It is grows in clearings, mountain ridges and in forest margins, from tropical and temperate Asia, northern Queensland in Australia and some islands in the Pacific Ocean.

It has a creeping rhizome covered with black shiny hairs or reddish brown hairlike scales.

The ultimate lobes taper to a narrow apex with the edges deeply or coarsely toothed.

[11][7][2][3][10][4] They do not have indusia (umbrella-like covers) and have paraphyses (filament-like support structures) which are club-shaped.

[5][6] This species was described by Caspar Georg Carl Reinwardt in the book Sylloge Plantarum Novarum in 1828.

[18][full citation needed] It is native to tropical and temperate Asia, Australia and some Pacific islands.

In tropical Asia, within Papua New Guinea, Cambodia (mainly Kampot[6]), Singapore,[4] Thailand, Vietnam,[16] and Hainan (in China), Taiwan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia (including on the slopes of Mount Ophir,[19]) and in the Philippines.

[10] Within Thailand, it is found in the provinces of Surat Thani, Phangnga, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Trang and Yala.

[6] Within Singapore, it is found in the district of Kranji, Tanjung Gul and on the island of Pulau Tekong.

[2] Also specimens of the plant can be found in Cibodas Botanical Garden in West Java of Indonesia,[25] and in the Fernarium of Univerisiti Kebangsaan in Malaysia[26] It has been used as a medicinal plant to treat various ailments,[27] such as in southern Thailand, the roots have been collected for used in traditional medicine.