Lulworth skipper S. A. von Rottemburg in 1775. The butterfly was first discovered in Britain on 15 August 1832, when specimens were taken from Lulworth Cove in Dorset by English naturalist James Charles Dale It was introduced the following year as the Lulworth skipper ("Thymelicus acteon"), a name that has remained unchanged; it is the only one of Britain's vernacular butterfly names for which there has never been a proposed substitute. The male Lulworth skipper has a wingspan of , and the female 25 to 28 mm. This makes it one of Britain's smallest butterflies and, in Europe, the smallest member of
Lulworth skipper is evidence to suggest that minimal grazing is not detrimental to the species, and may in fact be beneficial in that it encourages the growth of flowers that act as adult nectar sources. The females lay their eggs in rows of 5 to 6 (although as many as 15 have been recorded) on the flower-sheath of Tor-grass ("Brachypodium pinnatum"), preferring the dead sheaths of tall plants. The care taken by females over where to lay their eggs is considered the only remarkable part of the Lulworth skipper breeding process, otherwise it is considered common. Upon hatching, the 2.5 cm (1