Hedgemustard vs Long-tailed Sylph

Sisymbrium officinale compared with Aglaiocercus kingii

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Hedgemustard	Long-tailed Sylph
Kingdom	Plantae (Plants)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Magnoliophyta (Flowering Plants)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Magnoliopsida (Dicots)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Brassicales (Brassicales)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family	Brassicaceae	Trochilidae
Genus	Sisymbrium	Aglaiocercus
Species	Sisymbrium officinale	Aglaiocercus kingii

Conservation Status

Hedgemustard

LC — Least Concern

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Hedgemustard	Long-tailed Sylph
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Hedgemustard

Habitat

Inhabits temperate broadleaf and mixed forests within the Palearctic biogeographic realm.

Range

Widely distributed across Africa (Libya, South Africa), Asia (4 countries), Europe (20 countries), North America (Canada, Mexico, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (5 countries).

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.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 3 countries:

🇨🇴 Colombia 🇪🇨 Ecuador 🇳🇴 Norway