Females are larger than males. Upperside of female is orange with pale purple at the margins of the wings. Scattered black specks are reduced or absent. Upperside of male is dark brown with some red on the hindwing and a large translucent white spot on the forewing. Both sexes have a small white cell spot on the forewing.
Females lay eggs after dusk in groups on the underside of oak leaves.
Caterpillars feed together in groups, and pupate and overwinter in shallow underground burrows. G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery. A field guide to the moths of eastern North America. Ferguson, D. C. in Dominick, R. B. et al. 1971. The moths of America north of Mexico, fasc.