Wings are gray to blackish brown with light brown margins, median lines, and forewing costa. The forewing eyespot does not touch the median line.
Females lay eggs on host plants in large clusters.
The caterpillars feed in large groups, but divide into smaller groups as they grow. Fourth-stage caterpillars leave the host plants and make tightly woven cocoons in crevices of tree trunks, rocks, and structures such as picnic tables. Forests above 4400 feet in elevation. Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and western Texas south to Mexico City, Mexico. G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.