Males are red from forehead to hindneck and very widely on the malar (cheek); the latter has a buffy white stripe above it.

Their shortish beak is blackish with a paler mandible, their iris sky-blue to pale gray, and the legs olive-gray.

[5][6] The stripe-cheeked woodpecker inhabits the interior and edges of humid forest at elevations between 300 and 900 m (1,000 and 3,000 ft).

[4] The stripe-cheeked woodpecker usually forages alone or in pairs, and also joins mixed species feeding flocks.

The stripe-cheeked woodpecker's primary call is "a nasal bi-syllabic note 'nyeeeh-wheet'"; both sexes utter it, singly or in a fast series.

"Other vocalizations include scolding and a fast chattering series of short nasal notes, presumably when excited.

Though it has a restricted range and its estimated population of at least 20,000 mature individuals is believed to be decreasing, these values have not reached the thresholds for rating it Near Threatened.