''Gretna balenge'', commonly known as the giant crepuscular skipper, is a species of

butterfly Butterflies are insects in the macrolepidopteran clade Rhopalocera from the Order (biology), order Lepidoptera, which also includes moths. Adult butterflies have large, often brightly coloured wings, and conspicuous, fluttering flight. The ...

in the family

Hesperiidae Skippers are a family of the Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) named the Hesperiidae. Being diurnal, they are generally called butterflies. They were previously placed in a separate superfamily, Hesperioidea; however, the most recent taxonomy ...

. It is found in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Tanzania and Zambia.Afrotropical Butterflies: Hesperiidae - Subfamily Hesperiinae
/ref> The habitat consists of all areas where suitable palms grow. Adults are attracted to various kinds of foul substances. The larvae feed on ''

Raphia farinifera ''Raphia farinifera'' is a tropical African palm tree occurring in lowland riparian and swamp forest, also around human habitations and cultivated locations, on stream banks and other moist situations at altitudes of 50–1000 m. Found in Angola, ...

'' and ''

Eremospatha ''Eremospatha'' is a genus of climbing flowering plants in the palm family found in tropical Africa. These rattans are uncommon in cultivation and poorly understood by taxonomists;. Closely related to ''Laccosperma'', they differentiated by the ...

'' species.

Subspecies

*''Gretna balenge balenge'' - Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, western Uganda, north-western Tanzania, northern Zambia *''Gretna balenge zowa'' Lindsey & Miller, 1965 - Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo

References

Butterflies described in 1891 Butterflies of Africa Hesperiinae {{Hesperiinae-stub