Diagnosis: body cylindrical; tooth patches narrow; vertically oriented pectoral fins, placed near body mid-depth; 6-7 branched caudal-fin rays; pectoral-fin rays usually 8, rarely 7 or 9; 34-38 vertebrae; eyes relatively small, interorbital space relatively broad; caudal saddle and bar pattern quite distinct in juveniles and young and usually apparent in adults; dorsum and flank nearly always spotted, sometimes extensively; commonly 10-15 gill rakers on first arch (total range 4-22); caudal saddle and anal-fin pigmentation not continuous (Ref. 44050).

Description: body typically somewhat wider towards the head; head deep and cylindrical; jaws even, or lower jaw only slightly prominent; 13-17 abdominal vertebrae; 19-23 caudal vertebrae; 18-19 caudal-fin rays (arrangement: ii-iii-6-7-ii-iii, abberantly 7 dorsal branched rays) (Ref. 44050, 57130).

Coloration: head and body bicolored, grey, with their dorsal and lateral surfaces usually spotted; spots small, generally no larger than 2-3 times an eye diameter, with spots rarely present on any fin; caudal saddle and bar pattern well developed, although often subdued in adults; wide caudal bar rounded or wedge-shaped, projecting anteriad into the pale interspace and also marking the base of the caudal fin; pale interspace usually lighter than flank or dorsum ground color; caudal saddle variable, dark or faint, narrow or relatively wide, usually with an irregular anterior border; it may cross the body mid-depth, but clearly stops short of anal-fin base; saddle and bar pattern decrease in definition with body size, with the saddle fading more dramatically; pectoral fin frequently dusky; pelvic fin usually clear; anterior half of adipose fin marked by the saddle, the posterior half usually matches pale interspace; anal fin carries a dusky stripe, with a pale distal margin, more distinct in juveniles and young; anal fin sometimes dusky overall matching flank ground color; caudal fin usually with dark bar distally, with clear distal margin and pale basal crescent; caudal fin sometimes dusky overall, matching flank ground color, with little indication of a dark bar, pale margin or basal crescent (Ref. 44050).