The dorsum and the flanks are dark greenish-olive to clear bronze, with a gold shimmer or blackish speckles.

[3] Werneria bambutensis lives in fast-flowing streams at elevations between 1,750 and 2,600 m (5,740 and 8,530 ft) above sea level, typically within montane forest patches and rarely lower than 2,100 m (6,900 ft).

Outside the breeding season, it also seems to disperse away from streams into forest patches, open bamboo glades, and montane grassland.

[1][3] It is a rare species that appears to have declined at many known localities, possibly because of chytridiomycosis.

It is not known from protected areas, although it might be present in the Bafut-Ngemba Forest Reserve.