Upperside is brown-black. Male forewing has many raised white hairs. Hindwing fringes are dark. Females lay eggs singly under leaves of the host plants.
Caterpillars feed on leaves and live in shelters of rolled or tied leaves.
Fully-grown caterpillars hibernate. One brood from April-June. Populations in the Midwest and Northeast found in pine-oak barrens should be monitored and conserved. G4 - Apparently secure globally, though it might be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery. Opler, P. A. and G. O. Krizek.