Plants 4-28 cm tall. Rhizome erect, densely covered with lanceolate brown scales. Stipe stramineous, 4-18 cm, 1-3 mm in diam. at base, scaly throughout; scales dark brown, lanceolate or linear, margins entire or ciliate, often twisted. Lamina often simple, sometimes lower portion deeply pinnatifid and forming 1 pair of lobes or free pinnae, deltoid-ovate, both sides of lower portion often elevated at obtuse angle, 4-12 × 3.5-10 cm, base deeply cordate, margins entire, apex acute or acuminate; leathery, abaxially with hairlike microscales, glabrous adaxially; venation palmate, indistinct abaxially, slightly raised adaxially, veinlets anastomosing to form multiple rows of areoles on each side of midrib, each areole with 1-3 included veinlets. Sori throughout abaxial surface of lamina or pinnae; indusia with weakly dentate margins. 2n = 123*.