Sometimes newly emerged hatched moths have a whitish, yellowish or pink colour.

[1] [2]The larva is stout, gnarled and light grey violet in colour.

It has numerous small black spots that each carry a short, stiff brush.It occurs in many different biotopes, on moors, in marshy terrain and also in forests.

It is a Palearctic species found in the Iberian Peninsula over western and central Europe including the British Isles and east to the Altai Mountains.

C. pectinataria reaches the Arctic Circle in Fennoscandia, to the south the occurrence ranges from the western Mediterranean to the Balkan Peninsula, the Black Sea region and the Caucasus.