The male is black with vivid red on the head and breast. In West African forest it searches trees for insects and also eats oil-palm nut husks. Both mates weave a pouch-like nest in palms. The species is sedentary.
An adult male of the nominate race is black except for scarlet on the forehead, crown, nape, breast, and undertail. The female has a black head and a broad red breast patch. The eastern race has a broader red patch.
It forages high in trees in lowland forests, gleaning insects or catching them in short aerial sallies. It also eats the husks of oil-palm nuts. Both mates build a woven nest shaped like an inverted sock in palms.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.