An exquisitely- and distinctively-colored laughingthrush, though often shy and unwilling to stray far from cover outside of areas where habituated to human feeding. Mostly dark, ashen gray but has silvery cheeks, an orange crown, and bright red wings and tail, which are often seen as flashes in the gloomy undergrowth of thick evergreen forest. Chatters constantly and (often frustratingly) frequently as it moves around in large flocks in hill forest and forest edge. Listen for its song, a distinctive whistled “woouuu-weee!”, sometimes followed by rising, laughing “dee-dee!” notes.