<p>Bioleaching extracts metals from solid wastes and ores, such as zinc (Zn) recovery from sphalerite (ZnS). One of the major operating costs in bioleaching of zinc sulfide is aeration, where one method could be cutting down the oxygen requirement by and restricting the sulfide sulfur oxidation at elemental sulfur state not allowing to proceed to sulfate ion by further oxidation. The aforesaid goal was achieved by using mixed consortia of iron oxidizing microorganisms dominated with <i>Leptospirillum ferriphilum</i> which oxidizes ferrous ion to ferric, which aimed to carry out direct bioleaching such that elemental sulfur could be produced the iron oxidizing microorganisms enhancing the Zn dissolution from ZnS minimizing passivation layer formation under controlled redox potential within a desired range. Flotation-concentrate of zinc sulfide with 52% zinc content was used in a redox controlled fixed volume fed-batch bioleaching at a redox range between 600 and 700 mV. The initial experiment was carried out at 2% pulp density (P.D.), generating an adapted culture for subsequent bioleaching at higher P.D. (7% and 10%). The Zn extraction percentages were 95, 60, and 70 for 2%, 7%, and 10% P.D. respectively. Kinetic analysis depicted intermediate-controlled leaching, whereas mineralogical studies of XRD and SEM–EDX analyses confirmed ZnS dissolution and altered surface morphology, minimizing the formation of passivation layers. This novel low-oxygen bioleaching approach by <i>Leptospirillum ferriphilum</i>-dominated iron-oxidizing consortium under controlled redox potential fed-batch-bioleaching can be a cost-effective, efficient, and feasible approach for zinc recovery, at higher pulp densities.</p> Graphical Abstract <p></p>