The type specimen was collected in 1927 by Gustaf and Greta Sernander-Du Rietz from the South Hokitika Experimental Station, where it was found growing on Pterophylla racemosa.

The thallus is firmly attached to its substrate, with lobed edges and a distinctive blue-black fuzzy layer of root-like structures (rhizines) underneath that anchor it in place.

The upper surface is flat or slightly concave, smooth and somewhat shiny, ranging in colour from greenish-brown to yellowish.

The cephalodia produce a powdery, blue-grey granular substance (soredia) that helps the lichen reproduce vegetatively.

They have thick margins matching the thallus colour and flesh-coloured to pink centres that appear slightly whitish due to a powdery coating.

It prefers relatively open woodlands and clearings rather than dense forest, typically in areas with annual rainfall between 200 and 250 cm.