Balkan Yam vs Long-tailed Sylph

Dioscorea balcanica compared with Aglaiocercus kingii

Key Differences

• Balkan Yam is Near Threatened while Long-tailed Sylph is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Balkan Yam	Long-tailed Sylph
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Liliopsida (Monocots)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Dioscoreales (Dioscoreales)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family	Dioscoreaceae	Trochilidae
Genus	Dioscorea	Aglaiocercus
Species	Dioscorea balcanica	Aglaiocercus kingii

Conservation Status

Balkan Yam

NT — Near Threatened

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Balkan Yam	Long-tailed Sylph
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Balkan Yam

Habitat

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

Long-tailed Sylph

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, and Venezuela.

Balkan Yam

The Balkan Yam (Dioscorea balcanica) is a species in the genus Dioscorea. It is currently classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in grasslands, wetlands, forests, and cultivated landscapes.

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.