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Moss / Liverwort

Moss-type plants excel when a tank needs texture, cover, and small-scale detail. They are common in shrimp tanks, fry setups, and hardscape-focused layouts. In this library, they most often show up attached to wood or stone in the midground. The current set leans toward low light conditions. Most entries are beginner plants.

Use the filters below to narrow the list by placement, light requirement, or difficulty when you want plants that do a similar job in the aquascape.

Showing 1 - 13 of 13 Plant Profiles

Christmas Moss

Vesicularia montagnei

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Foreground
BeginnerModerate

A highly popular aquarium moss characterized by its distinct, triangular fronds that closely resemble miniature pine branches. It forms dense, lush bushes when attached to hardscape and provides excellent hiding spaces for shrimp and fry.

Coral Pelia

Riccardia chamedryfolia

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Foreground
IntermediateModerate

Riccardia chamedryfolia, commonly known as Coral Pelia or Mini Pelia, is a highly sought-after aquatic liverwort that forms dense, intricately branching mats resembling miniature green coral. It is a slow-growing plant that is excellent for tying or gluing to rocks and driftwood. While it can survive in low-tech setups, it requires moderate to high light and CO2 injection to achieve its most compact, attractive growth and to prevent algae from outcompeting it.

Crystalwort

Riccia fluitans

Moss / Liverwort
Floating
BeginnerModerate

A popular and highly versatile liverwort that naturally floats at the water surface, providing excellent refuge for fry and surface cover. It was famously popularized in the aquascaping hobby by Takashi Amano, who tied it to hardscape to create bright green, oxygen-pearling submerged carpets. Left to float, it is completely undemanding, but maintaining it as a submerged carpet requires intense care.

Java Moss

Taxiphyllum barbieri

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Foreground
BeginnerLow

An incredibly hardy, versatile moss widely used in the aquarium hobby. It easily attaches to hardscape, creating natural-looking green textures while providing excellent refuge for fry and shrimp. It also serves as a premium grazing surface for biofilm.

Pelia

Monosolenium tenerum

Moss / Liverwort
Foreground
Midground
BeginnerLow

Monosolenium tenerum, commonly known in the hobby as Pelia or Pellia, is a thalloid liverwort that lacks true leaves and stems. It forms beautiful, translucent green cushions but has a very delicate and brittle structure. Because it lacks roots and does not attach firmly to surfaces on its own, it is typically tied to rocks or driftwood, or trapped between hardscape elements where it can form a bushy mound. It is an excellent refuge for shrimp and fry, though it should be kept in low flow areas to prevent the brittle thallus from breaking apart and scattering around the aquarium.

Phoenix Moss

Fissidens fontanus

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Foreground
BeginnerLow

A popular aquatic moss native to North America, prized for its unique feathery, fountain-like fronds. It naturally attaches to driftwood and rocks via rhizoids, forming dense, dark green, dome-shaped mounds that provide excellent refuge and grazing surfaces for shrimp and fry.

Singapore Moss

Vesicularia dubyana

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Foreground
BeginnerLow

Singapore Moss is a highly adaptable and robust aquatic moss. Historically confused with Java Moss (Taxiphyllum barbieri) in the aquarium trade, it grows into dense, branching mats with a slightly more fern-like structure under good lighting. It readily attaches to hardscape materials such as driftwood and rocks, making it an exceptional plant for aquascaping and providing critical refuge for shrimp, fry, and spawning fish.

Stringy Moss

Leptodictyum riparium

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Midground
BeginnerLow

Stringy Moss is an easy, adaptable aquatic moss characterized by its distinctively upright, vertical growth habit. Unlike many spreading or weeping mosses, its delicate shoots consistently grow upwards toward the light, making it a unique textural addition when attached to wood or rock in the aquascape.

Süßwassertang

Lomariopsis lineata

Moss / Liverwort
Foreground
Midground
BeginnerLow

Süßwassertang is a unique aquatic plant that is actually the gametophyte (prothallium) stage of the fern Lomariopsis lineata. Treated functionally as a moss or liverwort in the aquarium hobby, it forms dense, beautiful mounds of translucent, ribbon-like thalli. It is extremely undemanding, adaptable, and thrives in low-tech setups. Because it does not root, it is typically tied or glued to hardscape, or allowed to sink and settle in low-flow areas. It is highly valued by breeders for providing an exceptional grazing surface and dense refuge for shrimp and fry.

Taiwan Moss

Taxiphyllum alternans

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Foreground
BeginnerLow

Taiwan Moss is a popular and versatile aquatic moss known for its dense, triangular, fern-like fronds. Similar in appearance to Christmas Moss but with a finer texture and a more weeping growth habit, it is ideal for attaching to driftwood or rocks. It provides excellent refuge for shrimp and fry and creates natural-looking aquascapes.

Weeping Moss

Vesicularia ferriei

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Foreground
BeginnerModerate

A highly popular aquatic moss known for its distinct downward-drooping growth habit, reminiscent of a miniature weeping willow tree. It is most effective when attached to driftwood or overhanging hardscape to emphasize its cascading form.

Willow Moss

Fontinalis antipyretica

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Midground
BeginnerLow

A dark green, trailing aquatic moss native to the Northern Hemisphere. It produces elongated, densely leaved fronds that resemble the drooping branches of a willow tree. It thrives in cooler water temperatures and moderate to high flow environments, making it an excellent choice for unheated setups or cool-water biotopes. It is highly valued for providing dense shelter for shrimp and fish fry.

Zipper Moss

Fissidens zippelianus

Moss / Liverwort
Attached to hardscape
Foreground
IntermediateModerate

Fissidens zippelianus, commonly known as Zipper Moss, is a delicate and highly attractive aquatic moss characterized by its tightly packed, feather-like fronds that resemble a zipper. It forms dense, dark green creeping mats on hardscape and provides excellent microhabitats for shrimp.