Violet-tailed Sylph

The male long-tailed sylphs are 18 to 21 cm (7.1 to 8.3 in) long including the 10 to 15 cm (3.9 to 5.9 in) outer tail feathers. Females are 9.5 to 9.7 cm (3.7 to 3.8 in) long. The species weighs 4.6 to 5.2 g (0.16 to 0.18 oz). Both subspecies have a short black bill. Males of the nominate subspecies have a shining green crown and back, that becomes violet-blue on the rump. They have a buffy spot behind the eye, a violet-blue gorget, and green underparts. The inner tail feathers are short and the outer ones very long, and the feathers are iridescent metallic violet with blue tips. Voice: The violet-tailed sylph's apparent song is "a continuous series of short notes, 'psit..psit..psit..'." Its calls include "a repeated, short, buzzy single or double 'bzzt' or 'bz-zzrt'...a higher-pitched drawn-out 'bzeee' a high-pitched falling/rising twittering 'seee..seee..seee..seee..tr-tr-tititi-teetsee..see..see'."