Species: Hypoplectrus providencianus, Masked Hamlet

Hypoplectrus providencianus Acero P. & Garzón-Ferreira, 1994

Masked Hamlet

Head and body deep, strongly compressed; forehead straight; snout relatively short; top jaw protrusible; rear of top jaw exposed when mouth closed, without accessory bone above it; teeth fixed; preoperculum angular, serrated, several small forward pointing spines on lower edge near the corner; gill rakers 17-23; dorsal fin X, 14-17, no notch after spines, membranes between spines not indented; pelvics long, reach to or beyond anus; tail fin slightly forked; lateral line scales 48-53; soft dorsal and anal fins mostly scaleless.

Head and body very pale tan; a wedge-shaped black bar below the black eye; pectorals range from whitish with upper border black, to almost entirely black; the tail base may have a black saddle or all its rear 1/4 may be black; the tail fin usually is entirely black, but occasionally is pale grey with black upper and lower edges; dorsal & anal fins pale grey, sometimes with a blue cast; pelvics blue-grey to black.

Reaches 13 cm.

Lives on reefs.

Depth range: 7-15 m.

The Turks and Caicos to the Caribbean.