Wingspan 12 to 15 mm. An attractive tawny and black marbled moth, named after J.T.C Ratzeburg, a German entomologist.

Associated with conifers.

The adults fly in July and August from sunset into the night.

The larvae feed on the young shoots of various coniferous trees.

It is distributed throughout much of the British Isles, but can be local in most places. 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 about 10 records prior to 2012. L&R Moth Group status = D (rare or rarely recorded).