This small woodpecker has dense black-and-pale bars. Its current native range is limited to Java.
Its black upperparts are densely barred with pale lines, and the head and upper chest are finely barred too. Males have a red cheek stripe, and the rump is pale.
It lives in lowland broadleaf and secondary forest, including edges and less-compact areas. It is thought to glean small invertebrates from surfaces, but feeding information remains limited.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.