This species is distinguished from its congeners by having the following characters: rostral plate single (vs. paired, but variably single in insperatus, luteofrenatus, oliveirai, karipuna); differs from its congeners (except luteofrenatus, piracanjuba, scaius) by having more numerous premaxillary teeth, 20-28 (vs. 6-19) and (except with luteofrenatus, scaius)

with more numerous dentary teeth, 19-25 (vs. 4-18); differs from luteofrenatus, coxipone by having fewer plates in median lateral series, 22-24 (vs. 25-27), from oliveirai, paresi by having more numerous lateral abdominal plates, 6-8 (vs. 4-5 and 4-6, respectively); further differs from insperatus, sabaji, sagarana by having a single series of large median ventral plates (vs. usually three or more regular series of median ventral plates, or small plates irregularly distributed); differs from piracanjuba, scaius by having a longer caudal penduncle, 27.0-31.6% SL (vs. 20.6-25.0 and 25.4-26.8% SL, respectively) and from luteofrenatus, oliveirai by having narrower cleithral width, 22.3-23.7% SL (vs. 23.-25.2 and 23.8-26.8% SL, respectively); further diagnosed from the geographically closer species C. karipuna, by having a shorter head, 29.2-35% SL (vs. 36.4-44.1% HL), larger suborbital depth, 23.0-26.1% HL (vs. 13.3-22.9% HL), total vertebrae 29 (vs. 27-28), more numerous premaxillary teeth 20-28 (vs. 11-17), and at least 5% genetic distance in gene coI (Ref. 130866).