This is the only species of the large tropical genus Acrocercops occurring in Belgium. It is easily recognisable by the dark brown forewings with pure white pattern. The adults sit with their front legs stretched to hold the head and thorax upturned.

The early stages of the larva have nearly the same colour as the leaf in which they mine, light yellowish green. Later on they turn into a vivid red with ochreous yellow between the segments.

The mine is almost always situated on the upperside of the leaf. It starts as a narrow, whitish, twisting mine that suddenly enlarges into a large, pure white blotch with a silvery shine, occupying several cm².
See also gracillariidae.net and bladmineerders.be.

A small, whitish, oval pupation chamber most of the time on the midrib of a leaf.

The adults are rarely seen. They rest on tree trunks during daytime and come to light. The species hibernates in the adult stage.

The larvae are oligophagous on Quercus, but in Belgium the species is mostly recorded from Quercus robur.

Because Quercus is a common tree in Belgium, the variety of habitats in which the species occurs is also rather large. Anyway, the species seems to avoid moist environments and has some preference for dry, warm habitats like heathland, open places in forests, parks, etc.