This species was described by Francis Walker in 1866 using material collected in Nelson by T. R. Oxley in 1860 and named Tinea contactella.

[4] In 1911, thinking he was describing a new species, Edward Meyrick named the moth Carposina amalodes.

[6] In 1988 John S. Dugdale synonymised the name Carposina amalodes and assigned the species to the genus Heterocrossa.

Fore-wings elongate, narrow, costa moderately arched, apex round-pointed, termen very oblique, almost straight, rounded beneath; grey, irregularly irrorated with dark grey and white; a broad irregular-edged white suffusion extending along anterior half of costa, and reaching 2⁄3 across wing; three or four small black dots on costa anteriorly, second forming a short strigula; a narrow oblique-transverse pale ochreous spot edged with black below middle at 1⁄3; a black dot above middle of disc, and a small pale ochreous sometimes blackish-mixed spot below it; three small faint whitish-ochreous spots arranged in a triangle in disc beyond middle; all these ochreous spots are ringed with white suffusion; an undefined angulated dark subterminal shade, marked with black on veins; a series of blackish dots on posterior half of costa and termen : cilia light grey irrorated with white, basal half obscurely barred with whitish.

[9][7] H. contactella prefers light forest and scrub habitat, especially where Leptospermum shrubs are found.