As with other ptyctodonts, the armor of Ctenurella was reduced to a few thin plates on the head and shoulder region.

Most ptyctodonts are presumed to have fed on the ocean floor, but the well-developed fins of this genus indicate that it probably also swam in open waters.

[2] Ctenurella had a long, whip-like tail, large eyes, and robust upper and lower jaw tooth plates.

[2] The specific name of the type species, C. gladbachensis, is a reference of the place Bergisch Gladbach, where it was founded.

Ptyctodontid placoderms recently have been shown to give birth to live young, with specimens of pregnant females from two genera, Materpiscis and Austroptyctodus, both from the Gogo Formation of Western Australia, showing the presence of unborn embryos within the mother fishes (Long et al. 2008)