Bombus sonorus
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Bombus sonorus, commonly known as the Sonoran bumble bee, is a species of bumble bee in the family Apidae. It is found in Mexico and southwestern North America. Although it has often been categorized as a subspecies of Bombus pensylvanicus, it has since been shown to not hybridize with B. pensylvanicus over a broad area of geographic overlap, confirming its status as a distinct species.
Female B. sonorus is recognized by having the thoracic hairs yellow on the pronotum, anterior portion of scutum, and scutellum resulting in a black band between the base of the wings. Additionally, the first three abdominal segments (T1-T3) are entirely yellow. Males are similar, but have T1-T4 yellow. The shade of yellow is deep golden color. It can be confused with the yellow form of Bombus crotchii and with Bombus nevadensis. It is known to collect pollen from Gossypium, Viguiera, Helianthus, Linaria, Chrysothamnus, and Kallstroemia flowers. These bumblebees generally nest underground, often in old pocket gopher burrows.
The genus name Bombus is Latin for a buzzing sound. The specific name sonorus translates literally from Latin as noisy, loud, resounding... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cumbres de Monterrey National Park | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 2 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Puebla | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 2 | Toluca | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 3 | León | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 4 | Mexico City | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 5 | San Luis Potosí | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 6 | Las Vegas | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 7 | Ciudad Juárez | 🇲🇽 México | |
| 8 | Austin | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | Mesa | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 10 | Los Angeles | 🇺🇸 United States |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Sonoran Bumble Bee sighting in Phoenix on a given day, based on 77 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 29th most-seen of the 264 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
September and October
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Sonoran Bumble Bee in Phoenix on a given day, against under 5% in March and May, the lowest months.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Sonoran Bumble Bee sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
11th of 15
Of the 15 cities where we can rate Sonoran Bumble Bee sightings, Phoenix ranks 11th at about 10%. The best odds are in Puebla (México, about 30%), Toluca (México, about 30%) and León (México, about 30%).
Same family: Apidae
The closest relatives of the Sonoran Bumble Bee that you can see in Phoenix (family Apidae, Honey Bees, Bumble Bees, and Allies) are California Digger Bee (about 10%), Valley Carpenter Bee (about 10%) and California Digger-Cuckoo Bee (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Sonoran Bumble Bee is recorded against all the insects logged in Phoenix (77 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
