Long-tailed Sylph vs Sooty-capped Hermit

Aglaiocercus kingii compared with Phaethornis augusti

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Long-tailed Sylph	Sooty-capped Hermit
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	Aglaiocercus	Phaethornis
Species	Aglaiocercus kingii	Phaethornis augusti

Evolutionary Relationship

Long-tailed Sylph and Sooty-capped Hermit share a common ancestor at the Family level: Trochilidae.

Conservation Status

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Sooty-capped Hermit

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Long-tailed Sylph	Sooty-capped Hermit
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.

Sooty-capped Hermit

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Colombia, 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 🇳🇴 Norway 🇻🇪 Venezuela