maya hamlet
Hypoplectrus maya
Blue hamlet endemic to Belize, with mangrove roots, endangered by reef degradation and pollution.
Also called: badejo-maia, maya hamlet
- maximum
- 9 cm
who is the maya hamlet
The Maya hamlet belongs to the family Serranidae and reaches 8.7 cm. It is endemic to Belize, where it lives on shallow reefs and among mangrove roots, over seagrass beds. It tends to prey on small silvery fish, which gather by day among the roots. The threats are climate change, coral reef degradation and pollution, since it lives near densely populated coastal areas. It is caught commercially. Being endemic, it occurs only in Belize.
Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the maya hamlet; in the meantime, see the similar species.
fun facts
- Its color resembles that of a tunicate that grows on the same mangrove roots, which may be a form of camouflage.
identification
Deep, bright blue all over the body, without spots and without black edges on the fins, except on the upper and lower edges of the tail. Almost identical to the blue hamlet (Hypoplectrus gemma) of Florida and Yucatán, from which it differs only by those black tail edges. In Belize it differs from the bronze hamlet, which is light brown with snout spots, and from the black hamlet, which is almost entirely black. It has a short, deep body.
Loading the next 7 days…
Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
Essential profile: the index uses a general fish model (weather, sun, moon and tide), without a season or time of day specific to this species.
where found
In Latin America it is endemic to Belize, where it occurs on shallow reefs.
Habitat: Shallow reefs and mangrove roots over seagrass beds.
rules for the maya hamlet
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.
We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.
catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.
It poses no danger to the angler. It is a species threatened by reef degradation: release the fish if you catch one.
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01778, b = 3.03; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
—
sources and references
Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.
- scientific FishBase: Hypoplectrus maya (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
- scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Hypoplectrus mayaNames by country and language.
