This small antbird is recorded in thickets on islands and along large rivers in the Amazon basin. Males have bold black-and-white plumage; females differ in appearance.
It is about 11.5 cm long. The male has black upperparts, white underparts, white wing bars and a white shoulder patch. Females lack the male's bushy crest and white back patch.
It uses river-edge thickets, scrub and grasses close to water. The account records it along large Amazon rivers and on river islands.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.