A novel aerobic, Gram-negative bacterial strain, designated 51X/A01/131(T) T, was isolated from waters in the coastal north-western Mediterranean Sea. The cells were motile, straight rods, 1.6 mu m long and 0.5 pm wide, and formed cream colonies on marine 2216 agar. The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 57 mol %. Phylogenetic analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence placed the strain in the class Gammaproteobacteria. On the basis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence comparisons and physiological and biochemical characteristics, strain 51X/A01/13 1 T represents a novel genus and species, for which the name Melitea salexigens gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Melitea salexigens is 51X/A01/131(T) (=DSM 19753(T) =CIP 109757(T) =MOLA 225(T)).