Marinum

Marinum is a Latin adjective meaning “of the sea” or “marine.” In biological nomenclature, marinum (neuter singular) is commonly used as a species epithet to denote a marine or aquatic habitat of the organism. The epithet is attached to a genus name to form a binomial or to a species group within a genus; it is not a taxon by itself.

Usage in taxonomy is widespread across many groups of organisms. The epithet marinum is used to signal the marine nature of a species, and it commonly appears in bacteria, algae, mollusks, crustaceans, and other marine life. Because it simply indicates habitat, it does not imply any close evolutionary relationship among all species bearing the name.

A widely cited example is Mycobacterium marinum, a slow-growing, non-tuberculous bacterium that primarily infects fish but can cause cutaneous infections in humans, often after exposure to contaminated aquatic environments. In research, strains related to M. marinum have served as models for studying mycobacterial pathogenesis and host–pathogen interactions due to genetic and physiological similarities with other mycobacteria.

Notes on form: marinum is the neuter form used with neuter genus names; masculine form marinus and feminine form marina reflect Latin gender agreement with their respective genus names. The epithet’s meaning is purely descriptive of habitat and does not define taxonomic relationships beyond location or environment. See also the related Latin terms mare and marinus.