The Rufous-backed Fantail has rufous upperparts and a long tail tipped with white. It catches insects in the moist lowland forests of New Guinea.
It has a grey crown, rufous upperparts, and a long grey tail with white tips. Its throat is whitish and its upper breast is mottled grey and buff.
It catches insects by flycatching and gleaning in the lower and middle levels of the forest. It sometimes joins mixed-species flocks of small insectivorous birds.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.