Mascarene Petrel

Open encyclopedia reference

The Mascarene petrel (Pseudobulweria aterrima) is a medium-sized, dark petrel. Also sometimes known as the Mascarene black petrel, this species was known from four specimens found in the nineteenth century on the island of Réunion. Two birds were found dead in the 1970s, and there have been rare observations of birds in the waters south of Réunion since 1964. It is also known from subfossil remains from the island of Rodrigues. It is known to breed in very small numbers in the Grand Bassin – Le Dimitile Important Bird Area in the mountains of Réunion. Masacarene petrels are primarily monogamous. The species is classified as critically endangered as it is inferred from the number of records that there is an extremely small population threatened by introduced species, such as feral cats and house rats, and light pollution. Despite these threats, genetic diversity of the species is high. Public awareness campaigns resulted in the finding of 58 Mascarene petrels between 1996 and 2021. Réunion scientists reported this as part of their work to locate breeding colonies using acoustic surveys.

Wikipedia contributors, Mascarene petrel; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T05:28:07.382889+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Pseudobulweria aterrima (Bonaparte, 1857)

Name authority

(Bonaparte, 1857)

Common name

Mascarene Petrel

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Procellariiformes

Family

Procellariidae

Genus

Pseudobulweria

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.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classAves
9. orderProcellariiformes
10. familyProcellariidae Leach, 1820
11. genusPseudobulweria Mathews, 1936
12. speciesPseudobulweria aterrima (Bonaparte, 1857)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Pseudobulweria. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 79 records assigned to Procellariidae.

Names & synonyms

Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.

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.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=562519 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.

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:4NQBS. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.