This woodpecker occurs from West to Central Africa. A historical specimen account describes a female's head and underpart markings, while a current species profile compiles records from lowland and secondary forests.
A female described from Bavia, Liberia, had a dark olive-green crown, rounded ochraceous-buff spots on the underparts, and green on the supercilium and underwing coverts.
The species account lists lowland forest, dense secondary growth, gallery forest, and tree plantations, and describes bark-searching for invertebrates.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.