We describe the immature stages and shelter building behavior of the skipper butterfly Dion carmenta (Hewitson) from eastern Ecuador. Adults infrequently are encountered and feed on a variety of flowers, generally at forest edges and clearings. Chusquea c.f. scandens Kunth (Poaceae: Bambusoidea) is the larval food plant. Young larvae have black heads with white, unadorned bodies, changing little as they grow, with the exception of developing a reddish tinge to thoracic segments. Larvae of all stadia construct and dwell in shelters built on the food plant and forcibly eject frass with the aid of an anal comb. Pupation occurs on the food plant in a final structure formed by joining together multiple leaves with silk. Development, from oviposition to eclosion, lasts 128–147 d.