This small pygmy owl was recorded in lowland forest in Pernambuco, northeastern Brazil. Its description reports two specimens collected in 1980 and one observation in 2001. BirdLife/IUCN lists it as Critically Endangered (Possibly Extinct); this does not confirm a living population.
The male holotype had white spots across its head and face and a brown back. Its tail carried broken white bands, while the center of the underparts was white and the chest sides and flanks were rufous with white streaks.
On 19 November 2001, one owl was observed eating a large cicada high in the canopy near a forest edge at Usina Trapiche.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.