Three lactic acid bacteria were isolated from faeces of a jackal (Canis mesomelas) and raccoons (Procyron lotor). The isolates formed a subcluster in the Lactobacillus salivarius phylogenetic group, closely related to Lactobacillus animalis, Lactobacillus apodemi and Lactobacillus murinus, by phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA and recA gene sequences. Levels of DNA-DNA relatedness revealed that the isolates belonged to the same taxon and were genetically separated from their phylogenetic relatives. The three strains were non-motile, obligately homofermentative and produced l-lactic acid as the main end-product from d-glucose. The strains metabolized raffinose. The major cellular fatty acids in the three strains were C16 : 0, C18 : 1�s9c and C19 : 1 cyclo 9,10. Based on the data provided, it is concluded that the three strains represent a novel species of the genus Lactobacillus, for which the name Lactobacillus faecis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is AFL13-2(T) (= JCM 17300(T) = DSM 23956(T)).