N40-50˚E branch of the Central Cameroon Shear Zone. In addition, spectral analysis and 2.5D gravity modeling reveal intrusions of mafic bodies at depth between 3.2 and 14.2 km under N40-50˚E aligned volcanic centers, namely Mt Bambouto and Mt Mbapit. The above observations suggest a structurally controlled emplacement of the mafic bodies. In the light of the recent geophysical data, the interaction between the NE-ward channel flow operating at the bottom of the lithosphere or the asthenosphere upwelling and the Cameroon Shear Zone could better explain the magma upwelling in the upper crust. This result is the novelty of the present work.