Hypoplectrus

Hypoplectrus
Hypoplectrus puella
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Perciformes
Family:	Serranidae
Genus:	Hypoplectrus T. N. Gill, 1861
Type species
Plectropoma puella Cuvier, 1828 [1]
Species
see text

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. ^[2]

Species

There are currently 20 recognized species in this genus:

Species	Common name	Image
Hypoplectrus aberrans Poey, 1868	Yellowbelly hamlet
Hypoplectrus affinis (Poey, 1861)	Bluelip hamlet
Hypoplectrus atlahua Tavera & Acero P, 2013	Jarocho hamlet [3]
Hypoplectrus castroaguirrei Del-Moral-Flores, J. L. Tello-Musi & J. A. Martínez-Pérez, 2012
Hypoplectrus chlorurus G. Cuvier, 1828	Yellowtail hamlet
Hypoplectrus ecosur Victor, 2012	Spotted hamlet
Hypoplectrus espinosai Puebla, Aguilar-Perera, Robertson & Domínguez-Domínguez, 2025
Hypoplectrus floridae Victor, 2012	Florida hamlet
Hypoplectrus gemma Goode & T. H. Bean, 1882	Blue hamlet
Hypoplectrus gummigutta Poey, 1851	Golden hamlet
Hypoplectrus guttavarius Poey, 1852	Shy hamlet
Hypoplectrus indigo Poey, 1851	Indigo hamlet
Hypoplectrus liberte Victor & Marks 2018	Striped hamlet [4]
Hypoplectrus maculiferus Poey, 1871
Hypoplectrus maya Lobel, 2011	Maya hamlet
Hypoplectrus nigricans Poey, 1852	Black hamlet
Hypoplectrus providencianus Acero P & Garzón-Ferreira, 1994	Masked hamlet
Hypoplectrus puella G. Cuvier, 1828	Barred hamlet
Hypoplectrus randallorum Lobel, 2011	Tan hamlet
Hypoplectrus unicolor Walbaum, 1792	Butter hamlet

References

1. Fricke, Ron; Eschmeyer, William N. & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Hypoplectrus". Catalog of Fishes . California Academy of Sciences . Retrieved 1 September 2020.
2. Bernal, M.A.; Rocha, L.A. (2012). "Speciation with Gene Flow in Coral Reef Fishes". In: Steller. D., Lobel. L., Eds. Diving for Science 2012. Proceedings of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences, 31st Symposium. Archived from the original on November 18, 2013.
3. Tavera, J.; Acero P., A. (2013). "Description of a new species of Hypoplectrus (Perciformes: Serranidae) from the Southern Gulf of Mexico". aqua, International Journal of Ichthyology. 19 (1): 29–38.
4. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Hypoplectrus liberte". FishBase . May 2025 version.