Long-tailed Sylph vs Saltmarsh Sharp-Tailed Sparrow

Aglaiocercus kingii compared with Ammospiza caudacuta

Key Differences

• Long-tailed Sylph is Least Concern while Saltmarsh Sharp-Tailed Sparrow is Endangered.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Long-tailed Sylph	Saltmarsh Sharp-Tailed Sparrow
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Aves (Birds)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)	Passeriformes (Songbirds)
Family	Trochilidae	Passerellidae
Genus	Aglaiocercus	Ammospiza
Species	Aglaiocercus kingii	Ammospiza caudacuta

Evolutionary Relationship

Long-tailed Sylph and Saltmarsh Sharp-Tailed Sparrow share a common ancestor at the Class level: Aves. (Birds)

Conservation Status

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Saltmarsh Sharp-Tailed Sparrow

EN — Endangered

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Long-tailed Sylph	Saltmarsh Sharp-Tailed Sparrow
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Long-tailed Sylph

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, and Venezuela.

Saltmarsh Sharp-Tailed Sparrow

Habitat

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

Range

Found in Norway. Currently classified as Endangered on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

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 1 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway