This small African barbet lives in western and central African forest. The plumage described here is that of subspecies flavisquamatus.
Subspecies flavisquamatus has a blackish-olive crown, olive-green upperparts spotted with yellow, and yellowish underparts streaked with olive.
It eats figs and insects. It has also been recorded at forest edges and clearings, in secondary growth, and on plantations.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.