Isolation of Pseudomonas aeruginosa from Ushubetsu River water in Hokkaido, Japan.

To provide information on the ecology of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in nature, bacteriological surveillance was performed in the defined area in Hokkaido, Japan. P. aeruginosa was isolated from water samples of Ushubetsu River in the down stream from the urban area of Asahikawa. P. aeruginosa was isolated from fecal samples of pigs but not from samples of soil of a tomato field, sand of sandboxes in vest-pocket parks, fresh vegetables, or feces of wild deer. The present results indicate that P. aeruginosa strains isolated from the river water is originated from the environment of human activity and not from wild life or domestic animals.