Lulworth skipper form discrete colonies, with the largest containing up to 100,000 individuals. In the novel "The Return of the Native", by Thomas Hardy, a possible reference is made to Lulworth skippers in the "strange amber-coloured butterflies" which "were never seen elsewhere." Lulworth skipper The Lulworth skipper ("Thymelicus acteon") is a butterfly of the family Hesperiidae. Its name is derived from Lulworth Cove in the county of Dorset, England, where the first specimens in Great Britain were collected in 1832 by English naturalist James Charles Dale. The species occurs locally across Central Europe, Asia Minor and North Africa, where its population is
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