Management of faecal contamination of water would be improved if sources could be accurately identified through water analysis. Human faeces are generally perceived as constituting a greater human health risk than animal faeces, but reliable epidemiological evidence is lacking. United States waterborne disease data suggest that humanspecific enteric viruses account for over half the documented outbreaks. However, in New Zealand, where there is a high grazing animal:human ratio (increasing the relative importance of watertransmissible zoonoses), it seems prudent to assume that human and animal faecal pollution both constitute a risk to human health. Irrespective of the relative risks, the ability to identify sources would assist in overall management of microbial water quality. Faecal streptococci do not appear to provide reliable faecal source identification. Human and animal sources, respectively, maybe distinguishable by two tests on Bifidobacterium spp.-growth at 45°C in trypticase phytone yeast broth and sorbitol fermentation. Different species of Bacteroides tend to be present in humans and animals, but poor survival in water is a problem. Phages of the M97014