Measuring around 10 cm (4 in) in length, the black-throated finch has a short black bill, lores, and throat, sharply delineated from the rest of the pale grey head.

[14] The vocalisation of P. cincta is comparable to that of the sister species Poephila acuticauda, although lower in tone and slightly less simple in the harmonic structures.

[3] Breeding may occur from September to January in the southern parts of its range, and after the monsoon season in February onwards in the north.

The nest is a round structure woven from dried grasses with tube-like entrance placed high in a eucalypt 5 metres above the ground.

The species also hunt termites who are flying during the breeding season, capturing them as they trail along the ground or when they are in flight; the immature finches eventually learns to shake the wings off before consumption.

[18][13] The reason for the decline in population is probably due to the spread of pastoralism, changes in fire regime, and increases in the density of native woody weeds in grassy savannahs.

A national management plan was published in 2004 by the New South Wales and Queensland governments,[19][13] but records of the population density in the southern areas of its range showed declines in observed numbers from moderately common or abundant, to assessments as locally extinct or very rare by 2012.

[22] In 2020, the bird was listed as "Endangered" in Queensland, under the Nature Conservation Act 1992, and was ranked as high priority under the Department of Science "Back on Track" species prioritisation framework.

[13] Adani Australia produced a management plan for the finch in November 2018, as the proposed Carmichael coal mine covers some of its range.