Plants 0.5-3 cm. Leaves lingulate, crisped when dry, 2-4 mm, broadly acute to obtuse, margins irregularly dentate distally, distal cells 14-20 µm wide, irregularly hexagonal, rather thin-walled. Seta 3-4 mm. Capsule 0.6-1 mm; peristome teeth narrowly lanceolate to subulate, smooth to faintly striolate, to 500 µm. Spores 18-20 µm. Capsules mature summer. Wet, shaded ledge; moderate elevations (ca. 1100 m); of conservation concern; N.C.; Europe; Asia; Pacific Islands (Hawaii). On the North American continent, this species is known from a single locality in the Appalachian Mountains (R. H. Zander 1966).