These bacteria do not form spores and have opaque, slimy colonies that appear slightly yellow due to the presence of zeaxanthin dirhamnoside.

In 2005, Lee et al. proposed the family Xanthobacteraceae based on a comparison of 16S rRNA of the members of Alphaproteobacteria.

The family includes five genera, namely Xanthobacter, Azorhizobium, Ancylobacter, Labrys, and Starkeya.

[5] Members of the genus can be found in freshwater, wet soil that contains decaying organic materials and in the sediments.

[3]: 1–25  Rice paddies, soils environments, freshwater habitats such as ponds, creeks and lakes contain Ancylobacter aquaticus.

[4] Some species of Xanthobacteraceae are sensitive to penicillin, novobiocin and polymyxin B. X. autotrophicus and X. flavus  are resistant to erythromycin and bacitracin.

[3] Xanthobacteraceae species, including X. viscosus and X. aminoxidans, are commonly found in activated sludge from water treatment plants, indicating their potential role in organic compound degradation within polluted environments.

strain N1B, can use toxic aromatic hydrocarbons like naphthalene as their sole carbon source for bacterial cellulose production.

[8] Starkeya Methylorhabdus Angulomicrobium Ancylobacter Aquabacter Xanthobacter Azorhizobium Labrys Blastochloridaceae