This dove occurs on Chuuk and Pohnpei. Adult males have a sooty-black crown and hindneck, with violet gloss on the upper back and parts of the wings.
In Baker's specimen account, males have a sooty-black crown, nape, and hindneck, with purplish-violet on the upper back and lesser wing coverts. Females are smaller and paler; the upper back is glossy bronze-green edged with purplish violet, and the lower back and rump are glossy olive green.
Observations on Pohnpei in 1930 recorded ground-feeding on small snails, seeds and worms. On Chuuk it was recorded in tall trees on forested slopes in 1945, and in lowland thickets and dry gullies in 1947–48.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.