Body elongate, moderately compressed; snout sharp, profile from tip of snout to dorsal origin straight; lower jaw strongly projecting; mouth reaches to under middle of eye, large (25% of head length); space between eyes convex, ridged; preopercle regularly serrated, no spur with enlarged spines; 9 lower gill rakers; dorsal X, 12, both sections low; anal III, 7, 2nd spine strongest, ~ same length as 3rd; pelvics inserted before pectoral base; tail concave, upper tip longer; pectorals reach to anus; scales rough, relatively large, 11 rows on cheek, 58 lateral line scales.
Head and body red, breast orange; a few small pale spots on cheek and opercle; front of back with indistinct dark and light speckles; a square black spot on body below front of soft dorsal fin, from lateral line to bases of several rays; behind this 3 smaller black spots on top of back and dorsal base; a row of ~ 10 black spots along mid-flank under soft dorsal to tail base, with faint irregular dark spots below this row; a large oblique cream bar extends from midbelly (at level of pelvic tip) to lateral line; spiny dorsal with 3 rows dark spots separated by pale streaks, soft dorsal with several basal dark spots, and a pale medial stripe above; upper ½ of tail red, with a few small black spots, lower ½ black; outer half of anal and pelvics dark; pectoral pale.
