Wingspan 12 to 15 mm.

Inhabiting dry grassy places.

The adults fly in June and July, during the afternoon and towards sunset.

The larvae feed in the rootstock of Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) and Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare).

Distributed widely throughout England, but quite local in many places, and becoming scarcer in northern England, Wales and Scotland. In the Butterfly Conservation's Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as local.

It appears to be uncommon in Leicestershire and Rutland, where there were only 2 known records prior to 2012. L&R Moth Group status = D (rare or rarely recorded).