Hypoplectrus

Hypoplectrus is a genus of fishes commonly known as hamlets, found mainly in coral reefs in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, particularly around Florida and the Bahamas. They are a popular choice for hobbyist saltwater aquariums, and come in a variety of colors.

Reproduction

Hamlets are simultaneous hermaphrodites (or synchronous hermaphrodites): They have both male and female sexual organs at the same time as an adult, meaning that they function as a male and female, making them one of the few vertebrates that are male and female at the same time. They seem quite at ease mating in front of divers, allowing observations in the wild to occur readily. They do not practice self-fertilization, but when they find a mate, the pair takes turns between which one acts as the male and which acts as the female through multiple matings, usually over the course of several nights. Hamlets preferentially mate with individuals of their same color pattern.

Species

There are currently 20 recognized species in this genus:

Species	Common name	Image
Hypoplectrus aberrans Poey, 1868	Yellowbelly hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus aberrans, British Virgin Islands imported from iNaturalist photo 421127172 (cropped).jpg
Hypoplectrus affinis (Poey, 1861)	Bluelip hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus affinis, St John 00830, USVI imported from iNaturalist photo 476262937 (cropped).jpg
Hypoplectrus atlahua Tavera & Acero P, 2013	Jarocho hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus atlahua (10.3897-zookeys.882.38449) Figure 12 (cropped 2).jpg
Hypoplectrus castroaguirrei Del-Moral-Flores, J. L. Tello-Musi & J. A. Martínez-Pérez, 2012		File:Hypoplectrus castroaguirrei (10.3897-zookeys.882.38449) Figure 14 (cropped).jpg
Hypoplectrus chlorurus G. Cuvier, 1828	Yellowtail hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus chlorurus, Klein Bonaire North, Caribbean Netherlands imported from iNaturalist photo 357344873 (cropped).jpg
Hypoplectrus ecosur Victor, 2012	Spotted hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus ecosur in Madagascar Reef.jpg
Hypoplectrus espinosai Puebla, Aguilar-Perera, Robertson & Domínguez-Domínguez, 2025
Hypoplectrus floridae Victor, 2012	Florida hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus floridae (10.3897-zookeys.882.38449) Figure 2 (cropped).jpg
Hypoplectrus gemma Goode & T. H. Bean, 1882	Blue hamlet	File:Blue Hamlet.jpg
Hypoplectrus gummigutta Poey, 1851	Golden hamlet
Hypoplectrus guttavarius Poey, 1852	Shy hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus guttavarius - Wilhelma 01.jpg
Hypoplectrus indigo Poey, 1851	Indigo hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus indigo 255066682.jpg
Hypoplectrus liberte Victor & Marks 2018	Striped hamlet
Hypoplectrus maculiferus Poey, 1871
Hypoplectrus maya Lobel, 2011	Maya hamlet
Hypoplectrus nigricans Poey, 1852	Black hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus nigricans (10.3897-zookeys.882.38449) Figure 15 (cropped).jpg
Hypoplectrus providencianus Acero P & Garzón-Ferreira, 1994	Masked hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus providencianus imported from iNaturalist photo 255065977 on 24 May 2025 (cropped).jpg
Hypoplectrus puella G. Cuvier, 1828	Barred hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus puella, Cayman Islands imported from iNaturalist photo 339544388 (cropped).jpg
Hypoplectrus randallorum Lobel, 2011	Tan hamlet	File:Tan Hamlet.jpg
Hypoplectrus unicolor Walbaum, 1792	Butter hamlet	File:Hypoplectrus unicolor (10.3897-zookeys.882.38449) Figure 14 (cropped).jpg

References

Template:Serranidae-stub