alcon blue vs Long-tailed Sylph

Maculinea alcon compared with Aglaiocercus kingii

Key Differences

• alcon blue is Endangered while Long-tailed Sylph is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	alcon blue	Long-tailed Sylph
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family	Lycaenidae	Trochilidae
Genus	Maculinea	Aglaiocercus
Species	Maculinea alcon	Aglaiocercus kingii

Evolutionary Relationship

alcon blue and Long-tailed Sylph share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

alcon blue

EN — Endangered

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	alcon blue	Long-tailed Sylph
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

alcon blue

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium and Sweden. Currently classified as 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.

alcon blue

The Alcon blue (Maculinea alcon) is a species in the genus Maculinea. It is currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

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.