[3] A. alatus is a junior synonym of A. carinatus which had been described by the German naturalists Marcus Elieser Bloch and Johann Gottlob Schneider in 1801 as Scorpaena carinata, with its type locality given as Tranquebar in India.

The lateral surface of the head is armed with a dense covering of bony ridges or keels, The rearmost pectoral-fin ray is separate from the rest of the fin.

[8] Apistus carinatus is a nocturnal predator which spends day buried in the sand, only exposing its eyes.

If it is disturbed, the long pectoral fins are spread and their bright yellow colour is used to deter predators.

It also uses these fins to corner prey and the sensitive barbels on the chin are able to detect pret buried in sand or mud.