Long-tailed Sylph vs White-bearded Hermit

Aglaiocercus kingii compared with Phaethornis hispidus

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Long-tailed Sylph	White-bearded 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 hispidus

Evolutionary Relationship

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

View Family: Trochilidae

Conservation Status

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

White-bearded Hermit

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Long-tailed Sylph	White-bearded 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.

White-bearded Hermit

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.

White-bearded Hermit

White-bearded Hermit (Phaethornis hispidus) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.