This chat-tyrant occurs around Andean montane forest and scrub. The rufous breast gives the bird its name; the Peru Aves account also reports it from high-elevation forest in Peru.
The breast is rufous and the upperparts are dark. The rufous breast is highlighted as a useful feature for distinguishing it from similar birds.
In Peru it is reported from montane forest, forest edges, and shrub-covered open places. The account gives records at roughly 2,400–4,100 m.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.