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A diverse fish assemblage was reported from the Mazalovskiy Kitat and Alchedat beds (Givetian, Middle Devonian) of the Kuznetsk Basin (Siberia, Russia). Ptyctodontid and acanthothoracid placoderms; chondrichthyans such as the phoedodontiforms Phoebodus fastigatus and Ph. sophiae, the omalodontiform Omalodus grabaui, the cladodontomorph Cladodoides, euselachian Protacrodus, “Ohiolepis, and “Cladolepis”; Cheiracanthoides and acanthodiform acanthodians; actinopterygian Moythomasia; and struniiform sarcopterygians occur in the assemblage. The teeth of phoebodontiforms and omalodontiform are dominant among the fish microremains. The assemblage contains widely distributed taxa. The occurrences of Cladodoides and Protacrodus in the Givetian of Kuznetsk Basin are the oldest in the world.

Abstract The Chadobets alkaline-carbonatite complex (Siberian craton) is a natural laboratory for all varieties of ultramafic lamprophyres, including damtjernites formed by fluid-explosion mechanisms, which contain a large number of pelletal lapilli. Data obtained from comprehensive mineralogical, structural and chemical studies of these pelletal lapilli show strong similarity with the main magmatic mineral assemblage of damtjernites, suggesting a juvenile composition for them. The composition of phlogopite, carbonate and fluorapatite in pelletal lapilli is mostly constrained toward primitive compositions (beginning) of mineral crystallization trends in ultramafic lamprophyres. According to the petrographic and mineralogical features found in pelletal lapilli from damtjernites, these can be divided into three types based on the conditions and depth of formation. Estimated late magmatic temperatures of pelletal lapilli mica and fluorapatite formation vary from 815 to 990 °C.

The tectonomagmatic evolution of the Sangilen massif has been described in detail in numerous publications, but little attention was given to heat sources related to the HT/LP metamorphism. Modeling of the magma transport to the upper‐crust levels in West Sangilen shows that the NT/LP metamorphism is related to gabbromonodiorite intrusions. This article is focused on the thermo‐mechanical modeling of melting and lifting of melts in the crust, taking into account the density interfaces. The model of the Erzin granitoid massif shows that in case of fractional melting, the magma ascent mechanism is fundamentally different, as opposed to diapir upwelling – percolation take place along a magmatic channel or a system of channels. An estimated rate of diapiric rise in the crust amounts to 0.8 cm/yr, which is more than an order of magnitude lower than the rate of melt migration in case of fractional melting (25 cm/yr). In our models, a metamorphic thermal ‘anticline’ develops in stages that differ, probably, due to the modes of crust melting: batch melting occurs at the first stage, and fractional melting takes place at the second stage. It is probable that the change of melting modes from melting conditions in a ‘closed’ system to fractional melting conditions in ‘open’ systems is determined by tectonic factors. For the Sangilen massif, we have estimated the degrees of melting in the granulite, granite, and sedimentary‐metamorphic layers of the crust (6, 15, and 5 vol. %, respectively).

The history of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) was marked by several major events of magmatism which produced large volumes of volcanic and intrusive (mafic-ultramafic and granitic) rocks within a relatively short time span (30–40 Ma) over a vast area. The magmatic activity postdated the orogenic stages of accretionary-collisional belts in Central Asia and likely resulted from the impact of mantle plumes that formed Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs). The formation of the Tarim–South Mongolia LIP at 300–270 Ma is the best known among the major Permian events of basaltic and granitic magmatism. Early Permian igneous rocks (volcanic, subvolcanic and intrusive suites that vary from ultramafic to felsic compositions) of the same age range (300 to 270 Ma) have been recently found also in Eastern Kazakhstan, within the late Paleozoic Altai collisional system. The compositions and ages of the rocks suggest that the Eastern Kazakhstan magmatism was the northward expansion of the Tarim LIP. The spread of the Tarim LIP was apparently facilitated by lithospheric extension after the Siberia-Kazakhstan collision. The extension led to rheological weakening of the lithosphere whereby deep mantle melts could penetrate to shallower depths. The early Permian history of Eastern Kazakhstan was controlled by the interplay of plate tectonic and plume processes: plate-tectonic accretion and collision formed the structural framework, and the Tarim mantle plume was a heat source maintaining voluminous magma generation.

The origin and geodynamic settings of the Ust’-Sema Formation and the Barangol Complex are some of the most controversial issues in the Early Paleozoic history of the Altai–Sayan Fold Belt. The Ust’-Sema Formation volcanic rocks are enriched in high-Ca clinopyroxene phenocrysts and were classified as ankaramites and diopside porphyry basalts. In this work, we first present LA-ICP-MS analyses of the clinopyroxenes, along with studies of the petrography, mineral composition, and whole-rock chemistry of the Ust’-Sema Formation and related Barangol Complex rocks. An LA-ICP-MS clinopyroxene study showed a slight depletion of light rare-earth elements (La/Yb)N = 0.1–1.0 (on average 0.4); and strong depletion of the high-field-strength elements (Zr, Hf, and Nb) and large-ion lithophile (Rb) elements. An Sr anomaly showed a positive correlation with Mg#. Major- and trace-element composition of the clinopyroxene cores show that these clinopyroxene grains were not captured from the mantle rocks as previously assumed and that the Ust’-Sema Formation and the Barangol Complex rocks were formed from magma with island arc characteristics. The increased titanium and light rare-earth element contents in the phenocryst rims from Biyka volcano suggest an active interaction of the ankaramitic magma with rocks or melts of OIB type.