This African sunbird visits flowering trees in damp highland forest. A historical account records metallic green breeding plumage and a vivid red breast band in the adult male.
The historical account describes the breeding male's head, neck, back, and lesser wing-coverts as metallic green. A narrow blue band lies below the throat, above a broad bright scarlet breast band; the remaining underparts are blackish.
For its northern range, the book says the sunbird visits flowering trees in the damper parts of highland forest. Oiseaux.net gives a length of 9–13 cm and lists song or call recordings from two Zambian localities.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.