This species has the following distinguishing characters: D X, 14; A III, 7; pectoral rays 16; lateral-line scales 36; gill rakers 13 + 30; body depth 2.7 in SL; head length (HL) 2.85 in SL; large eye, orbit diameter 3.1 in HL; long spine at angle of preopercle, reaching margin of subopercle; triangular and tri-Iobed vomerine tooth patch; teeth absent on mesopterygoids; scales dorsally on snout almost reaching upper lip; naked mandible; third dorsal spine elongate, 1.6 in HL; moderately prolonged as filaments are the rays of about anterior half of soft portion of dorsal fin, with the third ray longest; second anal spine is slightly longer than third, 2.1 in HL; deeply emarginate caudal fin, its lobes tapering little and not pointed, fin length 2.5 in SL; pectoral fins 1.2 in HL; pelvic fins reaching third anal spine base, 2.95 in SL; color when fresh is pale pink and yellow with a broad blackish yellow submaginal band in soft portion of dorsal fin, with caudal fin broadly yellow basally, the lobes and upper and lower margins bright pink (Ref. 57080).