Their forewings are a dusty gray color, with thick orange venation and small white splotches between veins.

The body is orange with white highlights on the end of each abdominal segment and on the more reddish thorax.

In addition, it will curl up its abdomen, showing the gaudy oranges and creams, while flapping its wings.

In the fourth instar, the caterpillars horns grow smaller, and their skin color darkens to a burnt chocolate brown to nearly black.

Caterpillars about to pupate in the wild dig underground and carve out a small cell, then enter a prepupal stage.

In this state, their bodies deflate and lose a great deal of turgor, as well as becoming more short and elliptical.

The pupa typically spend most of the year underground, waiting out the cold harsh winters.

Caterpillars only eat for a couple of months before pupation, which is a very short time for such a large moth.