The overall appearance is black with a bluish-purple gloss in good light. The black bill is long and deep and curves gently downward to the tip giving the bird a large headed appearance. The nasal bristles do not quite cover the nostrils unlike the majority of species in this genus. There is a patch of dark grey bare skin behind the eye and the base of the lower manidble has a bare strip of the same coloured skin. The iris is a distinctive reddish ochre in colour, and the legs and feet are black.