It has the typical glossy purplish-black plumage of many of the crow genus apart from the head and neck which are a dark brownish-black.

[2][3] The species is endemic to eastern Indonesia; it has a fragmented range, perhaps because it has some, as yet unknown, specialised habitat requirement.

[1] It is present in northern Papua in the lower part of the Mamberamo River Valley and in the Nimbokrang region, near Jayapura.

Its habitat is primarily virgin forest but it also inhabits secondary growth and mangrove areas, but generally avoids open countryside and the coast.

The main threats it faces are habitat destruction through logging and mining, and a planned dam across the Mamberamo River.