Black-throated Mango vs Empress Brilliant

Anthracothorax nigricollis compared with Heliodoxa imperatrix

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Black-throated Mango	Empress Brilliant
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Aves (Birds)	Aves (Birds)
Order same	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family same	Trochilidae	Trochilidae
Genus	Anthracothorax	Heliodoxa
Species	Anthracothorax nigricollis	Heliodoxa imperatrix

Evolutionary Relationship

Black-throated Mango and Empress Brilliant share a common ancestor at the Family level: Trochilidae.

Conservation Status

Black-throated Mango

LC — Least Concern

Empress Brilliant

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Black-throated Mango	Empress Brilliant
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Black-throated Mango

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, and Venezuela.

Empress Brilliant

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, and Norway.

Black-throated Mango

A large, striking hummingbird of tropical forests from southern Mexico to Argentina, black-throated mangos have dramatic sexual dimorphism — males display glittering black throat and breast with violet and green flanks and a bold purple tail, while females are white below with a central black stripe. Inhabiting forest edges, clearings, and gardens, they aggressively defend flowering trees. Males perform spectacular aerial display flights at treetop height. Listed as Least Concern across their broad neotropical range.

Empress Brilliant

A large, brilliantly colored hummingbird of humid Andean forests in Colombia and Ecuador, male empress brilliants are among the most striking hummingbirds with iridescent green and violet plumage and glittering scales across their throat and breast. Found at elevations between 1,000–2,100 meters in cloud forest. Named in honor of Empress Eugenie of France, these powerful birds aggressively defend territory around flowering trees. Listed as Least Concern with stable populations in remaining Andean forest.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇨🇴 Colombia 🇪🇨 Ecuador 🇳🇴 Norway