NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Spectacled Petrel
Procellaria conspicillata Gould, 1844
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 spectacled petrel (Procellaria conspicillata) is a rare seabird that nests only on the high western plateau of Inaccessible Island in the South Atlantic Tristan da Cunha group. It is one of the largest petrels that nests in burrows. This species was formerly considered to be a subspecies of the white-chinned petrel (Procellaria aequinoctialis).
Wikipedia contributors, Spectacled petrel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T06:36:26.219173+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Procellaria conspicillata Gould, 1844
- Name authority
- Gould, 1844
- Common name
- Spectacled Petrel
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Procellariiformes
- Family
- Procellariidae
- Genus
- Procellaria
- 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
- orderProcellariiformes
- familyProcellariidae Leach, 1820
- genusProcellaria Linnaeus, 1758
- speciesProcellaria conspicillata Gould, 1844
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Procellaria. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| White-chinned PetrelProcellaria aequinoctialis Linnaeus, 1758 | ProcellariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black PetrelProcellaria parkinsoni G. R. Gray, 1862 | ProcellariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Westland PetrelProcellaria westlandica Falla, 1946 | ProcellariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Grey PetrelProcellaria cinerea J. F. Gmelin, 1789 | ProcellariidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Procellaria aequinoctialis conspicillata Gould, 1844 Gould, 1844 | 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.
- Gould, & John. (1844). On the Family Procellaridee, with descriptions of Ten new Species. The Annals and Magazine of Natural History, Vol. 13. 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:4MMQ4. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.