The Candamo antiformal stack, Madre de Dios Basin, Peru

In the Madre de Dios Basin of Peru, seismic profiles calibrated by surface geological data and the Candamo well highlight one of the most important antiformal stacks of the Subandean foothills. The Candamo antiformal stack is composed of four main horses involving Paleozoic and Mesozoic sediments. Shortening is accommodated in the Paleogene silty and sandy roof thrust-sequence by a second-level duplex, above which two passive back-thrusts and one fore-thrust are developed. Both duplexes controlled the propagation of a Neogene frontal syncline. The structural interpretation is validated by a restorable regional cross section that recorded a minimum horizontal shortening of 65km. The Candamo antiformal stack development is associated with high rate of Cenozoic sedimentation, which likely played an important role in thrust kinematics. A Permian structure, known as the Madidi Arch, probably controlled the propagation of the thrusts system in the Paleozoic sedimentary wedge.