The forewings have faint points of paler colour (grey scales) and there is a distinct creamy patch on the front margin.

Forewing dark brown with a reddish tone, the anterior half darkest, the posterior and outer areas strongly suffused with whitish grey; tooth of scales at hind margin black-brown; costal margin at one-third and again at two-thirds with a white spot as indication of vestigial transverse bands, the proximal spot small and often diffuse; of the transverse band usually only the outer one indicated, being represented by black vein-spots which bear each a white dot; along the distal margin dark arcs filled in with white.

Hindwing somewhat lighter than the forewing, with darkened anal angle nd a narrow diffuse whitish median band.

— In Norway the species is represented by a somewhat different form, nordlandica Strand (described from Saltdalen in Nordland) [nordlandica Strand, 1907 synonym]; it is smaller, and the ground-colour is more grey, without the reddish rust tone; the transverse bands and the costal spots are very distinct, especially the latter are prominently black and white.

Larva yellowish green, on the back with numerous low prominences which are more yellow and arranged on the whole in 4 longitudinal rows, the spiracles intensely black, each bearing a dark vivid red spot; the stigmata of the anterior and posterior segments, moreover, connected by a whitish longitudinal streak, which is absent from the median segments.