For anyone interested in Prions: new genomic research lead by Lara Shepherd and Colin Miskelly suggests certain populations of Fulmar prion (
Pachyptila crassirostris) are more closely related to Fairy prion (
Pachyptila turtur) than other Fulmar prion populations. They propose a new species for the previously-classified Fulmar prions of the Chatham Islands, naming it the Pyramid prion (
Pachyptila pyramidalis). Further taxonomic changes to prions are also proposed in the paper.
Link to the blog article which can link to the published research:
https://blog.tepapa.govt.nz/2022/09/28/ ... -of-prion/These changes will make prion identification in the field a little harder!
