Mauritanide Belt
Ancient orogen parallel to the west coast of Africa from Morocco to Guinea-Bissau
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Pangaea_%28230_million_years_ago%29.png/350px-Pangaea_%28230_million_years_ago%29.png)
The Mauritanide Belt is an ancient orogen running parallel to the west coast of Africa from Morocco to Guinea-Bissau. The orogeny that formed the Mauritanide Belt was active between 320 and 270 million years ago in the Carboniferous and Permian. During this time period the eastern nappes of the belt thrust over rocks of Devonian age in the Taoudeni Basin. During the Triassic the Mauritanide Belt was split from the Appalachian Mountains (with which it was previously a single orogen) as the Atlantic Ocean opened.[1]
References
- ^ Villeneuve, Michel (2005). "Paleozoic basins in West Africa and the Mauritanide thrust belt". Journal of African Earth Sciences. 43 (1–3): 166–195. doi:10.1016/j.jafrearsci.2005.07.012.
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Major African geological formations
- Major plates: African Plate
- Minor plates: Somali Plate
- Microplates: Lwandle Plate
- Madagascar Plate
- Rovuma Plate
- Seychelles Plate
- Victoria Microplate
- Aswa Dislocation
- Broodkop Shear Zone
- Central African Shear Zone
- Chuan Shear Zones
- Foumban Shear Zone
- Kandi Fault Zone
- Mwembeshi Shear Zone
- Todi Shear Zone
- Western Meseta Shear Zone
- Afar Triangle
- Anza trough
- Bahr el Arab rift
- Benue Trough
- Blue Nile rift
- East African Rift
- Gulf of Suez Rift
- Lamu Embayment
- Melut Basin
- Muglad Basin
- Red Sea Rift
- Sangha Aulacogen
- Atbara rift
- Urema Valley
- West and Central African Rift System
- White Nile rift
- Angola Basin
- Aoukar
- Blue Nile Basin
- Chad Basin
- Congo Basin
- Douala Basin
- El Djouf
- Karoo Basin
- Gabon Basin
- Iullemmeden Basin
- Kufra Basin
- Murzuq Basin
- Niger Delta Basin
- Ogaden Basin
- Orange River Basin
- Ouled Abdoun Basin
- Owambo Basin
- Reggane Basin
- Rio del Rey Basin
- Sirte Basin
- Somali Coastal Basin
- Taoudeni Basin
- Tanzania Coastal Basin
- Tindouf Basin
- Turkana Basin
- Aïr Mountains
- Atlas Mountains
- Aurès Mountains
- Bambouk Mountains
- Blue Mountains
- Cameroon line
- Central Pangean Mountains
- Chaillu Mountains
- Drakensberg
- Eastern Arc Mountains
- Eastern Rift mountains
- Ethiopian Highlands
- Great Escarpment
- Great Karas Mountains
- Guinea Highlands
- Hoggar Mountains
- Imatong Mountains
- Jebel Uweinat
- Loma Mountains
- Mandara Mountains
- Marrah Mountains
- Mitumba Mountains
- Nuba Mountains
- Rif Mountains
- Rwenzori Mountains
- Sankwala Mountains
- Serra da Leba
- Serra da Chela
- Teffedest Mountains
- Tibesti Mountains
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