Bombus sonorus
In 3 days ~70% in a week ~90%
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 |
Possible
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Sonoran Bumble Bee sighting in Toluca on a given day, based on 52 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 9th most-seen of the 70 insects we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 70%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
August
In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Sonoran Bumble Bee in Toluca on a given day, against under 5% in February, May and November, the lowest months. That is one of Toluca's wettest months, with about 150 mm of rain against 5 mm in December.
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.
Among the best
Of the 15 cities where we can rate Sonoran Bumble Bee sightings, Toluca ranks 2nd at about 30%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Puebla (México, about 30%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Sonoran Bumble Bee is recorded against all the insects logged in Toluca (52 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.
