A Numerical Taxonomic Study of Some Pseudomonas-like Marine Bacteria

Summary: The abilities of 26 marine and 12 other Pseudomonas-like strains of bacteria to grow on single carbon sources, their antibiotic sensitivities and complement of some enzymes of intermediary metabolism were numerically analysed and gave five phenons. Two phenons contained strains with more than 55 mol % GC and were regarded as Pseudomonas spp., two were similar to the genus Alteromonas, and one was an intermediate phenon. Tests for identifying such organisms are proposed. Pseudomonas putrefaciens Derby & Hammer 1931 and P. rubescens Pivnick 1955 should be considered synonyms of Alteromonas putrefaciens Derby & Hammer comb. nov.