| Diagnosis: |
Dorsal soft rays (total): 5-6; Anal soft rays: 4-4; Vertebrae: 19-19. This species is distinguished by the following characters: body disk oval, box-like and less depressed, relatively flabby; interorbital space broad (14.0–20.6% SL, mean 17.5%); all fins are gray to black, becoming paler with increased body size; rostrum rather blunt, well overhanging mouth, with small, simple to trifid tubercles; esca with three lobes, two rounded and well-separated ventral lobes and leaf-like dorsal lobe with pair of cirri at tip; ventral surface covered with simple tubercles, those on disk margin bifurcate, those on tail simple, with small tubercles interspersed among larger ones; subopercular tubercles are weakly developed, only slightly enlarged, divided into 3-5 small spines (Ref. 127411).
Description: disk markedly indented at rostrum; disk very short relative to SL; ventral side of disk and tail anterior to anal fin naked or without tubercles, except the lateral line scales on either side of anus; cephalic lateral line scale counts: preopercular 2; subopercular 5-6; dorsolateral branch of subopercular 1-3; supraorbital 3-4; lateral line scale counts on body 6-7, tail 9-11; short rostrum overlying the mouth, but not extending anterior margin of disk; eyes small; mouth subterminal; gill rakers small, cone-shaped with few teeth; fins strong and small; membrane between the pectoral pedicles and body reduced, the pectorals strongly elbowed (Ref. 40825). |
