The adult moth has dark forewings with white marking and white/greyish hindwings with grey edges. They are typically 14-22mm in length with a wingspan of 30- 35mm.
Young caterpillars are light green while older caterpillars are dark green to brown/green, growing up to 50mm long. They sometimes have yellow stripes and triangular black markings on each side. They are generally nocturnal, hiding during the day.
Larvae cause crop damage feeding on stems and leaves, sometimes skeletonising them.On corn and maize, they attack the ear, silks, cob and kernels
Adult moths are nocturnal and most active during late summer and early autumn. They lay white/fawn flattened sphere shaped eggs on the top of leaves in groups of 200 – 300. Egg groups are covered with a fluffy white/fawn ‘hair’.