Lulworth skipper their greatest since its discovery there. With a wingspan of 24 to 28 millimetres, females being larger than males, the Lulworth skipper is a small butterfly, the smallest member of the genus "Thymelicus" in Europe and among the smallest butterflies in Britain. Aside from the size difference, the sexes are distinguished by females having a distinct circle of golden marks on each forewing. Due to their likeness to the rays around the eye of a peacock's feather, these are often known as "sun-ray" markings, and they can faintly appear on males. The Lulworth skipper was first described by German entomologist
Lulworth Cove cove is where the weak clays and greensands have been eroded. At the back of the cove, the sea has been unable to erode the chalk as fast because chalk does not dissolve in the sea acids. The unique shape of the cove is a result of wave diffraction. The narrow entrance to the cove causes waves to bend into an arced shape, as is visible in the photograph below. Lulworth acts as a staircase to this part of the Jurassic Coast. As well as the cove, across Hambury Tout (the large chalk hill to the west) is Durdle Door,