The adults and the larvae of willow leaf beetles graze away part of the leaf surface, causing the remaining damaged areas to turn brown and dry up. In some years these beetles can be very abundant and by the end of the summer most of the foliage on large trees can be affected.

Fortunately, although the damage they cause can be seen as unsightly, these beetles are part of the biodiversity host trees support and healthy trees soon recover. Severe damage is uncommon and does not usually occur every year.

In gardens willow leaf beetle damage can be accepted as part of the biodiversity supported by the host trees, even when most of the foliage on a tree is affected. Trees recover and severe defoliation does not usually occur year after year. 

Most willow leaf beetles have similar life cycles and are thought to have one generation a year. Adults can be found throughout the year and it is this stage that overwinters in crevices in bark, in dead wood and other sheltered places.

In the spring they emerge and mate and can probably lay eggs throughout spring and much of summer. The larval stage can be present from late spring and summer and feeds for a few weeks before dropping to the soil to pupate. New generation adults emerge before autumn and feed before overwintering.