The name Splachnum comes from the Ancient Greek word splachnos, meaning guts or entrails.

This refers to appearance of the top of the plant's dried sporophyte - it is often red and wrinkled.

Sporophytes are brightly coloured and produce an odour similar to dung meant to attract insects.

This sort of chemical mimicry of decomposing matter is unique in Splachnum and closely related genera.

[2] Because Splachnum grows in such specific conditions, it is used as a model species for understanding the evolutionary mechanisms necessary for co-existing in patchy habitats.