This barbet lives in the north-central Colombian Andes. It uses humid montane and gallery forest and feeds on fruit, seeds, and insects.
About 19 cm long, it has a yellowish-white bill tipped blue and a scarlet forehead. Its hindcrown and mantle are black and white; the sides and upperparts are blue-black, with a whitish throat and breast.
It feeds on fruit, seeds, and insects and may move as fruit abundance changes.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.