Sexes are sexually dimorphic. Males have a slender body and wingspan of 30-40 mm. Forewings brownish to grey-brown with wavy dark bands across the forewing.
Females of the European subspecies are flightless. Females have a wingspan of ca. 40-70 mm. Forewings are white with wavy black bands across the wing. The
abdomen is distended with eggs and white with yellowish hairs.
First instar larvae are ca. 3 mm in length and greyish black with a dark head. Final instars reach 40-70 mm in length (females being larger than males). The body is colourful with black, yellow, blue and red patterns. Head is yellow.
Two rows of blue tubercules are present dorsally on the first 5 segments and 2 rows of red tubercules on the following segments.
Pellet shaped, ca. 1 mm in diameter and grey in colour. Laid in small clusters or larger masses, covered in a yellowish coating of hair sloughed off abdomen of female.
Typically laid on trunks and lower branches but also rocks, walls and fences.
Two strains (European and Asian) present in Europe, the Middle East, North America, Algeria and Asia
