Green Heron
Butorides virescens
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderPelecaniformes (Pelicaniformes)
- FamilyArdeidae (Herons, Egrets, and Bitterns)
- GenusButorides (Green-backed Herons)
- SpeciesButorides virescens (Green Heron)
The green heron (Butorides virescens) is a small heron of North and Central America. Butorides is from Middle English butor "bittern" and Ancient Greek -oides, "resembling", and virescens is Latin for "greenish". It was long considered conspecific with its sister species the striated heron (Butorides striata); when treated together, they were called "green-backed heron". Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Chingaza National Natural Park
Striated Heron
Butorides striata
Cattle Egret
Bubulcus ibis
Whistling Heron
Syrigma sibilatrix
Great Egret
Ardea alba
Little Blue Heron
Egretta caerulea
Cocoi Heron
Ardea cocoi
Rufescent Tiger Heron
Tigrisoma lineatum
Fasciated Tiger Heron
Tigrisoma fasciatum
Capped Heron
Pilherodius pileatus
Black-crowned Night Heron
Nycticorax nycticorax
Snowy Egret
Egretta thula
Boat-billed Heron
Cochlearius cochlearius
📅 Monthly Probability
Fewer than 5 records of Green Heron at Chingaza National Natural Park — not enough to chart months honestly.
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there