Green Shrike-Vireo

How to find it

Listen for the whistled song first, then search the leaves above. Because the bird stays in the leafy canopy and barely moves, scan the treetops from a high viewpoint. Elevated views suit canopy birds, and a hanging bridge or tower in Costa Rica may work the same way. Watch any mixed flock in the mid-story and canopy, since it sometimes joins them. Remember the song differs by slope, so listen for peeta-peeta-peeta on the Caribbean side and peer-peer-peer on the Pacific side.

How to recognise it

Look for a heavy-headed, bright green bird about 14 cm long.

The throat is bright yellow and the underparts are yellowish-green. There is a faint blue nape and a dark eye. The bill is thick, black and hooked at the tip.

Males have a bright blue forehead, nape and area around the eye. Females show less blue on the face and crown, and their chin is always yellow.

Staff at a Panama canopy tower fondly call it a little parrot, because of its heavy head, green body and hooked bill.

What it sounds like

Recording: Tommy Andriollo, CC BY 4.0, source, read 4 Nov 2026.

Behaviour and diet

It is usually seen alone or in pairs, and it sometimes joins mixed flocks in the mid-story and canopy. It forages most often in the canopy and the middle of the canopy. It moves little among the leaves, which is a large part of why it is so hard to pick out. Its diet is mainly fairly large insects and caterpillars, with some berries and seeds that have a fleshy coating.

Where it lives

In Costa Rica this shrike-vireo lives from sea level up to about 1,200 m. It uses the interior and edges of humid evergreen forest. It is fairly common on both the Caribbean and Pacific slopes. On the Pacific side its range runs from the southern Gulf of Nicoya into western Panama. It has also been listed at Cloudbridge Nature Reserve in southern Costa Rica.

Similar birds

The closely related Yellow-browed Shrike-Vireo is sometimes treated as the same species. It is told apart by a bold yellow eyebrow stripe. It lives in Colombia, Panama and Venezuela, not Costa Rica, so you will not meet it on a Costa Rican trip.

Names and lore in Costa Rica

Costa Ricans and Panamanians call it Vireón Esmeraldino. Elsewhere it is known as vireón esmeralda, vireón verde, vireón esmeraldo or follajero esmeralda.

Status and conservation

It is a resident (R) on the AOCR list, fairly common on both slopes, and the IUCN rates it Least Concern, though its population is thought to be declining.

Photography tips

Elevated views suit canopy birds. A Panama canopy tower says the shrike-vireo is one of the most sought species from its observation deck. A hanging bridge or tower in Costa Rica may work the same way. Find the song first, then work the leaves above that spot.