Lesser Violetear vs Sparkling Violetear

Colibri cyanotus compared with Colibri coruscans

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Lesser Violetear	Sparkling Violetear
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 same	Colibri	Colibri
Species	Colibri cyanotus	Colibri coruscans

Evolutionary Relationship

Lesser Violetear and Sparkling Violetear share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Colibri.

Conservation Status

Lesser Violetear

LC — Least Concern

Sparkling Violetear

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Lesser Violetear	Sparkling Violetear
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Lesser Violetear

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Colombia and Norway.

Sparkling Violetear

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, and Venezuela.

Sparkling Violetear

A large, brilliant hummingbird of the Andes and high Venezuelan tepuis, sparkling violetears display glittering blue-green plumage with an iridescent violet-blue ear patch and chin that sparkle intensely in sunlight — delivering on their evocative name. Found at elevations of 1,200–3,000 meters across Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru in montane forest and scrub. Among the most common Andean hummingbirds, they are highly aggressive and vocal territory defenders at flower patches.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 2 countries:

🇨🇴 Colombia 🇳🇴 Norway