''Hypoplectrus'' is a genus of fishes commonly known as hamlets, found mainly in

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. Co ...

s in the

Caribbean Sea The Caribbean Sea ( es, Mar Caribe; french: Mer des Caraïbes; ht, Lanmè Karayib; jam, Kiaribiyan Sii; nl, Caraïbische Zee; pap, Laman Karibe) is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico ...

and the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an oceanic basin, ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of ...

, particularly around

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

and the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

. They are a popular choice for hobbyist saltwater aquariums, and come in a variety of colors.

Species

There are currently 17 recognized species in this genus: * '' Hypoplectrus aberrans'' Poey, 1868 (Yellowbelly hamlet) * '' Hypoplectrus atlahua''

Tavera Tavera is a commune in the Corse-du-Sud department of France on the island of Corsica. Population Transport The town is served by a station on the Corsican Railways. See also *Communes of the Corse-du-Sud department An intent ...

& Acero P, 2013 (Jarocho hamlet) 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.'' * '' Hypoplectrus castroaguirrei'' Del-Moral-Flores, J. L. Tello-Musi & J. A. Martínez-Pérez, 2012 * '' Hypoplectrus chlorurus''

G. Cuvier Jean Léopold Nicolas Frédéric, Baron Cuvier (; 23 August 1769 – 13 May 1832), known as Georges Cuvier, was a French naturalist and zoologist, sometimes referred to as the "founding father of paleontology". Cuvier was a major figure in nat ...

, 1828 (Yellowtail hamlet) * ''

Hypoplectrus ecosur ''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 ...

Victor The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

, 2012 * ''

Hypoplectrus floridae ''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 ...

, 2012 * '' Hypoplectrus gemma'' Goode & T. H. Bean, 1882 (Blue hamlet) * ''

Hypoplectrus gummigutta ''Hypoplectrus gummigutta'', commonly called the golden hamlet, is a species of marine ray-finned fish. They are sea bass from the subfamily Serraninae and the greater family Serranidae, which also includes the groupers and anthias. The golde ...

'' Poey, 1851 (Golden hamlet) * ''

Hypoplectrus guttavarius The shy hamlets (''Hypoplectrus guttavarius'') are small Western Atlantic serranids of the genus Hypoplectrus, which belong to the subclass perciformes in the class Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes). To this date, seventeen species of the genus ...

'' Poey, 1852 (Shy hamlet) * ''

Hypoplectrus indigo ''Hypoplectrus indigo'', the indigo hamlet, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a sea bass from the subfamily Serraninae which is part of the family Serranidae, which also includes the groupers and anthias. It is found in the central weste ...

'' Poey, 1851 (Indigo hamlet) * ''

Hypoplectrus maculiferus ''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 ...

'' Poey, 1871 * ''

Hypoplectrus maya ''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 ...

'' Lobel, 2011 (Maya hamlet) * ''

Hypoplectrus nigricans ''Hypoplectrus nigricans'', the black hamlet, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a sea bass from the subfamily Serraninae which is part of the family Serranidae, which also includes the groupers and anthias. It is native to shallow parts ...

'' Poey, 1852 (Black hamlet) * ''

Hypoplectrus providencianus The masked hamlet (''Hypoplectrus providencianus'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a sea bass from the subfamily Serraninae which is part of the family Serranidae, which also includes the groupers and anthias. This species is found in ...

'' Acero P & Garzón-Ferreira, 1994 (Masked hamlet) * '' Hypoplectrus puella''

, 1828 (Barred hamlet) * '' Hypoplectrus randallorum'' Lobel, 2011 (Tan hamlet) * '' Hypoplectrus unicolor''

Walbaum Walbaum is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Johann Julius Walbaum (1724–1799), German physician, naturalist and taxonomist * Johannes Walbaum (born 1987), German footballer * Justus Erich Walbaum (1768-1837), German typ ...

, 1792 (Butter hamlet)

Reproduction

Hamlets are ''simultaneous

hermaphrodite In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrate ...

s'' (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.

References

Serraninae Fish of the Caribbean Fauna of the Southeastern United States Perciformes genera {{Serranidae-stub