Distinguishing features 

Members of this genus infect Staphylococcus sp. mainly S. aureus. The type species is Staphylococcus virus Remus. The genome of the exemplar isolate of the type species is 135 kbp, with a total of 174 gene coding sequences as well as 1 encoded tRNA.

Virion

See discussion under family description.

Genome organisation and replication

See discussion under family description. 

Biology

Members of the genus infect Staphylococcus sp. mainly S. aureus. 

Derivation of names 

Silviavirus: indirectly derived from the exemplar isolate, Staphylococcus phage Remus, of the type species. In Roman mythology, Silvia was the mother of Romulus and Remus, after which two phage strains belonging to the type species were named.

Species demarcation criteria 

Members of the same species are more than 95% identical in genome nucleotide sequence, including the terminal repeat region. Phages with genomes that differ by more than 5% are assigned to different species.

Member species

Virus names, the choice of exemplar isolates, and virus abbreviations, are not official ICTV designations.