Any of about 200 species of primitive Lycopodium (order Lycopodiales), mainly native to tropical mountains but also common in northern forests of both hemispheres.
They are evergreen plants with needlelike leaves and, often, conelike clusters of small leaves (strobili; see {{link=cone">cone ), each with a kidney-shaped spore capsule at its base. Representative species include running pine, or stag's horn moss ( L. clavatum ), ground cedar \(L. complanatum ‘flabelliforme'), shining club moss ( L. lucidulum ), fir club moss ( L. selago ), ground pine ( L. obscurum ), and alpine club moss ( L. alpinum ).