This species is distinguished from its congeners by the following characters: dorsal head profile in lateral view 'S' curved, concave above the eye and convex at the nape; posterior angle of jaws extends to, or close to, vertical line drawn through anterior edge of anterior nostril; infraorbital invagination below anterior half of eye or below mideye; posterior opercular edge with 2 tips, the upper longer or equal to lower; longitudinal infralateral and suborbital transversal rows of superficial neuromasts located in the well-defined deep groove; body cross-section behind pectoral fin base half oval to pentagonal with a straight ventral side; body granules shallow and inconspicuous; pectoral rays 13-16; upper attachment of disc membrane attached to base of pectoral fin at 12th-15th pectoral ray; principal caudal rays 10-11; head length 19.5-22.9% of SL: pectoral-fin length 5.6-7.5% of SL; prepectoral distance 19.5-23.4% of SL; ventral adhesive disc length, 12.1-14.6% of SL; caudal-fin length 11.1-12.7% of SL; large total number of vertebrae 39-40; pharyngeal jaws with elongated ceratobranchial 5, with several larger elongated conical teeth; nasal bones hook-shaped; star-like pigmentation around eyes absent, pigmentation generally reduced (Ref. 123696).