The red, black and white final instar caterpillars are frequently seen during the day. They commonly occur in gardens and woodlands as well as more open areas with deciduous tree hedges.

The moth flies mainly in a single generation between May and August when it’s attracted to light and sometimes disturbed during the day.

All parts of the moth are pure white with the female being larger than the male and having a large tuft of yellow hairs at the top of her abdomen (hence its name), which is used to cover the newly-laid eggs. This particular specimen is a male due to the small brown tonal mark on the forewing and more noticeably lack of yellow tail.