This species differs from other congeners, except intermedia and dichroura by the following combination of characters: presence of a black posterior margin on each caudal-fin lobe, and presence of a black lozenge-shaped pigment blotch on the caudal peduncle that extends to the posterior limit of the median caudal-fin rays; the short 7 gill rakers on the upper limb of the first gill arch distinguish bonita from the 2 similar species that possess 10 elongate gill rakers on the upper limb an d18 on the lower limb of the first gill arch (Ref. 51265).