MacGillivray's Prion

Open encyclopedia reference

MacGillivray's prion (Pachyptila macgillivrayi) is a species of small petrel (a prion) in the Southern Ocean. It is found on Roche Quille, off Saint Paul Island and on Gough Island in the Tristan da Cunha group, south-central Atlantic Ocean. It was formerly present on Amsterdam Island in the central South Indian Ocean. The population on Saint Paul Island has been increasing since the 1990s eradication of introduced rats and rabbits, but is still likely smaller than the original size.

MacGillivray's prion was formerly considered to be conspecific with Salvin's prion but is now considered to be a separate species based on molecular phylogenetic analysis and a comparison of the bill morphologies that was published in 2022.

MacGillivray's prions moult for longer than other prion species.

Their diet and foraging habits are generally unknown, but they are hypothesized to feed on small zooplankton.

Wikipedia contributors, MacGillivray's prion; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:44:08.979231+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Pachyptila macgillivrayi (Mathews, 1912)

Name authority

(Mathews, 1912)

Common name

MacGillivray's Prion

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Procellariiformes

Family

Procellariidae

Genus

Pachyptila

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. genusPachyptila Illiger, 1811
12. speciesPachyptila macgillivrayi (Mathews, 1912)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Pachyptila. 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=1255043 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:D5KD2. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.