A brightly colored, medium-sized woodpecker in the family Picidae, found from northern and eastern India to southeastern China, Indochina, Hainan, and Sumatra. It has a moss-green back, bright yellow nape, and pale bill. Males show a white throat or moustachial stripe, while females have a dark red one. Its call is a series of high-pitched yelps or sharp “kee-eep!” notes.

It inhabits subtropical and tropical moist lowland and montane forests, foraging on trunks and branches in pairs or flocks, both single- and mixed-species. The species is evaluated as Least Concern.