Methanobacterium facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Methanobacterium
Scientific classification
Domain:	Archaea
Kingdom:	Euryarchaeota
Phylum:	Euryarchaeota
Class:	Methanobacteria
Order:	Methanobacteriales
Family:	Methanobacteriaceae
Genus:	Methanobacterium
Binomial name
Methanobacterium Kluyver and van Niel 1936
Species
M. aarhusense M. alcaliphilum M. beijingense M. bryantii M. congolense M. curvum M. espanolae M. formicicum M. ivanovii M. oryzae M. palustre M. subterraneum M. thermaggregans M. uliginosum

In taxonomy, Methanobacterium is a genus of the Methanobacteriaceae family of Archaea. Despite the name, this genus belongs not to the bacterial domain but the archaeal domain (for instance, they lack peptidoglycan in their cell walls). Methanobacterium are nonmotile and live without oxygen. Some members of this genus can use formate to reduce methane; others live exclusively through the reduction of carbon dioxide with hydrogen. They are ubiquitous in some hot, low-oxygen environments, such as anaerobic digestors, their wastewater, and hot springs.

Examples of Methanobacterium Species

• Methanobacterium bryantii: part of the syntrophic Methanobacillus omelianskii culture
• Methanobacterium formicum
• Methanobacterium thermoautotrophicum