The entire natural habitat is in the Blue Mountains, from Katoomba to Wentworth Falls, growing almost exclusively in the splash zones of waterfalls, and on the southern aspect of sandstone nearby.

[3] It was first described by Ferdinand von Mueller in his 1881 work Fragmenta Phytographiae Australiae as Dacrydium fitzgeraldii, naming it after its collector, one R.

The branchlets droop and bear tiny narrow leaves 2 or 3 mm in length.

This conifer may be threatened by habitat loss, due to increased urbanization on the plateau.

In the past hundred years, stream water quality has deteriorated, due to urban sprawl in the Blue Mountains.