NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Fairy Martin
Petrochelidon ariel (Gould, 1842)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The fairy martin (Petrochelidon ariel) is a member of the swallow family of passerine birds which breeds in Australia. It is migratory wintering through most of Australia, with some birds reaching New Guinea and Indonesia. It is increasingly a wanderer to New Zealand, where it may have bred. This species is frequently placed in the genus Hirundo as Hirundo ariel.
This is a bird of open country near water, and is usually seen near its nest sites in cliffs, culverts or bridges.
Wikipedia contributors, Fairy martin; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T02:21:02.599741+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Petrochelidon ariel (Gould, 1842)
- Name authority
- (Gould, 1842)
- Common name
- Fairy Martin
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Hirundinidae
- Genus
- Petrochelidon
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyHirundinidae Rafinesque, 1815
- genusPetrochelidon Cabanis, 1851
- speciesPetrochelidon ariel (Gould, 1842)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Petrochelidon. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Streak-throated SwallowPetrochelidon fluvicola (Blyth, 1855) | HirundinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Tree MartinPetrochelidon nigricans (Vieillot, 1817) | HirundinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Chestnut-collared SwallowPetrochelidon rufocollaris (Peale, 1849) | HirundinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| South African Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon spilodera (Sundevall, 1850) | HirundinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Preuss's Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon preussi (Reichenow, 1898) | HirundinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Cave SwallowPetrochelidon fulva (Vieillot, 1808) | HirundinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Red Sea Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon perdita (Fry & D. A. Smith, 1985) | HirundinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| American Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon pyrrhonota (Vieillot, 1817) | HirundinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Red-throated Cliff SwallowPetrochelidon rufigula (Barboza du Bocage, 1878) | HirundinidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Hirundo ariel (Gould, 1842) (Gould, 1842) | synonym |
| Petrochelidon ariel conigravi Mathews, 1912 Mathews, 1912 | synonym |
| Collocalia ariel Gould, 1842 Gould, 1842 | synonym |
| Lagenoplastes ariel (Gould, 1842) (Gould, 1842) | synonym |
| Petrochelidon ariel ariel (Gould, 1842) (Gould, 1842) | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=916686 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:4FDYN. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.