Erect shoots are 1 to 10 cm tall. The large (5 to 6 mm long) leaves are broadly elliptical to egg-shaped (but widest above the middle), with a differentiated border of elongated cells that lacks teeth. The nerve ends shortly below the tip. The stems are red or brown. Tufts of large rhizoids arise from the leaf axils and form a dark felt on the lower part of the shoots. The more slender rhizoids seen in R. pseudopunctatum and R. magnifolium are absent. Damp substrates are often covered by a greenish-brown, alga-like felt, from which small, sparse, leafy shoots arise. Capsules are frequent in autumn and winter, about 4–5 mm long, with a beaked lid. Setae are 2 to 3 cm long.
On damp or wet soil, rock, and rotting wood, in acidic to base-rich habitats.