[2] It is a small green bryophyte that occurs in the Mediterranean region as far east as Turkey, and along the Atlantic coast of Europe as far as northwest Scotland.

The thallus consists of a midrib flanked by two wings that bear erect, leaf-like lamellae on their dorsal surface.

In Britain, the largest population occurs at Achnahaird in Scotland, the most northerly point in its range.

These dunes are increasingly under threat, leading to the species being classified as "vulnerable", and the British Isles may now be the liverwort's stronghold.

Plants with which this liverwort may be associated include various mosses, grasses such as the common bent (Agrostis capillaris), red fescue (Festuca rubra) and Yorkshire-fog (Holcus lanatus), the grey sedge (Carex flacca) and the buck’s-horn plantain (Plantago coronopus).