As in other cuckoo bees, the queen of this species enters the nest of a host species, kills the resident queen, and lives and breeds in the nest tended by the host workers. Host species of this bee include the white-shouldered bumblebee (B. appositus), yellow bumblebee (B. fervidus), yellow-fronted bumblebee (B. flavifrons), Nevada bumblebee (B. nevadensis), and orange-belted bumblebee (B. ternarius).
