Long-tailed Sylph vs Willow Tarspot

Aglaiocercus kingii compared with Rhytisma salicinum

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Long-tailed Sylph	Willow Tarspot
Kingdom	Animalia (Animals)	Fungi (Fungi)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Ascomycota (Sac Fungi)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Leotiomycetes (Leotiomycetes)
Order	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)	Rhytismatales (Rhytismatales)
Family	Trochilidae	Rhytismataceae
Genus	Aglaiocercus	Rhytisma
Species	Aglaiocercus kingii	Rhytisma salicinum

Conservation Status

Long-tailed Sylph

LC — Least Concern

Willow Tarspot

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Long-tailed Sylph	Willow Tarspot
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.

Willow Tarspot

Habitat

Native to Europe, inhabiting ecosystems characteristic of the region.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

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.