It is one of two Todus species endemic to Hispaniola, a Caribbean island shared by the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

The separation between the lineages occurred two to three million years ago, before either ancestor colonized Hispaniola.

A white malar stripe separates the face from the carmine red chin and throat.

Curiously, they do not prey on larger butterflies or caterpillars, which are part of the broad-billed tody's diet.

[2] The narrow-billed tody makes display flights without vocalizations, in a manner similar to those of others of its order, but includes wing rattling that others do not.

A characteristic narrow-billed tody vocalization is "a two note call, described as chip-chee, accented on the second syllable."