species associated with the maritime grass subsp. .

subsp. is a perennial grass growing in sea cliffs where plants are highly exposed to salinity and marine winds, and often grow in rock fissures where soil is absent. species are one of the most abundant components of the root microbiome of this grass and several isolates have been found to produce beneficial effects in their host and other plant species of agronomic importance. In this study, 22 strains of isolated as endophytes from roots of subsp. were characterized by molecular, morphological, and biochemical analyses. Sequences of the nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacers (ITS), translation elongation factor 1-α (), beta-tubulin (), histone-3 (), and calmodulin () genes were analyzed to identify the isolates. A multi-locus phylogenetic analysis of the combined five gene regions led to the identification of two new species named and . is the most abundant species in its host plant, and was also isolated from , another grass species growing in semiarid inland habitats. An biochemical characterization showed that all cultures of produced indole-3-acetic acid and ammonium, and the strains of produced indole 3-acetic acid, ammonium, siderophores, and cellulase. closely related to , a pathogen of cucurbits, and caused a growth reduction when inoculated in cucumber, melon, and watermelon.