It was used as an agent of biological pest control against the noxious weed leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula), but never established a viable population.

The adult beetle is light orange with a black abdomen and only about 2 millimeters long.

The female lays up to 100 eggs on or near leafy spurge, its host plant.

In its native range this beetle feeds on leafy spurge and other closely related plants.

It was first released as a biocontrol agent for leafy spurge in the United States in the early 1990s, but apparently never established.