Long-tailed Sylph vs White-tailed Sabrewing

Aglaiocercus kingii compared with Campylopterus ensipennis

Key Differences

• Long-tailed Sylph is Least Concern while White-tailed Sabrewing is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Long-tailed Sylph	White-tailed Sabrewing
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	Campylopterus
Species	Aglaiocercus kingii	Campylopterus ensipennis

Evolutionary Relationship

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

Conservation Status

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

White-tailed Sabrewing

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Long-tailed Sylph	White-tailed Sabrewing
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-tailed Sabrewing

Habitat

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

Range

Distributed across Norway and Venezuela. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

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 2 countries:

🇳🇴 Norway 🇻🇪 Venezuela