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Stag's-Horn Clubmoss
Lycopodium clavatum
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Stag's-Horn Clubmoss is a low, evergreen plant that creeps along the ground and sends up many upright, antler‑like shoots. The tips often carry club‑shaped heads that release spores instead of flowers. It is widespread in the cooler parts of the Northern Hemisphere and is easy to spot in light forests and along paths.
Did you know?
- Its name comes from the antler‑like shape of the upright shoots and their club‑tipped ends.
- The fine yellow spores ignite with a flash and were once used for stage effects and early photography.
About the species
Identification
Creeping main stem with many upright side shoots 10–30 cm tall, often branched. Leaves crowd all around the shoots, tiny and needle‑like with a long hair‑like tip, giving a soft, bristly look. At shoot tips on long stalks stand club‑like heads that shed spores, often in pairs or threes. Key features are the long bristle‑tipped leaves and the paired club heads; in northern forms the heads may be single.
Plant group
Ferns, horsetails and clubmosses
Habitat
heath forest
About the habitat
Grows in fairly light conifer and birch woods, heaths, pastures, and along paths and road edges; avoids the very driest sites. From the south to central Lapland, becoming rarer further north.
Sources
Photo: Ronda Spaulding, CC0 1.0 https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/6163316726
Text: Pinkka: Luonnonvaraiset lääkekasvit - Sanikkaiset, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.37694
Text: Pinkka: Metsälajintuntemus - Sanikkaiset, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.37694
Text: Pinkka: Kasvitieteen retkeily Ahvenanmaalle - Nåtön luontopolku, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.37694
Text: Pinkka: Kasvien talvi - Talvivihreät luonnonkasvit, CC BY 4.0 https://laji.fi/taxon/MX.37694
Text: Wikipedia (Finnish), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katinlieko
