Ontario Mineral Inventory

Ontario Geological Survey
Permanent Link to this Record: MDI42C13SW00016

Record: MDI42C13SW00016

General

Commodities

Primary Commodities: Zinc, Lead, Silver

Secondary Commodities: Copper, Gold

Location

Township or Area: Wabikoba Lake Area

Latitude: 48° 47' 7.18"    Longitude: -85° 56' 48.79"

UTM Zone: 16    Easting: 577357.27   Northing: 5404126.89    UTM Datum: NAD83

Resident Geologist District: Thunder Bay South

NTS Grid: 42C13SW

Point Location Description: Several small pits and trenches

Location Method: Field Visit

Access Description: The Kusins zinc-lead-silver occurrence is located approximately 38.5 km south-southwest of Manitouwadge and 12.5 km north-northeast of Hemlo. The occurrence is situated on the northwest side of a small (30 m high) hill approximately 700 m north and 950 m west of the confluence of Amwri Creek with the Black River.The occurrence is accessible via motor vehicle followed by travel on foot. From Manitouwadge, travel south along Highway 614 for approximately 25.6 km to the Swede logging road. Proceed south-southwest along the Swede logging road for approximately 23.5 km to where the base line of a grid (originally cut in 1988, and partially recut in 1991) intersects the road. Proceed northeast along the base line for approximately 1.6 km to wing line 27E (87E on the original grid). Proceed northwest along wing line 27E for approximately 210 m to the vicinity of the occurrence. Several pits and trenches exposing sulphides are located immediately to the west (within 100 m) of wing line 27E in this area.

Exploration History

1964: Prospecting, stripping and trenching; prospectors W. Kusins and G. Ihnatko. This work exposed Zn-, Pb- and Ag-bearing sulphide mineralization. 1965: Line cutting, ground geophysical and soil geochemical surveys, diamond drilling (6 shallow holes); Cominco. Geological mapping; ODM (V.G. Milne). 1966: trenching; prospectors W. and T. Kusins. 1978-1979: Lake sediment and water geochemical sampling; GSC and MNR. Samples collected from the vicinity of the occurrence contained slightly anomalous amounts of Cu, Zn and Pb. 1983: Linecutting, ground geophysical (MAG) and soil geochemical surveys; Noranda Exploration Co., Ltd. Airborne geophysical survey (HLEM, VLF-EM, MAG); Aerodat Ltd. 1984: Geological mapping and lithogeochemical sampling; Noranda Exploration Co., Ltd. 1988: Geological mapping and soil geochemical sampling; Dolphin Explorations Ltd. 1989: Dighem airborne geophysical survey; Noranda Exploration Co., Ltd. and Noranda Minerals Inc. (Geco Division). 1991: Reconnaissance till sampling; GSC (I.M. Kettles). Lithogeochemical sampling; OGS (D. B. McKay). 1991-1992: Line cutting, stripping, trenching, lithogeochemical sampling, geological mapping and ground geophysical surveys (MAG, VLF-EM, Beep-Mat); prospectors D. Saunders and P. Simoneau. 2010: B. Fowler carried out mag and VLF-EM surveys, prospecting, and sampling.2012: Entourage Metals Ltd. carried out soil sampling, mapping, and prospecting.

Assessment Work on File

Geology

Province: Superior

Subprovince: Wawa

Terrane: Wawa-Abitibi

Belt: Schreiber-Hemlo

Geological Age: Archean  

Metamorphism Type: Regional

Metamorphism Grade: Amphibolite

Geology Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - The Kusins occurrence is located within the Wawa Subprovince along the north limb of the Schreiber-Hemlo greenstone belt approximately 8 km north of the Hemlo mining camp. The supracrustral rocks in the vicinity of the occurrence are moderately to strongly foliated (235 /60 NW) and have experienced upper amphibolite facies-grade regional metamorphism (Milne 1968, Simoneau 1992). The occurrence is underlain primarily by a northeast-trending sequence of foliated, amphibolitic, mafic metavolcanic schists and gneisses; siliceous, argillaceous metasedimentary rocks; and sericitic, felsic metavolcanic tuffs (Milne 1966, 1968; Kemp 1984; Hamilton 1989; Simoneau 1992). The occurrence is located on the northwest side of a low ridge at the contact between the argillaceous metasedimentary rocks and the felsic metavolcanic tuffs (Simoneau 1992). The Gowan Lake and Cedar Lake plutons are located approximately 225 m northwest and 3 km southeast of the occurrence, respectively (Milne 1966; Milne 1968, Map 2144). In the vicinity of the occurrence, the supracrustal rocks proximal to the contact with the Gowan Lake Pluton have been brecciated (Simoneau 1992). The Bullring Lake Fault, a major west-northwest trending dextral fault, is located approximately 305 m south of the occurrence (Milne 1968; Simoneau 1992). Several Proterozoic diabase dikes have intruded the supracrustral rocks in the vicinity of the occurrence. Six pits, varying in size up to approximately 7 m long by 2 m wide by 2.5 m deep have been blasted into the occurrence. These pits are largely rubble-filled and overgrown by vegetation. For reference purposes, the pits have been numbered sequentially in a clockwise pattern to correspond with the numbering system initiated by Milne (1968b). Pits 1 to 3 are located primarily within theargillaceous metasediments while pits 4 to 6 are primarily withinthe felsic metavolcanic tuffs. Sulphides are exposed in all of the pits.

Mar 14, 2019 (Therese Pettigrew) - Sampling carried out by B. Fowler in 2010 from the Kusins pit area returned results up to 0.77% Zn, 0.73% Pb, 1.7 g/t Ag, and 143 ppb Au (Assessment report 20000005821).

Lithology

Lithology Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - The argillaceous metasediments are generally fine-grained, dark to light gray, thinly laminated, siliceous phyllites and schists. The felsic metavolcanic tuffs are generally fine- to medium-grained, light tan to buff, thinly laminated, quartz-phyric, quartzofeldspathic sericite schists. The main mineralized zone is hosted within the argillaceous metasediments.

Mineralization

Mineralization Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - The sulphides consist primarily of fine- to coarse-grained, generally euhedral pyrite with minor amounts of fine- to medium-grained, dark brown, anhedral sphalerite, coarse-grained, euhedral galena and rare, medium-grained, anhedral chalcopyrite. The sulphides, exposed in pits 1 to 3, define a mineralized zone approximately 3 m wide and 15 m long which parallels the foliation of the surrounding rocks (235 /60 NW). Disseminated pyrite occurs throughout this zone. Two thin (30 cm wide), foliation-parallel seams, composed primarily of semi-massive to massive pyrite, occur within the central portion of this mineralized zone. Some of the sulphides display evidence of having undergone recrystallization and remobilization. The coarse-grained pyrite in the central portion of the mineralized zone often displays an annealed texture. Narrow (1 to 2 mm wide) veinlets of fine-grained sphalerite containing minor galena crosscut the semi-massive sulphide zone exposed in pit 2. Thin seams (3 mm wide) of massive pyrite crosscut wider, pyrite-rich sulphide seams exposed in pit 3. These crosscutting pyrite seams parallel a major joint direction (295 ) in the surrounding host rocks (Milne 1968). Galena and sphalerite were only observed in pits 2 and 3. The galena was often associated with narrow, crosscutting, calcite-rich, quartz-carbonate veins within the central portion of the mineralized zone. Grab samples collected from the occurrence in 1991 by D.B. McKay for the OGS returned assay values which varied from nil to 0.024 ounce Au/ton, nil to 0.20 ounce Ag/ton, 0.003 to 0.022% Cu, 0.002 to 3.822% Zn and <0.001 to 1.512% Pb. A grab sample collected by prospector P. Simoneau in 1991 returned assay values of 10.7% Zn, 8.9% Pb and 2.5 ounce Ag/ton. A 0.80 m long chip sample collected by the same prospector is reported to have contained 0.84% Zn, 0.13% Pb and 1.8 ounce Ag/ton.

Alteration Comments

Dec 07, 2005 (D McKay) - The galena is often associated with narrow, crosscutting, calcite-rich, quartz-carbonate veins within the central portion of the mineralized zone.

Mineral Record Details

References

Map - Black River area, southwest part, District of Thunder Bay

Publication Number: P0334 Scale: 1:31,680    Date: 1997

Author: Milne V.G.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

MonoMap - Geology of the Black River area, District of Thunder Bay

Publication Number: R072 Date: 1968

Author: Milne V.G.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Map - Manitouwadge sheet, districts of Thunder Bay and Algoma, geological compilation series

Publication Number: P0494 Scale: 1:126,720    Date: 1997

Author: Milne V.G.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Mono - Copper, nickel, lead and zinc deposits of Ontario

Publication Number: MDC012 Page: 347  Date: 1969

Author: Shklanka R.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

File - Schreiber-Hemlo Resident Geologist Mineral Deposit Files

Publication Number: Min Dep Date:

Author:

Publisher Name:

Location: Thunder Bay RGP

Map - Gowan Lake sheet, Thunder Bay District

Publication Number: M2144 Scale: 1:31,680    Date: 1968

Author: Milne V.G.

Publisher Name: Ontario Dept. of Mines

Location:

Map - Manitouwadge-Wawa sheet, geological compilation series, Algoma, Cochrane, Sudbury and Thunder Bay districts

Publication Number: M2220 Scale: 1:253,440    Date: 1972

Author: Milne V.G., Giblin P.E., Bennett G., Thurston P.C., Wolfe W.J., Giguere J.F., Leahy E.J., Rupert R.J.

Publisher Name: Ontario Division of Mines

Location:

Map - Geological series, Precambrian geology, White Lake (Hemlo) area, Dotted Lake and Black River sections, District of Thunder Bay

Publication Number: P3046 Scale: 1:15,840    Date: 1986

Author: Siragusa G.M., Chivers K.M.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

Mono - Mineral Occurrences in the Manitouwadge Area, Volumes 1, 2 and 3

Publication Number: OFR5906 Page: 134-145  Date: 1994

Author: McKay D.B.

Publisher Name: Ontario Geological Survey

Location:

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For detailed information regarding this mineral record please contact the Thunder Bay South Resident Geologist District Office