Rosy-lipped batfish generally reside in shallow to deep water benthic zones with a bathymetric range of 35 – 150 m. The syntypic series was collected at 120 m on a rocky bottom.

What makes this fish distinctive are its rosy red lips, specialized pectoral fins used for "walking", and an illicium used for attracting prey.

[3] The illicial cavity is covered by an overhanging shelf-like triangular rostrum, which is made of modified scales and is equal in length to the width of the skull.

[3] When the illicium is retracted the scaleless skin folds in an accordion-like shape, which allows for the forward and downward movement of the esca upon protrusion.

Rosy-lipped batfish are dorsoventrally flattened, slightly concave anterior-laterally with a depressed head but well-elevated cranium in relation to the discoid body.

Preserved specimens are usually pale, but a pair of distinct dark blotches are found near the middle of the disk and are about as long as the snout.

Derouen et al. (2015) concluded that Ogcocephalidae diverged within the Lophiiformes about 54 million years ago and originated in the disphotic zone at the area of transition between the continental shelf and slope.

Based on fossil calibrated molecular phylogeny, they also determined the Eastern Pacific and Western Atlantic lineages of Ogcocephalus species are monophyletic and the sister taxon of Antennarioidei within the Lophiiformes.