Zircon ages for a felsic volcanic rock and arc-related early Palaeozoic sediments on the margin of the Baydrag microcontinent, central Asian orogenic belt, Mongolia

Magmatic zircons from the basal part of an arc terrane in the accretionary complex NE of the Baydrag microcontinental block in central Mongolia were dated at 544 ± 7 Ma and reflect arc magmatism at the Ediacaran/Cambrian boundary. Detrital zircon ages for clastic metasediments of the adjacent Dzag zone suggest a depositional age <445 ± 6 Ma and suggest that the zircons were not derived from the arc terrane which was probably not exposed in the Late Ordovician. The detrital age pattern is similar to the overall pattern for Mongolian detrital and xenocrystic zircons and suggests significant input from a Grenville-age source that could either be the Tarim craton or microcontinental blocks within the central Asian collage of arcs and microcontinents.

Research highlights
► We report detrital zircon ages for early Palaeozoic arc-related metasediments overlying the Precambrian Baydrag Block in west-central Mongolia.
► The zircon patterns exhibit age peaks also found in other parts of Mongolia, and a striking feature is a Grenville-age signature.
► The combined zircon age spectrum suggests significant input from a Grenville-age source that could either be the Tarim craton or microcontinental blocks within the central Asian collage of arcs and microcontinents.