This woodpecker occurs on the eastern Andean slope from Bolivia to Argentina. It inhabits humid and montane woodland, searching tree trunks for food.
The upperparts are dark olive with pale spots, and the underparts are finely barred. Males have red on the crown and nape; females lack the red.
It searches for invertebrates on bark. The species summary also reports nesting in tree cavities.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.