lives in the deep shade of old forests

Size
Width: 3–8 cm
Lifespan
5–10 years
Diet
Obtains nutrients via photosynthesis. Requires consistent moisture and high humidity. Grows on damp soil, logs, and stream banks.
Habitat
Damp soil, rotting logs, and stream banks in deep shade where the forest is old and the air hangs heavy with moisture.
Range
Found throughout the North and South Islands on damp soil, rotting logs, and stream banks in shaded lowland and montane forests. Endemic.
Endemism
Endemic
Main Threats
None significant. Localised threats include forest clearance, wetland drainage, and climate change reducing forest floor moisture.
Population
Not Threatened. Common on bark, rocks, and rotting logs in damp, shaded forests. Endemic to New Zealand, found nowhere else.
Conservation Status
Not Threatened
Human Risk
harmless
Handling Note
common liverwort, safe to handle
Conservation Note
Endemic liverwort; not assessed by NZTCS as bryophytes are generally outside the scope of current threat classifications.
Te Ao Māori
No recorded Māori name distinguishes the schistochila liverwort from other liverworts. Liverworts were generally called "pūkohu" (mosses and lichens). The tiny, fern-like mats on the bark would have been noticed. They looked like the feathers of a bird. Like the fronds of a fern. But no distinct name survives. This liverwort was not used as a medicine or a dye. It was too small. Too delicate. Too easy to overlook. It was simply part of the forest. A quiet, fern-like presence on the bark.
It is not a fern. It is a liverwort in disguise. Schistochila pinnatifolia is a tiny fern. Or so it pretends. A plant that wears a disguise. It forms finely divided, feathery mats on tree bark. Each leaf cut into narrow finger-like segments. Giving the whole plant a delicate, lacy appearance. Pale green to yellowish-green. Often translucent. It looks like a miniature forest clinging to the trunk. A plant that dreams of being a tree. This is one of the most finely divided liverworts in New Zealand. The leaves are pinnately lobed. Sliced almost to the base. Creating a feathery texture unlike any other liverwort. It wants to be something bigger. A fern. A lace doily. A tiny green creature from the understorey. A plant that pretends to be something it is not. Leaves arrange in two rows along a creeping stem. The lobes spreading like the pinnae of a real fern. Underleaves (amphigastria) exist but stay small. Often hidden beneath the overlapping foliage. The effect is feathery. Fern-like. Delicate. A disguise that works. Reproduction happens via spores from capsules on short stalks. But the real wonder is the disguise. This liverwort is endemic to New Zealand. Found nowhere else on Earth. In the deep shade of old forests. Where air hangs heavy with moisture. It plays its tiny trick. Pretending to be something grander than it is. To find schistochila liverwort is to spot pale green, feathery mats on tree bark. Bring a hand lens. Only then will the fine divisions be seen. The finger-like lobes. The fern disguise. The bark is dark. The liverwort spreads across it. Feathery and green. Pretending to be a fern. It does not know it is pretending. It just grows that way. And the disguise works. No one looks twice. That is the point. Not Threatened. Common on bark, rocks, and rotting logs in damp, shaded forests. Endemic to New Zealand. Found nowhere else. Localised threats include forest clearance. Wetland drainage. Climate change reducing forest floor moisture.