[1] The thallus (vegetative tissue) of this fruticose (bush-like) lichen is densely branched, and forms tangled masses of stems which are prostrate or pendulous.

[2] This lichen is very sensitive to air pollution, especially from sulphur dioxide; it has a widespread but sparse distribution in mainland Europe, but has become extinct in many areas, surviving best in Brittany.

It is reasonably common in southwestern England, from the New Forest westwards, and is known from scattered locations in Wales, particularly Pembrokeshire.

Here it is difficult to spot from below and its presence may only become apparent should fragments of the lichen fall to the ground during storms or after snowfall.

Reproduction in this species is mainly by fragmentation of the thallus,[3] with an apparent absence of spore production limiting its ability to recolonise parts of its range where it has been extirpated.