This small woodpecker occurs in eastern Brazil's dry woodland and dense scrub. A guide to Sete Cidades National Park describes it searching for larvae and small arthropods in open vegetation.
The body is dark brown with conspicuous white spots across the back and wings. The crown is black; males have broad red feather tips on the crown.
The ICMBio guide for Sete Cidades National Park describes it moving quickly through vegetation and pecking for larvae and small arthropods in open areas, scrub, and second growth.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.