Tiny, retiring, plump tinamou with short legs. Rusty brown and variegated above, with a white chin and center to the belly and a barred breast and flanks. Inhabits increasingly rare well-preserved humid savannas with short grass and scattered bushes. Hides in armadillo burrows, making it very hard to see. The song begins with a few short nasal notes that can be easily mistaken for an insect, and finishes with a trill.