The Bergey Classification of Bacteria

The Bergey’s Manual of Systematic Bacteriology is the main resource for determining the identity of bacteria species, utilizing every characterizing aspect. First published in 1923 by David Hendricks Bergey, it is used to classify bacteria based on their structural and functional attributes by arranging them into specific familial orders.

It was published in four volumes

Volume 1 included information on all types of Gram-negative bacteria that were considered to have "medical and industrial importance."

Volume 2 included information on all types of Gram-positive bacteria.

Volume 3 deals with all of the remaining, slightly different Gram-negative bacteria, along with the archaea.

Volume 4 has information on filamentous actinomycetes and other, similar bacteria

• Bergey Division I = The Cyanobacteria (formerly the blue-green alga) - These bacteria can use light as their energy source under aerobic conditions. The use carbon dioxide and produce oxygen.
• Bergey Division II = The Bacteria (includes the photobacteria and all other classical bacteria) - See the 19 parts below.
• Archeobacteria = in the 8th Edition (1974) the archeobacteria were mixed within the 19 parts of the book. I have not yet decided how to handle these bacteria.

The Bergey Classification of Bacteria into 19 parts.

• Phototrophic Bacteria: Rhodospirillum - Rhodopseudomonas - Chromatium
• Gliding Bacteria: Myxococcus - Beggiatoa - Simonsiella - Leucothrix
• Sheathed Bacteria: Sphaerotilus - Leptothrix
• Budding / Appendaged Bacteria: Caulobacter - Gallionella
• Spirochetes: Spirochaeta - Treponema - Borrelia
• Spiral and Curved Bacteria: Spirillum - Auqaspirillum - Oceanospirillum - Bdellovibrio
• Gram-negative Aerobic Rods and Cocci: Pseudomonas - Xanthanomonas - Zoogloea - Gluconobacter - Azotobacter - Rhizobium - Agrobacterium - Halobacterium - Acetobacter
• Gram-Negative Facultative Anaerobic Rods: Escherichia - Citrobacter - Salmonella - Shigella - Klebsiella - Enterobacter - Serratia - Proteus - Yersinia - Erwinia - Vibrio - Aeromonas - Zymomonas - Chromobacterium - Flavobacterium -
• Gram-negative anaerobes: Bacteriodes - Fusobacterium - Desulfovibrio - Succinimonas
• Gram-Negative cocci: Nisseria - Branhamella - Acinetobacter - Paracoccus
• Gram-negative anaerobic cocci: Veillonella - Acidaminococcus
• Gram-Negative Chemolithotrophic: Nitrobacter - Thiobacillus - Siderocapsa
• Methane producing:
• Gram-Positive Cocci: Micrococcus - Staphylococcus - Streptococcus - Leuconostoc - Pediococcus - Aerococcus - Peptococcus - Ruminococcus - Sarcina
• Endospore-forming Rods and cocci: Bacillus - Clostridium - Sporosarcina
• Gram-positive, non-sporing rods: Lactobacillus - Listeria - Erysipelothrix - Caryophanon
• Actinomycetes and Related: Corynebacterium - Arthobacter - Brevibacterium - Cellumonas - Kurthia - Propionibacterium - Eubacterium - Actinomyces - Archina - Bifidiobacterium - Rothia - Mycobacterium - Frankia - Streptosporangia - Nocardia - Streptomyces - Streptoverticillium - Micromonospora
• Rickettsias: Rickettsia - Erhlichia - Wollbachia - Bartonella - Chlamydia
• Mycoplasmas: Mycoplasma - Acoleplasma - Thermplasma – Spiroplasma