Species PlantsYellow Glacier Lily

Yellow Glacier Lily

Erythronium grandiflorum

CommonPlant
Illustration of Yellow Glacier Lily (Erythronium grandiflorum)

Yellow Glacier Lily blooms at the edge of melting snowfields in Rocky Mountain and Pacific Coast mountain ranges, often emerging through snow. Grizzly bears dig the corms extensively in spring when they first emerge from hibernation and fat reserves are depleted. Bumblebee queens and early native bees are critical pollinators.

Habitat
Subalpine meadows, often blooming at receding snowpack edges
Diet
Corms dug by grizzly bears in spring; pollen for queen bumblebees
How common
Common

Best time to see a Yellow Glacier Lily

The best time to see a Yellow Glacier Lily is April–June, when about 80% of U.S. sightings happen, based on 11,949 research-grade iNaturalist observations.

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