This species is distinguished from all its congeners by the following set of characters: body deep, becoming compressed and slender with growth; D XII,10; the first 2 dorsal-fin spines are rudimentary (2 dorsal-fin spines on 1st dorsal pterygiophore), 3DFS longest (1.0-1.3, mean 1.2, in 3DFS/4DFS), third spine not reaching beyond first soft dorsal-fin ray origin, and less than head length; orbit diameter is subequal to suborbital depth. Colouration: body uniform pink with belly silvery and chin white, all fins pink. This species is often being confused with A. filamentosus and juveniles of A. spinifer; but it differs by having red spinous dorsal-fin rays (vs. yellow orange in true A. filamentosus from South Africa and Mozambique); also the third spinous dorsal-fin spine is longest (vs. third and fourth spines very elongate in A. filamentous and longest in A. spinifer) (Ref. 124569).