This rare lichen is endemic to eastern North America, where it grows exclusively on large acidic rock overhangs that maintain high humidity.

The generic name honors the Rockefeller family, "for their century-long support of North American conservation efforts, particularly with respect to national parks".

[6] Rockefellera is distinguished from the closely related genus Protopannaria by having minutely digitate lobes, biatorine apothecia with hymenia that are hemiamyloid, asci that have internal apical ring structures, and smooth ascospores.

[3] Because of a dearth of records of the lichen from North America after its initial description, Per Magnus Jørgensen suggested in 2000 that it was potentially extinct in the wild on that continent.

Both natural factors (such as invasive species altering forest composition) and human activities (including logging and infrastructure development) threaten remaining populations through irreversible changes to required humidity and environmental conditions.