Diagnosis: 85-90 movable mandibular teeth, forming a long series; head width 96.6-99.4% HL; postocular length at least 60% of snout length; maxillary barbels without a basal membrane, slightly longer than head length and reaching to base of pectoral spine; dorsal spine prolonged by a short filament, without serration along anterior edge and a few serrations along posterior edge; entire margin of opercle smooth; caudal fin without single dark patch at base of each fin lobe (Ref. 81251).

Description: external mandibular barbels short and simple, internal ones shorter and with branches but not tuberculate; snout rounded; lips well-developed with papillae; humeral process keeled, striated and pointed, longer than deep; adipose fin 1.5 times as long as its distance from dorsal fin and 3.5 times longer than deep; anal fin pointed anteriorly; pectoral spines strongly serrated with twice the serrations along anterior edge as along posterior edge; pelvic fin not reaching anal fin; caudal fin deeply forked, with equal lobes; caudal peduncle as long as deep (Ref. 81251).

Colouration: colouration brownish; caudal fin with some black spots arranged in 4-5 slender transverse series (Ref. 81251). It usually has dark brown or black flanks marbled with, irregularly shaped, light brown markings, but this colour pattern may be less conspicuous in light-coloured specimens (Ref. 126042).