A Gram-negative, yellow-coloured, non-motile, chemoheterotrophic, strictly aerobic, rod-shaped bacterium, designated IMCC1616(T), was isolated from the marine polychaete Periserrula leucophryna inhabiting tidal flat sediment of the Yellow Sea, and characterized by a polyphasic approach. The temperature, pH and NaCl ranges for growth were 3-37 degrees C, pH 5.0-11.0 and 0.5-7.5 %. Based on 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity analyses, the strain was most closely related to members of the genera Lutibacter (90.7 %), Tenacibaculum (89.2-90.4 %) and Polaribacter (88.4-90.2 %). Phylogenetic analysis using three treeing algorithms based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that the strain formed a distinct lineage within the family Flavobacteriaceae. The DNA G+C content of the strain was 40.1 mol% and the predominant cellular fatty acids were iso-C(15 : 0) (16.5 %), anteiso-C(15 : 0) (10.9 %), iso-C(17 : 0) 3-OH (8.8 %) and iso-C(17 : 1) omega 9c (8.2 %). The DNA G+C content, large amount of iso-C(17 : 1) omega 9c and several phenotypic characteristics, including growth temperature and catalase activity, differentiated the strain from other related genera in the family. Therefore, from the taxonomic evidence collected in this study, it is proposed that strain IMCC1616(T) represents a new genus and species named Lutimonas vermicola gen. nov., sp. nov. The type strain of Lutimonas vermicola is strain IMCC1616(T) (=KCCM 42379(T) =NBRC 102041(T)).