[2] The first scientific description of the Taiwanese flashlight fish was authored in 2012 by ichthyologists Hsuan-Ching Ho and G. David Johnson.

The species is named mccoskeri after Dr. John E. McCosker, a senior scientist at the California Academy of Sciences.

[2] The Taiwanese flashlight fish has a thick body and relatively small, bulging eyes.

It differs from P. rosenblatti, its only congener in that it has a deeper body, shorter snout, smaller light organ, and larger cup under the eye.

It is a reddish black color[2] and can reach lengths of up to 30.5 cm.