Thallus ashy brown, of radiating, narrow, branching, separate lobes, which arc composed of narrow, elongated, angular, convex areolae, more grouped centrally in the thallus; the cortex transparent, with the upper part olive-brown. Apothecia in dense numbers in the center of the thallus in verrucules; margin thick, dark brown, with the outer part paler. 1+ blue; exciple dark, 1+ blue; disk to 0.5 mm broad, black, bare; hypothecium unclear, 1+ blue-green; epihymenium dark; hymenium 85 µm, 1+ orange-brown; paraphyses coherent, simple, or rarely branched, not moniliform; spores 8, ellipsoid, 14-18 x 8.5 µm.

Reactions: K+ red, C-, P-, I-.

Contents: The red needles of norstictic acid in KOH appear to be formed mainly from the epihymenium; however, the content seems too low to yield results in MC test.

This species grows on calcareous and noncalcareous rocks. It is known from Siberia, Alaska, and the Northwest Territories but is too rarely collected to give a satisfactory range definition.