This finch lives among boulder fields and high-altitude grasslands in the southern Andes. Its large bill is distinctive.
About 18–18.5 cm long, it is grey with a large, stout bill and a tail that appears short relative to its body.
It forages on the ground alone or in pairs, eating seeds and lichens on rocks.
In 2009–2010 around Laguna Anantay, Peru, birds were found on grassy slopes scattered with boulders and rocky outcrops, near high-altitude wetlands and Polylepis woodland.
Juveniles are browner than adults, with streaked underparts and a grizzled grey face.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.