e-ReefNews, Vol. 6, No. 3 - Barred Hamlet Hovers over Star Corals at Kissimmee Wreck Reef, Cayman Brac

Volume 6 Number 3

Barred Hamlet Hovers over Star Corals
at Kissimmee Wreck Reef, Cayman Brac

Barred Hamlet Hovers over Star Corals at Kissimmee Wreck Reef, Cayman Brac

This little Barred Hamlet is common at many of the tropical coral reefs of the Caribbean. It was about 6 inches long.

Hamlets of all kinds are usually found lurking quietly near the reef among the corals. I've never seen them swim very fast. Hamlets are related to Groupers, the huge fish that lurk between the corals waiting for smaller fish to come to them to be eaten. Compare this Barred Hamlet to the Nassau Grouper, and decide how they are similar and how they are different.

I always wonder why a little fish like this would have so many bright blue stripes on its snout and near its eyes. Can you imagine what advantage these stripes might give to a little fish near the reef?

Compare this Barred Hamlet to another picture of a Barred Hamlet on the ReefNews website, at
http://www.reefnews.com/reefnews/news/v04n09/barred.html

ReefNews photographer Jonathan Dowell took this photo using a Canon A2 camera with a Canon 28-105 mm zoom lens in an Ikelite housing with an Ikelite strobe.

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