This cuckoo lives in forests on Sulawesi. It has a gray head, a barred belly, and a banded tail, and it feeds on insects.
The sexes look alike. Adults have a gray-brown back, gray head, white underparts with black bars, and a tail banded in black, rufous, and white. Juveniles are rufous above, with a black head and buffy-white underparts.
It is recorded in primary forest at about 500–1,400 m and feeds on insects, including termites. It is difficult to observe in the mountains and is considered resident.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.