Sword-billed Hummingbird vs Peruvian Sheartail
Ensifera ensifera compared with Thaumastura cora
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Attribute | Sword-billed Hummingbird | Peruvian Sheartail |
|---|---|---|
| Scientific Name | Ensifera ensifera | Thaumastura cora |
| Order | Caprimulgiformes | Caprimulgiformes |
| Family | Trochilidae | Trochilidae |
| Conservation Status | Least Concern | Least Concern |
| Length | — | — |
| Wingspan | 15.3 cm (6.0 in) | 8.1 cm (3.2 in) |
| Weight | 12.75 g (0.45 oz) | 2.4 g (0.08 oz) |
| Diet | Nectarivore uniquely adapted to extremely long flowers of Passiflora and Datura. Supplements with small insects … | Nectarivore hovering at low-growing flowers in coastal scrub. Supplements nectar diet with tiny spiders and … |
| Clutch Size | -- | 2 |
| Population Trend | — | — |
Habitat Comparison
Shared Habitats
None
Sword-billed Hummingbird only
Peruvian Sheartail only
Song & Call Comparison
Sword-billed Hummingbird
Thin, reedy whistle with plaintive character; soft nasal tone held briefly then gently fading in mist.
Peruvian Sheartail
Delicate, purring trill with silvery shimmer; thin high notes given softly near Peruvian Andean flowers at altitude.
Geographic Range & Migration
Sword-billed Hummingbird
Found in Andean cloud forests from Venezuela south through Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia. 1,700–3,500 m.
Peruvian Sheartail
Found along the arid Pacific coast of Peru from Lima to Tacna. Resident in desert scrub and coastal gardens at low elevations.
Conservation Status
Sword-billed Hummingbird
Peruvian Sheartail
How to Tell Them Apart
Sword-billed Hummingbird
Olivaceous Thornbill: males with iridescent purple gorget; metallic olive-bronze above; white underparts; females green above; spots
Peruvian Sheartail
Sparkling Violetear (alt): males with deep iridescent violet gorget; metallic green body; iridescent ear patches; females green with spots
About These Birds
Sword-billed Hummingbird
A remarkable hummingbird (14-15 cm body) with a bill as long as its body (8-10 cm), the longest bill relative to body size of any bird. Found in Andean cloud forests from Venezuela to Bolivia at 1,700-3,500 m. The extraordinarily long bill evolved to feed on deep tubular Passiflora flowers.
Peruvian Sheartail
A tiny hummingbird (7-8 cm plus elongated tail in males, total 13-14 cm) found in arid coastal Peru. Males have a deeply forked, sheartail-shaped tail with elongated outer feathers. Nectarivore of desert scrub and gardens. A Peruvian near-endemic of coastal Sechura desert habitats.