the dorsal fin is long, about as long as the head, is almost completely straight, contains up to three small serrations on the front and many small serrations on the back, and ends with short, white filaments. The remaining portion of the dorsal fin is made up of seven branching rays. The spine of the pectoral fin is slightly curved, roughly as long as the dorsal fin spine, with large serrations on both sides. The pectoral spine ends in short, white filaments. The other pectoral fins are made up of eight branching rays. The adipose fin is short, does not contain any rays, and has a convex shape. The pelvic fin contains one unbranched and six branched rays. The pelvic fin is vertically aligned in front of the adipose fin. The anal fin contains three to four unbranched and six to eight branched rays; it is vertically aligned with the adipose fin. The tail, or caudal fin, is forked, with pointed lobes, and contains seven rays on the upper lobe, eight rays on the lower lobe. The mouth of the fish faces downward and has wide lips that contain papilla. All members of Syndontis have a structure called a premaxillary toothpad, which is located on the very front of the upper jaw of the mouth. This structure contains several rows of short, chisel-shaped teeth. In some species, this toothpad is made up of a large patch with several rows in a large cluster. In other species of Syndontis, this toothpad is clearly divided into two separate groups, separated by a thin band of skin that divides the toothpad. This character is used as a method of differentiating between to different but similar species of Syndontis. In S. grandiops, the toothpad is uninterrupted, or continuous without a break. On the lower jaw, or mandible, the teeth of Syndontis are attached to flexible, stalk-like structures and described as "s-shaped" or "hooked". The number of teeth on the mandible is used to differentiate between species; in S. grandiops, there are 17-26 teeth on the mandible, arranged in a single row. Some of the species of Synodontis have an opening or series of openings called the axillary pore. It is located on the side of the body below the humeral process and before the pectoral fin spine. The exact function of the port is not known to scientists, although its presence has been observed