Thallus small, spreading, to 3.5 cm tall. Pseudopodetia ± erect, branched, terete or more commonly flattened, appearing dorsiventral, corticate, cortex commonly nodular or cracked. Phyllocladia conspicuously and characteristically flattened, branched, leaflike, pinnatifidly arranged, paler on the lower side, developed towards the tips of primary and secondary branches and appearing as proliferations of these. Cephalodia yellowish-brown, to 3 mm diam., spherical to subglobose, slightly wrinkled when young, becoming areolate and cracked with age, solid-cored. Apothecia terminal, small, 1-2 mm wide, disc black with a concolorous margin when young, excluded at maturity, thalline exciple brown, smooth. Hypothecium brown. Ascospores 6-8 per ascus, cylindrical-fusiform, 5-10-septate, 40-78 × 3.5-4 µm. Chemistry: Atranorin and fumarprotocetraric acid.