[3] Genus Sarcogyne includes lichens with a crust-like (crustose) thallus that can be cracked into small, island-like sections called areoles, which are either broadly attached or have a thick fungal base.

The cortex, which forms the outer layer of the thallus, consists of fungal threads (hyphae) and/or round or irregular cells.

[4] The upper surface of Sarcogyne lichens is typically smooth or slightly wrinkled, and usually ranges in colour from pale to reddish-brown to black-brown, and occasionally rust-coloured.

The photosynthetic partner (photobiont) in these lichens is of the chlorococcoid type, forming a continuous or occasionally interrupted algal layer under the surface.

The fruiting bodies (ascomata) of Sarcogyne are typically apothecia, which are disk-shaped structures that can be immersed in the thallus or elevated.