3 8. Flavobacterium 



The genus Flavobacterium is characterized by a yellow water- 

 insoluble pigment and peritrichous flagellation, if any. Some strain 

 have a weak oxidative action on carbohydrates, others have none. 

 Many unidentified cultures were studied as well as several named 

 species. 



Flagellar Characteristics 



The only well flagellated culture studied was an unnamed but 

 typical species received from Dr. J. D. Stout of New Zealand. 

 This organism was rather filamentous with numerous curly peri- 

 trichous flagella as illustrated in Fig. 40f. Five named cultures 

 were received from Dr. Owen D. Weeks of the University of 

 Idaho. Only two of these were flagellated: Flavobacterium ma- 

 rinotypiciim, Zobell (F-6), showed poor flagellation with only one 

 nonpolar flagellum per flagellated organism as illustrated in Fig. 

 40a, The single flagellum had an average wavelength of 2.5 mi- 

 crons but many were coiled, Flavobacterium suaveolens, ATCC 

 (F-23), showed fair flagellation with one or two flagella per or- 

 ganism as illustrated in Fig. 40b. The majority of the flagella had 

 an average wavelength of 1.85 microns. Two flagellated cultures 

 typical of the genus were received from Dr. Oleg Lysenko of 

 Yugoslavia: Flavobacterium sp., BmEl, was isolated from Bombex 

 mori and was peritrichously flagellated as illustrated in Fig. 40d, 

 Both normal flagella, with an average wavelength of 2.9 microns, 

 and curly flagella, with an average wavelength of 1.4 microns, 

 were found on the same and on separate organisms, Flavobac- 

 terium sp,, Ac21, was isolated from Aponja crataegi. The flagella- 

 tion was fair with normal peritrichous flagella of average wave- 

 length of 2.95 microns as illustrated in Figs, 40c, e. 



94 



