The Scarce Heath occurs in damp to wet grassy meadows in or at the edges of woods. Sometimes, they occur away from woods in drier places or in flower-rich grassland. The butterflies are fond of settling in grass and do not fly far, nor very often. Among the grasses they use as food are Tufted Hair-grass (Deschampsia cespitosa) and Bearded Couch (Elymus caninus). When half-grown, the caterpillar hibernates in a grass tussock, later also pupating there. This species has one generation a year. Habitats: humid grasslands and tall herb communities (26%), mixed woodland (19%), broad-leaved deciduous forests (14%), mesophile grasslands (9%), fens, transition mires and springs (7%).
