Genomic analyses of fairy and fulmar prions (Procellariidae: Pachyptila spp.) reveals parallel evolution of bill morphology, and multiple species

Prions are small petrels that are abundant around the Southern Ocean. Here we use mitochondrial DNA (COI and cytochrome b) and nuclear reduced representation sequencing (ddRADseq) to examine the relationships within and between fairy (Pachyptila turtur) and fulmar (P. crassirostris) prions from across their distributions. We found that neither species was recovered as monophyletic, and that at least three species were represented. Furthermore, we detected several genetic lineages that are also morphologically distinct occurring in near sympatry at two locations (Snares Islands and Chatham Islands). The factors that have driven diversification in the fairy/fulmar prion complex are unclear but may include philopatry, differences in foraging distribution during breeding, differences in non-breeding distributions and breeding habitat characteristics. The observed distribution of genetic variation in the fairy/fulmar prion complex is consistent with population expansion from ice-free Last Glacial Maximum refugia into previously glaciated areas.