The Meske’s Underwing moth has a wingspan of about 2.5 to 3 inches. The forewing is gray with a dusty appearance. The antemedial, median, postmedial and subterminal lines are black and zigzagged. The terminal line is formed by black dots. The hindwing is orange-red with black bands. The relatively thin median band is tapered and angled inward at the tip. The white apex has a light orange-yellow patch. The very similar Once-married Underwing (C. unijuga) is similar, but does not have the orange-yellow patch in the apex of the hindwing. The caterpillar is elongate and light brown with fine brown banding across all thoracic and abdominal segments. There is a dark brown and black patch and a dorsal warty protuberance on abdominal segment 5.
The frequency of occurrence at Fontenelle Forest and Neale Woods is not known. The moth was attracted to artificial lights and photographed in mid-August 2013 at Fontenelle Forest. The moths fly from July to September. Its habitat is treed river valleys and floodplains.
The larvae eat the leaves of cottonwoods and willows. The species overwinters as an egg. The female moth has an extensible abdomen that allows her to insert eggs deep into protected sites (“Owlet Caterpillars of Eastern North America,” Wagner, Schweitzer, Sullivan & Reardon).
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