Rhizome and juvenile fronds as in Lygodium flexuosum, except rachis thickened at junction of rachis with midribs of lobes of pinnae. Rachis of climbing fronds up to 10 m, up to 2 mm in diam.; primary rachis branches always very short (hardly measurable), ending in a dormant apex covered with brown hairs; secondary rachis branches normally pinnate, rarely somewhat bipinnate and then tertiary branches bearing 1 or more pairs of short spreading lateral pinnae (jointed at base) and a large terminal one; secondary branch system usually consisting of ca. 4(-6) pinnae on each side, and a terminal deeply bilobed pinna (or a pair of pinnae), all pinnae of ± equal size and all stalked, stalks 2-10 mm and thickened at junction with lamina, most often articulate (old pinnae sometimes deciduous but not regularly so as in L. microphyllum); pinnae 4-15 × 0.5-2 cm, base truncate to cordate, margins of sterile pinnae finely crenate-serrate, apex acute and attenuate or subobtuse; lamina thicker than in L. flexuosum; adaxial surface of costae ± hairy especially toward base, abaxial surface often glabrous, veins usually glabrous; sorophores 2-5 mm, usually constricted at base; indusia glabrous; spores finely verrucose.

Mixed forests; 800-1200 m. Hainan, Taiwan, Yunnan [Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam].