The exact habitat requirements are improperly known. It appears to be confined to primary, secondary and heath forest below 500 m (Eaton et al. 2021), although very rarely it has been reported from plantations (RER 2017), but this at a site adjacent to pristine peatswamp, such that observations in plantations may refer to wandering/feeding individuals. A nest (the first ever documented) found in March 2022 in Brunei was in heath forest (kerangas) on the edge of a freshwater swamp (Grafe et al. 2022).

The species is endemic to Borneo and Sumatra. On Borneo, it occurs in Brunei Darussalam (see, e.g., Grafe et al. 2022), Malaysia and Indonesia. On Sumatra, Indonesia, it appears to now be highly localised, with almost all records from Way Kambas National Park and the Kampar Peninsula (RER 2017, eBird 2023). Its distribution in Sabah is difficult to determine: There are no records from Sabah, with those listed in Mann (2008) considered erroneous (Eaton et al. (2021).

Conservation Actions Underway
This species occurs in a handful of protected areas on Borneo, in all range states, however the majority (>80%) of suitable habitat remains unprotected (UNEP-WCMC and IUCN 2023). It occurs in the Kampar Peninsula, which is subject to protection and passive monitoring (see RER 2017).

Conservation Actions Proposed
Conduct surveys to clarify its distribution, status and ecological specialisation, with a view to compiling an effective conservation strategy. Gazette all pristine peatswamp fragments on Borneo (and some on Sumatra) as protected areas, and restrict use of all remaining degraded peatswamps. Ensure relevant protected areas receive strong management. Impose a moratorium on all peatswamp development, pending survey work and research.