Length 7 to 9 mm. Head, pronotum and elytra uniformly covered with recumbent stiff black and white hairs arranged in groups forming patches. Golden patches usually also present on pronotum on each side of a disc near middle of anterior margin and on posterior angles, also on scutellum and sometimes on shoulders of elytra. Antennal club is black in this species.

Various habitats, often out of doors on carrion.

All year round but mainly late spring and summer.

Larvae feed on bodies and remains of animals (bones, feathers, hairs, skin and flesh).

Widespread but rather infrequent in Britain as far north as County Durham.

Uncommon in Leicestershire and Rutland. There were only 7 VC55 records for this species up to March 2015.