This species was first described by Edward Meyrick in 1923 using a specimen collected by George Hudson in Takapuna, Auckland and named Scoparia zophochlaena.

[2] This placement was accepted in 2010 in the New Zealand Inventory of Biodiversity which listed the species under the name Eudonia zophochlaena.

Forewings elongate-triangular, termen gently rounded, faintly sinuate beneath apex, somewhat oblique; light ochreous-brownish; first line double, irregular, white, from 1⁄5 of costa to 1⁄3 of dorsum, suffusedly blotched with ferruginous-ochreous above and below middle, basal area within this almost wholly black; second line fine, white, from 4⁄5 of costa to 3⁄4 of dorsum, gently excurved, indented at 1⁄4 from costa, nearly preceded by a more curved fascia of whitish suffusion broadest towards extremities, space between these blackish towards costa; space between first line and the whitish fascia forming a trapezoidal costal blotch of blackish suffusion, its anterior lower angle resting on dorsum beyond first line and posterior on middle of fascia; second line followed by a blackish transverse blotch from costa hardly reaching half across wing, and some irregular blackish marking towards dorsum; an almost terminal series of small roundish spots of blackish irroration: cilia whitish-grey, with grey subbasal shade.

Hindwings ochreous-whitish, with an apical blotch of light-grey suffusion; cilia whitish, with grey subbasal line.

[1] Brian Patrick hypothesised that this species is a North Island endemic as it has been observed in Auckland as well as in the Waikato, Hawkes Bay, Manawatū-Whanganui and Wellington regions.