A fairly large, colorful bird of upper montane forest. Plump with a rather square-shaped head. Male has a blue eye, black underparts and an indistinct crest on the forehead. Upperparts are bright yellow in the southeast, and bright scarlet in the rest of the range. Female is olive green with orange-brown wing and tail. Male is unmistakable. Female is similar to but larger than female Loria’s Satinbird and has a pale gray eye. Also similar to but smaller than the female MacGregor’s Bowerbird and more greenish than brown. Male gives a rasping growl and has audible wingbeats.