This West African cisticola changes plumage seasonally: the back is plain-looking in breeding plumage and faintly streaked outside the breeding season. BirdLife's country list also includes it in Senegal.
This small, strong-billed bird has a rufous cap and nape, grey-brown upperparts and pale buff underparts. A black band and pale tips mark the end of the tail. The back is plain in breeding plumage and faintly streaked outside the breeding season.
It occurs locally in savanna and dry woodland, mostly in grassy understory. Its song is a short, high-pitched trill, sometimes followed by several whistled notes.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.