It is used as an agent of biological pest control against the noxious weed leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula).

The female lays eggs on or near leafy spurge, its host plant, during the summer months.

Damage to the plant occurs when the larva eats the roots and the adult feeds on the leaves and flowers.

It was first released as a biocontrol agent for leafy spurge in the United States in Fremont County, Wyoming in 1986.

[1] It is now established in much of the northern United States from Washington to Rhode Island, though it is now scarce in North Dakota and Minnesota.