An East African waxbill of grassland and scrub. The male has a grey head and red rump; it feeds on grass seeds and insects.
The adult male has red lores and an eye stripe, a grey crown, and a red rump; the back and wings are grey-brown.
It feeds mainly on grass seeds, also taking grass tips and small insects. It uses open grassland and scrub.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.