Adder’S-Mouth vs Long-tailed Sylph

Malaxis bayardii compared with Aglaiocercus kingii

Key Differences

Adder’S-Mouth is Critically Endangered while Long-tailed Sylph is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Adder’S-Mouth	Long-tailed Sylph
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Liliopsida (Monocots)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Asparagales (Asparagales)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family	Orchidaceae	Trochilidae
Genus	Malaxis	Aglaiocercus
Species	Malaxis bayardii	Aglaiocercus kingii

Conservation Status

Adder’S-Mouth

CR — Critically Endangered

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Adder’S-Mouth	Long-tailed Sylph
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Adder’S-Mouth

Habitat

Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes.

Range

Distributed across Canada and United States. Currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Long-tailed Sylph

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, and Venezuela.

Adder’S-Mouth

The Adder’S-Mouth (Malaxis bayardii) is a species in the genus Malaxis. It is currently classified as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. This species inhabits Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes, found across Canada and United States.

Long-tailed Sylph

One of the most strikingly ornamented hummingbirds, male long-tailed sylphs have iridescent green plumage and dramatically elongated, ribbon-like outer tail feathers reaching up to 22 cm — over three times the body length. Found in Andean cloud forests of Colombia and Venezuela, they inhabit humid montane forest between 1,400–2,800 meters elevation. Males perform elaborate display flights to attract females. Their extravagant tails are a classic example of sexual selection via female preference.