The golden green shoots of S. uncinatus are roughly pinnate, forming loose mats on fallen logs or earth in wet forest and montane woodlands. The leaves are strongly pleated and strongly curled. The nerve reaches to three quarters or more of the entire leaf length.

S. uncinatus is easily mistaken for an unrelated moss, Brachythecium paradoxum which differs in having a papillose seta (stalk holding the capsule).