We provide new geochemical and isotope–geochronological evidence for gabbro intrusions of the Krestovsky zone in the Olkhon composite terrane. The intrusions belong to the Birkhin (~500 Ma) and Ust’-Krestovsky (~470 Ma) complexes, which underwent several pulses of magmatism. Rock structures and textures record magma crystallization in tectonically turbulent conditions. The compositions of gabbro are similar to those of subduction-related basalts, but the Ust’-Krestovsky gabbro is richer in incompatible elements than the Birkhin rocks. A similar composition trend of gabbro is observed in other areas of the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB): southeastern Tuva, Gornaya Shoria, and western Mongolia. We suggest a model of regular composition changes in parental magmas during the interaction of a mantle plume with suprasubductional lithospheric mantle.

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