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The adsorption of laterally and polarly flagellated bacteria to chitin was measured, and from the data obtained, a modified Langmuir adsorption isotherm was derived. Results indicated that the adsorption of laterally flagellated Vibrio parahaemolyticus follows the Langmuir adsorption isotherm, a type of adsorption referred to as surface saturation kinetics, when conditions are favorable for the production of lateral flagella. When conditions were not favorable for the production of lateral flagella, bacterial adsorption did not follow the Langmuir adsorption isotherm; instead, proportional adsorption kinetics were observed. The adsorption of some polarly flagellated bacteria exhibited surface saturation kinetics. However, the binding index (the product of the number of binding sites and bacterial affinity to the surface) of polarly flagellated bacteria differed significantly from that of laterally flagellated bacteria, suggesting that polarly flagellated bacteria adsorb to chitin by a different mechanism from that used by the laterally flagellated bacteria. From the results of dual-label adsorption competition experiments, in which polarly flagellated V. cholerae competed with increasing concentrations of laterally flagellated V. parahaemolyticus, it was observed that laterally flagellated bacteria inhibited the adsorption of polarly flagellated bacteria. In contrast, polarly flagellated bacteria enhanced the adsorption of V. cholerae. In competition experiments, where V. parahaemolyticus competed against increasing concentrations of other bacteria, polarly flagellated bacteria enhanced V. parahaemolyticus adsorption significantly, whereas laterally flagellated bacteria only slightly enhanced the process. The direct correlation observed between surface saturation kinetics, the production of lateral flagella, and the ability of laterally flagellated bacteria to inhibit the adsorption of polarly flagellated bacteria suggests that lateral flagella represent a component of bacterial structure that is important in the adsorption of laterally flagellated bacteria to surfaces. A model for adsorption events of laterally flagellated bacteria is proposed, based on the evidence presented.

Water, sediment, and wooden pilings, samples of which were collected from a harbor in Puerto Rico during the course of a long-term study of biofouling of wood treated with creosote and related compounds, were found to support growth of microbial populations, the dominant taxa of which included Hyphomicrobium, Hyphomonas, Pseudomonas, Vibrio, and Bacillus. New wood exposed to the harbor water was rapidly colonized by Hyphomicrobium vulgare. Old pilings in an advanced stage of biodeterioration maintained a diverse bacterial microflora, representatives of which were also found widely distributed in the water column and sediment. Evidence for bacterial species succession was obtained, indicating that microbial interactions are important for attachment to, and subsequent colonization of, wood surfaces in the marine environment.

Scanning electron microscopy was used to study the production of lateral flagella and the swarming phenomenon in Vibrio parahaemolyticus. Differences in the size and diameter of the sheathed, polar flagellum and lateral flagella were apparent in these preparations. Swarming of V. parahaemolyticus was found to be similar to the swarming of Proteus spp. in that swarm cells which are heavily flagellated and elongated are formed.