Whereas most prokaryotes rely on binary fission for propagation, many species use alternative mechanisms, which include multiple offspring formation and budding, to reproduce. In some bacterial species, these eccentric reproductive strategies are essential for propagation, whereas in others the programmes are used conditionally. Although there are tantalizing images and morphological descriptions of these atypical developmental processes, none of these reproductive structures are characterized at the molecular genetic level. Now, with newly available analytical techniques, model systems to study these alternative reproductive programmes are being developed.