The fairy prion was formally described in 1820 by the German naturalist Heinrich Kuhl under the binomial name Procellaria turtur.

Prions are small and typically eat just zooplankton[6] but, as members of the Procellariiformes, they share certain identifying features.

The birds produce a stomach oil made up of wax esters and triglycerides that is stored in the proventriculus, and is used against predators, as well as providing an energy rich food source for chicks, and for the adults during their long flights.

[7] They also have a salt gland above the nasal passage which excretes a high saline solution from their nose, helping to desalinate their bodies, due to the large quantity of ocean water that they imbibe.

[11] The diet consists mainly of planktonic crustaceans and tiny fish, which they catch by either seizing prey while on the surface or by dipping their bill into the water while in flight.

[10] Widespread and common throughout its large range, with an estimated population of 5,000,000, the fairy prion is evaluated as least concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.