A rod-shaped marine bacterium, designated CL-Z59(T), was isolated from seawater enriched with zooplankton. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain CL-Z59(T) belongs to the genus Nocardioides, the highest level of sequence similarity (99.2%) being found with respect to Nocardioides marinisabuli KCCM 42681(T). However, DNA-DNA hybridization experiments between strain CL-Z59(T) and N. marinisabuli KCCM 42681(T) revealed a mean relatedness value of 33%. Cells were Gram-positive, strictly aerobic and non-motile. Strain CL-Z59(T) grew optimally at pH 6-7 and 25-30 degrees C and at a NaCl concentration of 3%. The isolate was characterized chemotaxonomically as having LL-diaminopimelic acid in the cell wall. The major isoprenoid quinone was MK-8(H(4)) and the predominant cellular fatty acid was iso-C(16:0). The DNA G+C content was 73.3 mol%. On the basis of phylogenetic, genotypic and phenotypic data, strain CL-Z59(T) represents a novel species of the genus Nocardioides, for which the name Nocardioides salarius sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is CL-Z59(T) (=KCCM 42320(T)=DSM 18239(T)).