By June the skeletonizing has become quite apparent. In June, larvae drop or migrate to the ground to pupate in the soil. Adult beetles emerge in late July. They are about 4.5 to 6.5 mm in length and brown in colour. When disturbed, they will fly away or drop to the ground.
Females lay eggs from late summer to the first frost.
A hole is chewed in the small twigs. Several eggs are laid in each hole, which is then covered with a mixture of chewed wood and excrement. Egg laying holes can be found in a straight line on the underside of the current season's growth. A single female may lay up to a total of 500 eggs per season. The beetle's life cycle, from egg hatch to adult takes about 8 to 10 weeks.