Very local but attractive where found, in and along the borders (including roadsides) of mixed or deciduous, often rocky or open forests. This is a western species occurring from Alaska south in the mountains to New Mexico and also in the Black Hills of South Dakota and the Riding Mountains of Manitoba. Its disjunct occurrence on the Keweenaw Peninsula (from Copper Harbor to Eagle Harbor) was discovered in 1849; much more recently also found on Isle Royale.