The South Moluccan Pitta occurs on Buru and Seram in Indonesia. It lives mainly in lowland evergreen forest, as well as secondary habitats. Its plumage combines bright red, blue, and green, with differences reported between island subspecies.
It is about 16–18 cm long. The head is brown, with blue on the crown and behind the eye and a red nape patch. The back is green, the rump and tail blue, and a blue breast band contrasts with scarlet underparts. Females are described as greener and less blue on the breast.
It forages on the forest floor for insects, larvae, and earthworms. A nest with two eggs was recorded on Buru in November; that is a local record, not a description of the breeding season across its range.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.