Growth of bacteria that adhere to surfaces immersed in marine habitats is essential in the formation of fouling biofilms. Observations in a dialysis microchamber revealed that starved cells of the adhesive marinePseudomonasJD8 and the non‐adhesive marineVibrioMH3 undergo cellular growth and reproduction when exposed to surface‐bound stearic acid as the only available energy substrate.VibrioMH3 exhibited cellular growth and began the division process near the surface, but the dividing cells returned to the aqueous phase for the final production of daughter cells. In contrast, dividing cells ofPseudomonasJD8 remained attached to the surface, with the daughter cells slowly migrating across the surface after division. This migration and the subsequent detachment ofPseudomonasJD8 cells from the surface was probably related to changes in the substratum surface free energy after utilisation of the surface‐bound stearic acid. Changes in cell numbers and size distribution ofPseudomonasJD8 andVibrioMH3 in the aqueous phase in the presence of stearic acid coated beads generally reflected the behaviour of the organisms at the surface described above.