[4] Latris lineata has an elongate, compressed body, with a standard length which is around 3 times its depth, with a relatively long snout and a convex space between the eyes.

[5] This species attains a maximum total length of 120 cm (47 in) with a maximum known weight of 25 kg (55 lb)[1] The background colour of the upper body is light olive[6] with three dark olive longitudinal stripes along the upper flanks and a thick indistinct band along the lower flanks and a dark stripe running from the snout to the front of the dorsal fin.

[1] The striped trumpeter is long lived, attaing a maximum known age of 43 years.

Its diet is dominated by a wide variety of benthic invertebrates including bivalves, crustaceans and cephalopods.

[7] It has been considered as a suitable species for aquaculture in Tasmania[10] but production still faces several significant challenges, for example the high incidence of urinary calculi during the larval stage.