Teredinibacter turnerae* is a nitrogen-fixing bacterium, whose type strain, isolated from the shipworm Lyrodus pedicellatus, was obtained from specimens obtained in Long Beach, California. Lyrodus pedicellatus (Blacktip Shipworm) is distributed worldwide, in tropical and subtropical waters, but is introduced in the Northeast Pacific. The bacterium was found in Bankia gouldi (from North Carolina), Teredora malleolus (from the Gulf Stream), and Dicyathifer manni, Australia (from Australia). Lyrodus pedicellatus was first observed in the Los Angeles area in 1871-1876, and is presumed to have carried the symbiont then. Wood is deficient in nitrogen, so shipworms may depend on bacterial endosymbionts for their supply.
*Teredinibacter turnerae is named after Dr. Ruth Turner, an important shipworm researcher.