However, the Clements taxonomy and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World (HBW) assign three subspecies, the nominate M. f. fulvogularis, M. f. huilae, and M. f.

Its upperparts are dark brown with thin white streaks on the shoulder becoming buffy triangles on the back.

[5] The black-streaked puffbird is resident on the east slope of the Andes from Colombia through Ecuador and Peru into northwestern Bolivia.

[5] The black-streaked puffbird hunts from a perch in the lower or middle strata of the forest; it makes sallies from there to capture its invertebrate prey from branches and leaves.

"[5] The IUCN has assessed the black-streaked puffbird as being of Least Concern, though its population is unknown and believed to be decreasing.