Bug FAQForest Bumble Bee
Bombus sylvicola · Order: Hymenoptera · Family: Apidae
The Forest Bumble Bee lives in open, grassy places like mountain meadows and builds its nest underground or on the surface. It is found across most of Canada, into Alaska, and the western United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
Prefers open, grassy habitats like mountain meadows. Nests are usually underground but can be on the surface.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Native to North America, occurring throughout most of Canada, Alaska, and the western contiguous United States.
Source: Wikipedia
Lookalikes
Looks very similar to the black-tailed bumblebee, sometimes sharing almost identical color patterns.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 21 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Alaska, Colorado, California, Wyoming, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Nevada.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada; native in United States. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
Where might I find a Forest Bumble Bee?
They are common in open, grassy mountain meadows and nest underground or on the surface.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Apidae)
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombus_sylvicola
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-22 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-22.