It produces club-shaped fruit bodies with spongy flesh that grow in groups on the forest floor.

[7] The club portion of the fruit body is pale yellow, whitish sharp, straight, and has stiff hairs at the base.

[10] Clavariadelphus sachalinensis is macroscopically identical from C. ligula, and can be distinguished only by its larger spores, measuring 16–24 by 4–6 μm, and longer basidia.

[11] Clavaria flavipes is another similar species, but in addition to being smaller and more pale yellow than Clavariadelphus ligula, it also has broader spores.

[12] The fruit bodies of Clavariadelphus ligula grow gregariously (closely scattered over small areas) on the ground, in forest duff.

[8] The species has been collected in the Czech Republic,[13] in Austria (data in), the Magadan region of the Russian Far East[14] as well as the arctic zone of the Urals.