Reply to “Comment on lsquo;A new estimate for Present‐day Cocos‐Caribbean plate motion: Implications for slip along the Central American volcanic arc’” by Marco Guzmãn‐Speziale and Juan Martín Gómez

Abstract

I thank Guzman‐Speziale and Gomez (GSG02) for their comments on DeMets (2001) (DM2001). GSG02 do not challenge the fundamental observation reported by DM2001, namely, that earthquake slip directions along the Middle America trench between western Guatemala and Costa Rica are rotated ∼10° clockwise relative to the Cocos‐Caribbean convergence direction. However, they dispute the interpretation that this oblique convergence causes dextral shear across the Central American forearc in this region [ White , 1991 ; DeMets , 2001 ]. Below, I address their reservations.