The Chestnut-backed Antshrike is recorded from southeastern Peru through Bolivia and Brazil. It occurs at forest edges and in secondary growth.
Its head and chest have black-and-white barring, while the back and tail are rufous. The male has a black crest; the female’s crest is rufous.
The species account places it in humid montane forest edges and secondary growth, using the lower to middle forest layers.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.