Bastard Catclaw vs Long-tailed Sylph

Microgramma lycopodioides compared with Aglaiocercus kingii

Key Differences

• Bastard Catclaw is Not Evaluated while Long-tailed Sylph is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Bastard Catclaw	Long-tailed Sylph
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Tracheophyta	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Polypodiopsida (Polypodiopsida)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Polypodiales (Polypodiales)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family	Polypodiaceae	Trochilidae
Genus	Microgramma	Aglaiocercus
Species	Microgramma lycopodioides	Aglaiocercus kingii

Conservation Status

Bastard Catclaw

NE — Not Evaluated

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Bastard Catclaw	Long-tailed Sylph
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Bastard Catclaw

Habitat

Typically found in moist, shaded forest floors and tropical canopies.

Range

Distributed across Brazil, Colombia, and Cuba.

Long-tailed Sylph

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, and Venezuela.

Bastard Catclaw

The Bastard Catclaw (Microgramma lycopodioides) is a species in the genus Microgramma. Typically found in moist, shaded forest floors and tropical canopies. Its range includes Brazil, Colombia, and Cuba.

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.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 1 countries:

🇨🇴 Colombia