Can be diagnosed by the combination of the following characters: eye large, the orbit width exceeding both the snout length and the interorbital width; scaled ventral keel behind the pelvic fins along the abdomen to the anus, commonly 43-47 lateral line scales to posterior margin of hypurals; 2.5-4.2 pharyngeal teeth; dorsal fin usually with 8½ branched rays; anal fin with 10-12½ branched rays; 40-41 total vertebrae, and the caudal vertebral region equal or longer then the abdominal with region, vertebral formulae 20+20 or 20+21 (Ref. 81462).

Description: Dorsal fin unbranched rays commonly 3, dorsal fin branched rays 7½ or 8½ (mean 7.9), anal fin unbranched rays 3, anal fin branched rays 10½ , 11½ , 12½ ; branched pectoral fin rays 13, 14 or 15; pelvic fin branched rays 7. Lateral line scales to posterior margin of hypurals 41-49. Total gill rakers in the outer row on first left arch 6-9. Total vertebrae including 4 Weberian vertebrae and last complex centrum 40 or 41 (Ref. 81462).