Females are larger than males. Male abdomen is black with a red tip, female abdomen is black. Upperside of wings is creamy white with wide black borders and black on the costal edges and wing bases. Each wing has a small black eyespot and some pale yellow streaks in the white portion.
Females lay eggs in the early afternoon in rings around twigs of the host plants.
Eggs overwinter and hatch in the spring. Young caterpillars feed in groups and older caterpillars feed alone. Caterpillars spin loose cocoons in plant litter under the host plants. One brood from September-December. G5 - Demonstrably secure globally, though it may be quite rare in parts of its range, especially at the periphery.