THE USE OF PLANT INDICATORS IN GROUND WATER SURVEYS, GEOLOGIC MAPPING, AND MINERAL PROSPECTING

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Abstract
Summary: The use of vegetation in interpreting geological phenomena is becoming an important tool in the search for ore deposits that are buried under thick soil cover or layers of unmineralized rock. Species assemblages and plant density are useful in mapping geologic strata of different chemical composition and reservoir capacity. Hidden ore deposits can be located through chemical analysis of plant tissue, by mapping the distribution of species, and by observing toxic effects caused by an excess of metals as well as signs of faulty nutrition or deranged metabolism in plants whose roots are in contact with ore.Plant indicators of ore deposits may be species that are adapted to living exclusively on rocks or soils that supply unusual amounts of a particular element, or they may be species of wide distribution that favor mineralized ground under certain local conditions because of a change in acidity or availability of major plant constituents. Plants that are not highly tolerant of metals in an ore assemblage may exhibit toxicity symptoms or be completely absent over ore.Geobotanical techniques of mapping indicator plant species and communities, combined with observation of changes in plant appearance can aid the geologist in prospecting for hidden ore deposits.