A bryophilous lichen is one that grows on a bryophyte – that is, on a moss or liverwort.
[3] Muscicolous derives from the Latin muscus meaning moss,[4] while the suffix colous means "living or growing in or on".
[5] Lichens are slow-growing organisms, and so are far more likely to be overgrown by a bryophyte than to overgrow one.
[6][7] However, they are better able to compete if the bryophyte is sickly or decaying and they can be parasitic upon them.
[9] Bryophilous lichens are particularly common in heathland and arctic or alpine tundra.