Haloarcula argentinensis sp. nov. and Haloarcula mukohataei sp. nov., two new extremely halophilic archaea collected in Argentina.

Strains arg-1T (T = type strain) and arg-2T, two new strains of extremely halophilic archaea, were isolated from the soils of the Argentine salt flats. The taxonomic features of arg-1T were similar to, but distinct from, those of the type strain of Haloarcula vallismortis and other Haloarcula species. On the 16S rRNA phylogenetic tree, strain arg-1T formed a cluster together with Haloarcula species. Strain arg-2T differed in its glycolipid composition but still was more closely related to the genus Haloarcula than to other established genera. We propose that strain arg-1T be classified as a member of a new species, Haloarcula argentinensis, and that strain arg-2T be classified as a member of Haloarcula mukohataei sp. nov., although arg-2T may belong to a new genus or a subgenus of the genus Haloarcula. The type strain of H. argentinensis is strain arg-1 (= JCM 9737), and the type strain of H. mukohataei is strain arg-2 (= JCM 9738).