This species overwinters as a pupa, enclosed in a cocoon, underneath its host plant.

Adults are on the wing from November until February and can be found during the day resting on lichen covered tree trunks where they are well camouflaged.

[4][5] George Hudson, following Meyrick, discussed and illustrated this species under the name Carposina gonosemana in his 1928 publication The Butterflies and Moths of New Zealand.

[6] However John S. Dugdale doubted whether the illustration by Hudson of H. gonosemana was based on a specimen of that species.

[2] The male lectotype specimen is held at the Natural History Museum, London.

General colour pale ochreous-green, more strongly tinged with green on anterior half; tubercles large, conspicuous, especially on thoracic segments, dull green and highly polished, a fine short bristle arising from each tubercle.

Dorsal surface of larva dull reddish, more or less clouded with blackish anterior to segment 7.

Forewings elongate-oblong, narrow, costa slightly arched, bent and roughened with scales about one-third, apex obtusely pointed, hindmargin straight, moderately oblique; white, with a few scattered grey scales, towards inner margin very faintly ochreous-tinged; a thick black streak along basal fifth of costa, attenuated at each end; a black dot on costa closely beyond it; a small irregular black mark in disc at one-third, immediately preceded by a small dark fuscous-grey suffusion, and followed by two tufts of raised scales, half blackish and half white; a small subquadrate rather inwardly oblique black spot on costa at one-third, almost connected with discal black spot; all these black markings are somewhat mixed on margins with ochreous; some raised scales towards base, and inner margin at one-third; five short cloudy blackish marks on costa at equal distances between one-third and apex, rather oblique inwardly; five small spots of raised whitish-ochreous scales arranged in an oval in disc, each with a few black scales on margin; between these, and above posterior of them, is an ill-defined grey suffusion; a very ill-defined cloudy grey irregular dentate transverse line from second of the five costal marks to inner margin at four-fifths, only distinct on upper half and on inner margin; a more distinct dentate grey line from third costal mark to inner margin before anal angle, strongly curved outwards and sinuate, containing a series of ill-defined black dots; a row of very ill-defined black dots on hindmargin : cilia grey, closely irrorated with whitish points.

Hindwings whitish- slaty-grey, cilia white, with a faint grey line.

[2] Adults moths of H. gonosemana are variable in appearance and tend to be of a darker shade in the more southern parts of New Zealand in comparison to the northern localities.