Thallus forming small patches among other lichens, very uneven, 0.2-0.5 mm thick, granular-subareolate, greyish. Apothecia 0.35-0.6 mm diam., innate or sessile, disc black, epruinose, convex, margins thin, concolorous with disc, prominent in young fruits, excluded at maturity. Epithecium 12-15 µm thick, dark bluish-green. Hymenium 60-65 µm tall, colourless. Hypothecium colourless or pale brownish-yellow, c. 50 µm thick. Asci clavate, 40-45 × 12-13 µm. Ascospores ovoid or broadly ellipsoid, 9-11 × 7 µm.

Thallus in irregular patches, to 5 cm diam., grey-white, minutely granular-verrucose or cracked, granules often superficially blackened, flatened, 0.2 mm diam., congested, often obscured by apothecia. Apothecia numerous, often obscuring thallus, sessile, 1-6-confluent, disc 0.5-0.8 mm diam., black, matt, epruinose, margins entire, or distinctly flexuose-contorted, persistent, black, often ± shining. Epithecium bluish- or greenish-black, to 10 µm thick. Hymenium pale yellow or brownish, 90-110 µm tall. Hypothecium thick, brown-black. Ascospores ellipsoid, 8-10 × 5-6 µm.

Thallus granular-areolate, areolae rather friable, bullate, scattered, 0.1-0.3 mm thick, 0.5-1.0 mm wide, whitish or yellowish or greyish, lacking a prothallus, in scattered patches 1-3 cm diam., saxicolous. Apothecia 0.2-1.0 mm diam., sessile on areolae, scattered to ± crowded, rounded, disc black, matt, plane, margins black, shining, prominent, entire or slightly flexuose, persistent. Epithecium greenish black to blue-black. Hymenium 50-75 µm tall, blue in upper part, colourless below. Paraphyses simple-, rarely branched or anastomosing, conglutinate, apical cell spherical c. 5 µm. Asci 50-55(-60) × 10-12 µm with a conspicuous I+ blue apical tholus. Ascospores ellipsoid, 12-15.3 × 5-8.3 µm. Chemistry: Cortex K+ yellow, C-. Atranorin.