Has a fairly long, thin, slightly curved bill, gray sides, whitish coloring from the throat to the belly, and yellowish on the rump, under the base of the tail, and on the edges to the wing feathers.

Males have slightly glossy blackish upperparts, whereas females have an olive back and a grayish head.

Voice includes a typical flowerpecker “tuk!” given regularly, sometimes mixed with a high-pitched piping “tsii!”[2] Five subspecies are recognized: Often seen feeding around flowering and fruiting trees and mistletoes.

Forages in the canopy or high in the understory singly, in small groups or joins mixed-species flocks.

The IUCN Red List has assessed this bird as least-concern species as it is common throughout its range and is found throughout the entire Philippines.