# Wall Scalewort (*Porella platyphylla*)

Wall Scalewort is a tiny, green plant that grows on rocks and walls. It looks like a soft carpet and helps keep the environment healthy by providing homes for small creatures.

- **Category:** [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/categories/plant)
- **Rarity:** Common
- **Danger:** 1/5 · Very low
- **Snaps:** 2
- **Habitat:** Urban areas

![Wall Scalewort](https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Special:Redirect/file/Porrella_platyphylla_170108.jpg&width=800)

Photo: Bernd Haynold, CC BY-SA 3.0 · [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Porrella_platyphylla_170108.jpg)

## Appearance

The Wall Scalewort is a small, flattened liverwort forming dense green mats. Its overlapping, scale-like leaves give it a textured appearance, often clinging tightly to vertical surfaces like old walls or tree bark, appearing darker green when wet.

## Taxonomy

- **Kingdom:** Plantae
- **Phylum:** Marchantiophyta
- **Class:** Jungermanniopsida
- **Order:** Porellales
- **Family:** Porellaceae
- **Genus:** Porella

## Interesting facts

- It helps create mini-microclimates, keeping tiny creatures cool and moist under its leafy cover.
- This tiny plant has no true roots! Instead, it uses tiny threads called rhizoids to anchor itself.
- Unlike most plants, Wall Scalewort doesn't have flowers or seeds; it reproduces using microscopic spores!
- Wall Scalewort is often called an 'epiphyte' when it grows on trees, using the tree for support, not food!

## Special abilities

- **Clinging Power:** Wall Scalewort can attach firmly to rough surfaces like rocks and bark, helping it stay put even in windy conditions.
- **Water Sponge:** Wall Scalewort can absorb and hold a lot of water, which helps it survive dry spells in its habitat.
- **Spore Sprinter:** Wall Scalewort releases tiny spores that can travel by wind or water, helping it spread to new places.

## Measurements & details

- **Height:** 1-5 cm
- **Spread:** 5-15 cm
- **Edible:** No
- **Toxicity:** None
- **Lifecycle:** Perennial

## Ecological connections

- **Symbiotic with:** Cypress-leaved Plaitmoss (*Hypnum cupressiforme*) — Often grows alongside this moss on similar substrates.
- **Symbiotic with:** [Red-stemmed Feather Moss](https://www.snappit.app/explore/red-stemmed-feather-moss) (*Pleurozium schreberi*) — Shares habitat and sometimes grows interwoven.
- **Symbiotic with:** Powdered Sunshine Lichen (*Parmelia sulcata*) — Commonly found on the same tree bark or rocks.

## Traits

- [Nonvascular](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/nonvascular): This trait characterizes plants lacking specialized vascular tissues (xylem and phloem) for transporting water and nutrients.
- [Spore Producing](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/spore-producing): Spore-producing organisms reproduce by releasing small, often single-celled, reproductive units called spores.
- [Symbiotic](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/symbiotic): Describes a relationship between two different species where they live in close association, often benefiting one or both.
- [Decomposer](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/decomposer): Describes organisms that break down dead organic material, recycling nutrients back into the ecosystem.
- [Keystone Species](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/keystone-species): Describes a species whose presence and role have a disproportionately large effect on its environment.
- [Miniature](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/miniature): Pertaining to species that are significantly smaller than typical or average for their kind.
- [Urban Friendly](https://www.snappit.app/explore/traits/urban-friendly): This habitat trait indicates species that can coexist with humans in urban and suburban environments, utilizing man-made structures and green spaces.

## Collections

- [Plants](https://www.snappit.app/explore/collections/plants)

## Safety

**Danger:** 1/5 · Very low

Always look but don't touch plants unless you know they are safe.

## Frequently Asked Questions

### How to identify Wall Scalewort?

Compare growth form, branching, tiny leaves and any spore capsules. Mosses, liverworts and lichens can share a spot but are very different organisms. Moss Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

### How tall is Wall Scalewort?

1-5 cm

### How wide does Wall Scalewort spread?

5-15 cm

### Is Wall Scalewort edible?

No

### Is Wall Scalewort toxic?

None

### What is Wall Scalewort's lifecycle?

Perennial

### Where is Wall Scalewort usually found?

Urban areas

## Where to spot

- [Bear Swamp](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/bear-swamp) — Massachusetts, US · Nature Reserve
- [Lower Village District](https://www.snappit.app/guides/places/lower-village-district) — New Hampshire, US · Historic District

## More Plants

- [white snakeroot](https://www.snappit.app/explore/white-snakeroot) (*Ageratina altissima*)
- [tree-of-heaven](https://www.snappit.app/explore/tree-of-heaven) (*Ailanthus altissima*)
- [western sword fern](https://www.snappit.app/explore/western-sword-fern) (*Polystichum munitum*)
- [common milkweed](https://www.snappit.app/explore/common-milkweed) (*Asclepias syriaca*)

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Source: [Wall Scalewort: Facts & Places to See — Snappit](https://www.snappit.app/explore/wall-scalewort)