The male's head, neck, and lower breast are black except for a small white tuft behind the eye.

The female has an extensive rufous crown, brown back, and pale gray face, throat, and underside.

[3] The hooded gnateater is found in northeastern Brazil south of the Amazon River in eastern Pará through much of Maranhão and Piauí into western Ceará.

[3] Information on the hooded gnateater's breeding habits is limited to descriptions of two nests and a clutch of two eggs.

[3] The hooded gnateater's song is "a rapid, slightly musical ascending series of notes" [1].