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Surface zooplankton samples were collected in a five-month schedule (February, March, May, August, and November 1991) off the eastern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, westernmost portion of the Caribbean Sea. A taxonomic analysis of the pelagic Hyperiidea yielded 58 species. Lestrigonus bengalensis, Eupronoe intermedia, and Brachyscelus crusculum were the overall dominant species and represented more than 75% of the pelagic amphipod specimens collected from the area. Amphipods were most abundant during May, with an average of 309 org./1000 m3; the minimum average density was recorded in November (62 org./1000 m3). Up to 90% of the total numbers of hyperiid amphipods, and most of the species recorded herein, were collected in night samples, thus agreeing with the general behaviour of the group as described in the literature. Some species were, however, recorded during the period of maximum daylight. Lestrigonus bengalensis, the most abundant species in our samples, has also been recorded as the most abundant in various other neritic and oceanic areas. This paper presents the first taxonomic and distributional information on this group in the westernmost part of the Caribbean Sea. The regional list of the group is expected to grow by sampling in deeper layers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]