Nine strains of a
Rodentibacter
-related bacterium were isolated over a period of 38 years from a laboratory mouse (Mus musculus), seven laboratory rats (Rattus norvegicus) and a Syrian hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) in Düsseldorf and Heidelberg, Germany. The isolates are genotypically and phenotypically distinct from all previously described
Rodentibacter
species. Sequence analysis of 16S rRNA and rpoB gene sequences placed the isolates as a novel lineage within the genus
Rodentibacter
. In addition to the single-gene analysis, the whole genome sequence of the strain 1625/19T revealed distinct genome-to-genome distance values to the other
Rodentibacter
species. The genomic DNA G+C content of strain 1625/19T was 40.8 mol% within the range of
Rodentibacter
. At least six phenotypic characteristics separate the new isolates from the other
Rodentibacter
species, with
Rodentibacter heylii
being the most closely related. In contrast to the latter, the new strains display β-haemolysis and are β-glucuronidase, d-mannitol and sorbitol positive, but fail to produce lysine decarboxylase and trehalose. The genotypic and phenotypic differences between the novel strains and the other closely related strains of the genus
Rodentibacter
indicate that they represent a novel species within the genus
Rodentibacter
, family
Pasteurellaceae
, for which the name Rodentibacter haemolyticus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain 1625/19T, (=DSM 111151T=CCM 9081T), was isolated in 2019 from the nose of a laboratory mouse (Mus musculus) in Düsseldorf, Germany.