This bird is known from mountain areas of southern Venezuela into northern Brazil. Its strongly hooked bill and scaly-looking underparts stand out.
Adults are dark slaty blue-grey above, with a grey throat and breast and pale-edged feathers that make the underparts look scaled. The bill tip is strongly hooked.
A floral-biology study at Cerro de la Neblina lists this species among birds recorded visiting flowers of several tepui plants. This is a local flower-visit record, not evidence of its everyday diet or a pollination role.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.