“Citrobacter bitternis” Ko et al., 2015 and “Kluyvera intestini” Tetz and Tetz, 2016 are heterotypic synonyms of Phytobacter diazotrophicus Zhang et al., 2017

Abstract Members of Phytobacter, a recently described genus within the family Enterobacteriaceae, are still frequently misclassified as species of other genera. Here, we present genomic evidence that the taxa “Citrobacter bitternis” and “Kluyvera intestini”, as cited in the literature and listed in NCBI databases, are heterotypic synonyms of Phytobacter diazotrophicus. Comparative analyses of 16S rRNA gene phylogeny, core genome phylogeny, average nucleotide identity (ANI), and digital DNA–DNA hybridization (dDDH) consistently place the type strains of both “C. bitternis” and “K. intestini” within the species P. diazotrophicus. Recognizing these taxa as synonyms will help resolve persistent taxonomic inconsistencies and reduce misidentification in clinical and environmental microbiology. Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest.