This woodpecker inhabits Amazonian forest, including northern Peru. It may join mixed-species flocks in the canopy and subcanopy.
The upperparts and tail are greenish olive, and the underparts have a scaled pattern. Both sexes have yellow heads; males have red on the forehead, crown, and nape, while females have red only on the nape.
It is generally rare in the Amazonian canopy and subcanopy, and often joins mixed-species foraging flocks.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.