This moth is found over much of Europe and the Middle East, as far east as Iran, also North Africa. In Britain, it is common in England and Wales but more local in southern Scotland and in the coastal parts of western, southern and eastern Ireland. It is typically found in rough grassland, on road verges and in gardens. The larva feeds on leaves and flowers of field bindweed, hedge bindweed and other members of the family Convolvulaceae. It hibernates, overwintering as a small larva.
The sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) is a member of the family Convolvulaceae, and in Nigeria, the larvae of the white plume moth feed on the plant. The moth is considered a pest species along with the sweet potato butterfly (Acraea acerata), leaf folders (Brachmia and Helcystogramma spp.), and sweet potato army worms (Spodoptera spp.).
