This brush-finch occurs in the Serranía del Perijá. A 2014 study describes a black forehead, rufous rear crown, and gray cheek patch, and recorded pairs or small groups in lower montane and secondary forest on the Colombian side.
The paper describes adults with a black forehead, a black moustachial region continuous with the head, a rufous mid-to-rear crown, and a dark gray cheek patch.
Surveys in a Colombian reserve recorded pairs and small parties in subtropical and lower montane secondary or fragmented forest.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.