This species is distinguished from all its congeners by having specialized hooks in the clasper (vs. absent); pelvic apron extends almost entirely the length of pelvic inner margins (vs. up to 2/3 length of pelvic inner margins in S. boa, S. cabofriensis, S. cervigoni, S. comoroensis, S. haeckelii, S. hesperius, S. meadi, S. retifer, S. stellaris, S. ugoi); males with distal tips of pelvic fins straight (vs. tapered); body beige to light brown with cream to beige spots (vs. no light spots in S. cervigoni, S. garmani, S. meadi, S. retifer and yellow to golden spots in S. capensis), and spots are predominantly spiracle-sized (vs. mostly smaller than spiracles in S. boa, S. cabofriensis, S. canicula, S. duhamelii, S. stellaris, S. ugoi). Other characters, although less distinct, that also helps distinguish this species are the following: saddles darker than the background color (vs. inconspicuous in S. boa, S. cabofriensis, S. cervigoni, S. garmani, S. torrei); anterior nasal flaps not reaching the upper lip (vs. reaching upper lip, and sometimes covering it, in S. canicula, S. cervigoni, comoroensis, S. duhamelii, S. garmani, S. stellaris); interdorsal distance 0.6-1.0 times smaller than anal base (vs. greater than anal base in S. boa, S. cabofriensis, S. haeckelii, S. hesperius, S. meadi, S. retifer, S. torrei, S. ugoi); mandibular canal of lateral line system with 5-6 pores (vs. 3-4 in S. hesperius); oral canal of lateral line system with 7-10 pores (vs.10-12 in S. duhamelii; 5-6 in S. hesperius; 9-13 in S. torrei); commissural teeth with one cusplet and principal cusplet laterally situated (vs. 2 or more in other species, except in S. cervigoni, S. meadi, S. torrei); clasper with terminal dermal cover smooth (vs. rough in S. canicula, S. capensis); cover rhipidion covered by dermal denticles (vs. not covered in S. boa, S. cervigoni, S. retifer); terminal 3 cartilage present (vs. absent in S. cabofriensis, S. cervigoni, S. comoroensis, S. duhamelii, S. haeckelii, S. stellaris, S. torrei, S. ugoi); dorsal terminal 2 cartilage elongated and similar in size to dorsal terminal cartilage (vs. reduced and subtriangular in S. cabofriensis, S. capensis, S. cervigoni, S. haeckelii, S. ugoi; dorsal terminal 2 less than half length of dorsal terminal cartilage in S. boa, S. canicula, S. duhamelii, S. retifer, S. stellaris, S. torrei); counts of monospondylous vertebrae 32-37 (vs. lower in other species, except in S. canicula, S. duhamelii, S. haeckelii, S. torrei); adult males between 36.0-40.0 cm TL and adult females between 37.0-42.0 cm TL (vs. adult reach greater sizes at sexual maturity in S. capensis, S. cervigoni, S. meadi, S. stellaris, S. ugoi) (Ref. 120402).