Both the phylogenetic trees based on the 16S rRNA gene sequences (Fig. 3) and HK genes sequences (Fig. 4) shows that Tenacibaculum sp. strain NLF-15 forms a distinct branch together with T. maritimum NCIMB 2154T separate from other Tenacibaculum type strains. No exact ST match was found for Tenacibaculum sp. strain NLF-15 in the MLST database, suggesting that strain NLF-15 is a unique T. maritimum strain.