It was originally known as a strain of WeN5T. It was found in Lake Bosa at Wadi el Natrun in Egypt in 1988 .
The GC composition in DNA is 38 mol%. Analysis of 16s rRNA showed that this strain is different from all known genera and requires isolation in a separate genus and species.
The strain is stationary, alkaliphilic , halophilic , methylotrophic methanogen . It catalyzes dimethyl sulfide and can grow on substrates containing a methyl group (for example, methanol or trimethylamine ). Sulfide (21 mmol) inhibits growth on a trimethylamine substrate. The susceptibility of the strain to antibiotics is typical of archaea.