Wingspan 22 mm. The distinctive wing markings make this one of the easier species to identify.

It occurs in woodlands and gardens.

This species flies very early in the morning, around sunrise. The adults are on the wing during April.

The larvae feed on Blackthorn and Hawthorn.

Widely but locally distributed in Britain. In the Butterfly Conservation's Microlepidoptera Report 2011 this species was classified as local.

Occasional in Leicestershire and Rutland. L&R Moth Group status = C (very scarce resident or rare migrant).