The behaviour follows a fixed sequence. The female makes incisions across the leaf blade, causing it to wilt and become pliable, then works along the leaf folding and rolling it with her legs and elongated head. A single egg is deposited inside during the rolling, and the finished tube is cut so that it drops or hangs.
The roll serves as both nursery and first meal. The larva develops inside and feeds on the leaf tissue around it, sheltered from desiccation and from at least some predators and parasitoids. Weevils in the family Attelabidae are known collectively as leaf-rolling weevils for this habit, which appears in various forms across the group.
The male's neck is roughly two to three times longer than the female's and is not used in construction. Males spar with rivals over access to females, using the neck as a lever much as stag beetles use mandibles, and the trait is best explained by sexual selection.