Creeping Spikemoss vs Long-tailed Sylph

Selaginella apoda compared with Aglaiocercus kingii

Key Differences

• Creeping Spikemoss is Not Evaluated while Long-tailed Sylph is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Creeping Spikemoss	Long-tailed Sylph
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Tracheophyta	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Lycopodiopsida (Lycopodiopsida)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Selaginellales (Selaginellales)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family	Selaginellaceae	Trochilidae
Genus	Selaginella	Aglaiocercus
Species	Selaginella apoda	Aglaiocercus kingii

Conservation Status

Creeping Spikemoss

NE — Not Evaluated

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Creeping Spikemoss	Long-tailed Sylph
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Creeping Spikemoss

Habitat

Native to Europe and North America and South America, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Chile, Germany, and United States.

Long-tailed Sylph

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, and Venezuela.

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.