Hindwings have long curving tails. Wings are pale green, each with a transparent eyespot. Outer margins are pink in the southern spring brood, yellow in the southern summer brood and in northern populations. Mating takes place after midnight, and egg-laying begins that evening.
Females lay eggs in small groups or singly on both surfaces of host plant leaves.
The eggs hatch in about one week and the caterpillars are sedentary and solitary feeders. Leaves and silk are used to spin papery brown cocoons in litter under the host plant. Deciduous hardwood forests. 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.