This species is distinguished by the following characters: D VIII,9; pectoral fins 14-16; gill rakers 7-9 + 22-24 = 29-33; lateral line scales 33-35; body slightly elongated. Measurements as % SL: body depth at anal-fin origin 23-26; maximum head depth 22-25; head depth through eye 17-21; suborbital depth 9.0-12; head length 29-31; snout length 9.4-12; postorbital length 11-14; upper-jaw length 10-13; barbel length 15=20; barbel width 0.7-1.1; caudal-peduncle length 20-23; second dorsal-fin base length 13-16; caudal-fin length 27-30; length of anal-fin base 11-12; anal-fin height 14-16; pelvic fin length 17-21; pectoral-fin length 22-26; pectoral-fin width 4.5-5.9; first dorsal-fin height 20-24; dorsal-fin spines decreasing in height starting with second long spine; second dorsal-fin height 14-16. Colouration: caudal fin no bars; first dorsal fin with pale brown to yellowish tip in fresh specimens that may fade away when preserved; a yellow lateral body stripe in fresh fish at level of upper edge of eye, sometimes visible in preservative; barbels white when fresh, pale in preservative; head and body silvery-whitish ventrally and laterally and dark gray dorsally, pelvic fins yellowish at origin; when preserved, head and body rather uniformly pale to dark brown or dorsally darker and fins pale, except for weakly pigmented first dorsal-fin tip sometimes still retained (Ref. 138759).