The species was first described by the British entomologist Edward Saunders in 1851, and named in honor of the British naturalist Thomas Horsfield, who traveled southern Asia and published works on zoology from the region.

Calliteara horsfieldii is found the tropical portion of southern and southeast Asian including Sri Lanka,[3] Thailand,[4] Singapore,[5] Malaysia, Sundaland, Sulawesi and towards New Guinea[6] and Brunei.

[7] The males of Calliteara horsfieldii show two colour forms.

Females of this species have whitish forewings with faint markings.

[8] As caterpillar, Calliteara horsfieldii is known to feed on many plants such as Etlingera elatior, Anacardium occidentale (the Cashew tree), Mangifera, Casuarina, Begonia, Bixa orellana, Brassica, Albizia falcataria, Dipterocarpus, Hopea, Camellia sinensis (the tea plant), Shorea, Acacia richii, Acacia mangium, Cassia fistula, Casuarina equisetifolia, Cinnamomum zeylanicum (the Cinnamon tree), Cocos nucifera (the Coconut palm), Erythrina, Pterocarpus, Tamarindus (the Tamarind), Lagerstroemia (the Crape myrtle), Ficus, Eucalyptus, Eugenia, Psidium, Syzygium, Pinus (the Pine) and Rosa (the Rose) species.