We present multicolour imaging for a sample of 33 dwarf and intermediate-luminosity galaxies in the field of the NGC 5044 Group , complemented with mid-resolution spectroscopy for a subsample of 13 objects .
With these data , a revised membership and morphological classification is made for the galaxies in the sample .
We were able to confirm all but one of the “ definite members ” included in the spectroscopic subsample , which were originally classified based on morphological criteria ; however , an important fraction of background galaxies is probably present among “ likely ” and “ possible ” members .

The presence of a nucleus could be detected in just five out of the nine galaxies originally classified as dE , N , thus confirming the intrisic difficulty of photographic-plate morphological classification for this kind of objects .
Our deep surface photometry provided clear evidences for disc structure in at least three galaxies previously catalogued as dE or dS0 .
Their transition-type properties are also evident from the colour-magnitude diagram , where they lie near the late-type galaxies locus , suggesting an evolutionary connection between a parent disc-galaxy population and at least part of present-day dEs .

Half a dozen new dSph candidates were also found , most of them at small projected distances from NGC 5044 , the central galaxy of the Group .

The NGC 5044 Group appears clearly defined in redshift space , with a mean heliocentric radial velocity , \langle v _ { r } \rangle = 2461 \pm 84 \mathrm { ~ { } km~ { } s } ^ { -1 } ( z = 0.0082 ) , and a moderate dispersion , \sigma _ { v _ { r } } = 431 \mathrm { ~ { } km~ { } s } ^ { -1 } .
Our kinematical data show no luminosity segregation for early-type galaxies : both dwarf and bright E/S0 systems show very similar velocity distributions ( \sigma _ { v _ { r } } \sim 290 ~ { } \mathrm { ~ { } km~ { } s } ^ { -1 } ) , in contrast to late-type galaxies that seem to display a broader distribution ( \sigma _ { v _ { r } } \sim 680 ~ { } \mathrm { ~ { } km~ { } s } ^ { -1 } ) .