The skipper's main larval food plants include Canada cinquefoil (Potentilla canadensis) and wild strawberry (Fragaria virginiana) depending on the specific population's range.

Usually living in openings near pine or oak forests, the butterflies tend to populate sparsely vegetated, often disturbed, barrens with exposed rock or soil.

A thriving population of Appalachian grizzled skippers was found inhabiting a distinct range of the Wayne National Forest in southern Ohio[citation needed] that has recently been developed for a new highway bypass project.

[4][additional citation(s) needed] Other known disturbed habitats the butterflies frequent are power lines, pipelines, forest roads, fire lanes, clear cuts and south-facing slopes.

Many populations of spongy moths targeted to be sprayed with insecticides, such as diflubenzuron, were located on ridges with abundant oak trees, and Appalachian grizzled skippers may have been residing in or near these areas.