The sporophyte is the most conspicuous part of the plant and due to its shape and colors mistaken for an angiosperm flower.

[5] On this continent, it can be found in the boreal regions of Canada stretching from Newfoundland and Labrador to northern British Columbia and Alaska.

Splachnum rubrum grows only on the dung of large herbivores, mainly that of moose, and cattle in Europe.

Dipterans are attracted by the dung on which the moss grows, because they find mates here and use it as an oviposition site.

Flies from the genera Scathophagaidae, Delia, Myospila and Pyrellia are the main dispersers, as they reproduce in early summer when the sporophytes mature.