Distinguished by the combination of the following characters: exterior row of teeth on both jaws tricuspid; first branched ray of pectoral fin free; scales in longitudinal series exceeding 40, typically >42; high forward and backward transverse scale counts at origin of anal fin (TRF > 24 and TRB > 17); barbels present on cheek, preoperculum and lower jaw; barbels reduced, centermost pair of chin barbels not exceeding front edge of chin by more than 1/3 of their length; transverse opercular papillae line normal, not as barbels; barbel line at preopercular edge ending at pore O’, situated at base of the uppermost preopercular barbel (Ref. 93723).