The species can be found in all Europe including the Iberian Peninsula and Russia East to the Ural Mountains, North Africa, Asia Minor, Transcaucasia and the mountains of Eastern Asia (Russian Far East, Siberia), (Amur, Ussuri) and China Tian Shan (as form lissas) The wingspan is 28–32 mm.

Both forewings and hindwings are light-green coloured, but fade with increasing life span to yellow-green to yellow-white.

There is an outer and a fainter inner, slightly curved and continuous, white cross line on the front wings.

The inner (antemedian) is strongly curved and usually with two small, slight teeth directed distad, the outer (postmedian) is nearly parallel with distal margin, not dentate.

Lissas differs in the shape of the hindwing, which is rounded instead of elbowed[1][2] The fresh egg is green color and discolours into dark tints just before hatching.