Fishtail Cup vs Long-tailed Sylph

Gyromitra leucoxantha compared with Aglaiocercus kingii

Key Differences

Fishtail Cup is Critically Endangered while Long-tailed Sylph is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Fishtail Cup	Long-tailed Sylph
Kingdom	Fungi (Fungi)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Pezizomycetes (Pezizomycetes)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Pezizales (Pezizales)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family	Discinaceae	Trochilidae
Genus	Gyromitra	Aglaiocercus
Species	Gyromitra leucoxantha	Aglaiocercus kingii

Conservation Status

Fishtail Cup

CR — Critically Endangered

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Fishtail Cup	Long-tailed Sylph
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Fishtail Cup

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Denmark and Sweden. Currently classified as Critically 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.

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.