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A medium sized Endothenia, the forewing for both males and females generally ranges between 5.0-8.2 mm in length (Heinrich 1926). Color of the forewings ranges from dusky brown to clay and coloration pattern tends to be uniform (Sabourin and Landry 2000). Mottled colors on the forewings can be present, however there is little contrast with the other wing colors. Heinrich (1926) suggests that the median and basal dark area of the forewing can be mottled with deep black scales but Alberta specimens of Endothenia montanana also show this character. An important character that can be used to help distinguish this species from similar species is the presence of yellow hair penciles on the hind tibia of males with no darker hairs present (Heinrich 1926 and Sabourin and Landry 2000).

Univoltine or multivoltine depending on latitude (Hilton 1982). This species has five instars with instars 4 and 5 over wintering in the flower stalks of their host plant (Hilton 1982 and Miller 1983). Pupation occurs in late May and adults emerge from pre-chewed holes in flower stalks. There are two main ichneumonid parasites of Endothenia hebesana larvae; Scambus spp. and Glypta sp., and both are known to be parasitoids. (Hilton 1982)

Larvae feed mostly on developing host seeds. Reported host plant genera include: Antirrhinum, Gentiana, Gerardia, Iris, Orthocarpus, Penstemon, Physostegia, Solidago, Stachys, Teucrium, Tigridia, Verbascum, Verbena, Veronica, Sarracenia, Scrophularia and Scutellaria (Heinrich 1926 and Miller 1983).

Widespread distribution in North America. In the United States of America this species has been found in the states of Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Texas, Ohio, Indiana, Missouri and California. In Canada this species has been found in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba and Ontario (Heinrich 1926). Alberta specimens have been collected in Edmonton and Nordegg. Miller (1983) indicates that this species has been reported in the Palaearctic Region.