Found in East Africa, China, and Russia, it was formally described as a new species in 1976 by lichenologists Thomas Douglas Victor Swinscow and Hildur Krog.

[1] The lichen has a thallus that ranges in colour from brown to grey and forms an irregular mat loosely attached to its substrate.

[1] Examining the structure more closely, the lobes have a thickness ranging from 150 to 300 μm, and they exhibit variation across different parts.

Tomentum, the hairy covering, is present on both the upper and lower surfaces, and the filaments are 10–30 μm long with rough walls.

[3] A decade later in 2009, it was reported to occur in the Russian Arctic, where it was found growing on rocks in tundra in a low-altitude region in the Byrranga Mountains.