Its upper (dorsal) surface is green and chlorophyll-bearing, with a mid-dorsal longitudinal sulcus (furrow or groove).

Air pores occasionally break through the dorsal surface, giving the thallus a dimpled appearance.

The scales are multicellular and hyaline (glassy) in appearance, or violet due to the pigment anthocyanin.

Asexual reproduction occurs by spores, by fragmentation of the rosettes, and by formation of apical tubers.

It consist of only a capsule, missing both foot and seta, and does not perform photosynthesis.