Shining Firmoss is fairly common in the Mountain region of North Carolina, occasional in the Piedmont. It grows in the forest understory along streams and in ravines. Formerly known as Lycopodium lucidulum Michaux.

Huperzia lucidula leaves are flat with a few large teeth. Leaves of other species of Huperzia are entire or have minute teeth.

McDowell Co., NC 4/16/2011.

Unlike other members of the Lycopodiaceae, the sporophylls of Huperzia are similar to the sterile leaves. At left you can see the sporangia nestled in the leaf axils, not in distinct cone-like structures. The branches near the top of this photo are called gemmiferous branchlets or bulbils. These are a form of asexual reproduction — they will eventually drop off and develop into new plants.

McDowell Co., NC 4/16/2011.