This large woodpecker occurs in the Andes from Venezuela south to Peru. It excavates decaying trunks for insects and larvae.
It is large and robust, with a black bill and pale yellowish-white eyes. A white V marks the back; males have a crimson crest and females a black one.
In montane forest it climbs trunks and large branches, excavating rotten trunks for insects and larvae; the account also notes some fruit.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.