The adult's upper parts are blue-gray and its rump reddish brown.

The throat, chest, and belly are white and the flanks and vent area are chestnut without the barring that the very similar white-breasted tapaculo has.

It inhabits the understory of mature lowland forest at up to 50 m (160 ft) elevation, staying in dense cover near small streams.

The only data related to breeding is that a male and female collected in October 1983 had active gonads.

Until recently, it was feared extinct, but has since been rediscovered and is now known from the municipalities of Igrapiúna, Una, Ilhéus, Maraú, Taperoá, and Valença.