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Exercise V
Bacterial Cultural Characteristics or Morphology
When a single bacterial cell is deposited on a solid or in a liquid medium, it begins to divide. One cell
produces two, two produce four, four produce eight, and so on. Eventually, a colony appears where the
original organism was. When grown on a variety of media, microorganisms will exhibit visible physical
differences in appearance in their isolated colonies and their growth. These differences are called cultural
characteristics or morphology. Cultural characteristics or morphology may be used as an aid in identifying
and classifying some organisms.
These physical characteristics are often specific for the type of bacteria making the colony and can be
used as a means of recognition. The appearance of colonial growth on agar media can be very distinctive for
individual species. Some microorganisms have characteristic growth patterns but they aid in the
identification of species only if they are distinctive. Although some bacteria grow in distinctive patterns,
others look alike. Colonial morphology, however, is influenced by the media and other growth conditions.
The colonial morphology of the same bacteria may vary on different media or under different conditions.
Cultural characteristics or morphology are determined by culturing microorganisms in nutrient broth and
on nutrient agar plates and slants. After incubation, the characteristics are observed.
After incubation, in a nutrient broth, bacteria may exhibit a particular form of growth. In a liquid media,
some bacteria grow diffusely causing a uniform clouding of the media (turbidity), whereas others look
granular. Layering of growth or accumulation of cells at the top (pellicle), center, or bottom (sediment) of
the broth tells something about the microorganisms oxygen requirements. Sometimes bacterial
aggregations are formed and the bacterial growth appears as small puff balls floating in the broth
(flocculent). Observation of such factors also helps in recognizing types of bacteria.
The basic categories of bacterial colony appearance, forms and characteristics on solid media include:
colony form (shape), margin (edge), elevation, pigmentation (color), texture, and pattern of growth. Colony
shape may be described as circular, irregular, or punctiform (tiny). The margin may be entire (smooth with
no irregularities), undulate (wavy), lobate (lobed), filamentous, or rhizoid (branched like roots). Colony
elevations include flat, raised, convex, pulvinate (very convex), and umbonate (raised in the center). Colony
texture may be moist, mucoid, or dry. Pigment production may be influenced by environmental factors such
as temperature and nutrient supply. Colony color may be combined with optical properties such as opaque,
translucent, shiny, or dull.
Terms Used for Growth in Nutrient Broth
1. Uniform fine turbidity finely dispersed growth throughout (cloudy)
2. Flocculent flaxy aggregates dispersed throughout
3. Pellicle thick, padlike growth on the surface
4. Sediment concentration of growth at the bottom of the broth culture may be granular, flaxy, or
flocculent
5. Ring formation a ring of growth on the surface
Terms Used for Growth on Nutrient Slants
1. Abundance of growth - the amount of growth is designated as none, slight, moderate, or large
2. Pigmentation chromogenic bacteria may produce intracellular pigments that are responsible for the
color of the colonies on the agar surface. Other bacteria produce extracellular soluble pigments that
are excreted into the medium and that also produce a color. Most microorganisms are
nonchromogenic and will appear cream, white, or gray.
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3. Optical characteristics - these characteristics are based on the amount of light transmitted through
the growth: opaque (no light transmitted), translucent (partial transmission), or transparent (full
transmission).
4. Form the appearance of the single line streak of growth on the agar slant.
a. filiform continuous, threadlike growth with smooth edges
b. echinulate continuous threadlike growth with irregular edges
c. beaded nonconfluent to semi-confluent colonies
d. effuse thin, spreading growth
e. arborescent treelike growth
f. rhizoid rootlike growth
Terms Used for Growth on Nutrient Agar Plates
1. Size pinpoint, small, moderate, large
2. Pigmentation color of colony
3. Optical properties
a. opaque
b. translucent (clear)
c. shiny
d. dull
4. Form the shape of the colony
a. circular unbroken, peripheral edge
b. irregular indented, peripheral edge
c. rhizoid root-like, spreading growth
d. punctiform - tiny
e. filamentous
f. spindle
5. Margin the appearance of the outer edge of the colony
a. entire sharply defined, even, smooth
b. lobate marked indentation (lobed)
c. undulate wavy indentation
d. serrate or erose tooth-like appearance
e. curled
f. rhizoid root-like
g. filamentous threadlike, spreading edge
6. Elevation the degree to which the colony growth is raised
a. flat elevation not discernable
b. raised slightly elevated
c. convex dome-shaped
d. umbonate raised, with elevated convex center region
e. pulvinate very convex
Procedure 1:
1. Obtain the nutrient broth tubes inoculated during the previous lab period from the incubator.
2. Obtain the nutrient agar slants inoculated during the previous lab period from the incubator.
3. Obtain the nutrient agar plates inoculated during the previous lab period from the incubator.
4. Identify the growth patterns on the nutrient agar plates and slants, and in the nutrient broth tubes.
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Procedure 2:
1. Identify the growth patterns of an outside air sample on the nutrient agar plate demonstration.
2. Identify the growth patterns of an inside air sample on the nutrient agar plate demonstration.
Clean-up Procedure
Dispose of the used nutrient broth tubes, nutrient agar slants and plates in the waste bin.
Figure 1. Agar Slant Growth Patterns
Filiform Echinulate Beaded Effuse Aborescent Rhizoid
Figure 2.
Surface Growth Patterns
in Nutrient Broth
Ring Pellicle Flocculent Membranous
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Figure 3. Colony Characteristics on Agar Plates
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Adapted from Biology 15 Laboratory Supplemental Manual: Wrightsman, Ininns and CannonMoloznic.
