This forest hawk is conspicuous for its dark body and white rump. Argentine records place it in humid and subtropical forests.
Adults are black across the head, body, and wings, with a white rump. The black tail has two narrow whitish bars. A pale morph with a grey-brown back and white underside is also known.
It lives in dense forest and eats reptiles, insects, and frogs. It lays two to three bluish-white eggs during the breeding season.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.