This caterpillar has a distinctive coloration, with an orange head and black and gray rings with orange and white spots. On the side it has a broken band of distinct white marks which distinguishes it from B. chrysopis which has a continuous white band. The larva is less than 2 inches long. The adult is a dark golden moth with strongly angled antemedial and postmedial lines.
The mature caterpillar may be seen from August through October. It overwinters as a pupa. Its abundance in our two nature centers is not yet known, but this individual was the first one sighted and photographed the last day of September 2010. The individual shown in B & C was photographed on September 21, 2014 at Fontenelle Forest Nature Center. The adult moth was photographed at Fontenelle Forest Nature Center in late August 2014 (photo D).
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