There are dozens of bumblebee species in Vermont, but Bombus impatiens is particularly common. That's much more likely than B. pensylvanicus mentioned in the article.

Very helpful. I looked up the 2 species and the American Bumblebee[2] is noted as having an increasingly southern habitat, with borders denoting their former range/habitat.

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombus_impatiens

[2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombus_pensylvanicus

Carpenter bees look very similar to bumblebees, but are actually larger, not as hairy, and don't form hives. They binary maters!

And, contrary to their name, are not good with wood. Plus they attract woodpeckers. Carpenter bees at least make attractive, perfectly round holes. The woodpeckers who follow are not quite as neat.

Here's a list of all the bumblebee species that are or have been present in Vermont: https://val.vtecostudies.org/projects/bumble-bee-atlas/speci...

you might be seeing feral bees or carpenter bees, those are the two I commonly hear misidentified as bumblebees

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