Resolving the Tectonic Setting of South China in the Late Paleozoic

The tectonic setting of South China during the late Paleozoic is essential to understanding the geodynamics off the eastern margin of Pangea supercontinent due to its unique paleo-position at the confluence of the Paleo-Tethys and Panthalassic oceans. Limited late Paleozoic magmatic and matemorphic records in South China have hampered resolution of this tectonic setting. Here, we present integrated biostratigraphic, geochronological, and isotope geochemical data on the late Carboniferous siliciclastic rocks from southeast South China in order to decipher the tectonic evolution of the South China Block. The sandstones were predominantly sourced from the Wuyi Terrane via short-distance transportation. Rapid exhumation of ca. 318 Ma plutonic rocks in the source region, evolution of source of magmatism, and continuous crustal thinning demonstrate that southeast South China underwent episodic lithospheric delamination triggered by thermal perturbation as a result of subduction of the paleo-Pacific plate beneath the South China Block in the late Paleozoic.