Lake Tahoe's Famous Black Bear 'Hank the Tank' Heads to New Home in Colorado
Lake Tahoe is a popular travel destination for many reasons, but--as someone who's traveled there many times--it still has its risks. Not only can winter weather get extreme, but so can some of the local animal residents. After all, Tahoe is bear country!
Just ask the 21 homeowners who have experienced break-ins from Hank the Tank. This 500-pound black bear has been wreaking havoc in the area since 2022, but wildlife officials finally captured her (yes, her) on Friday, August 3. Now, ABC7 News reports that this ursine criminal has a whole new life to look forward to in Colorado.
This big gal has been on quite a journey in the last year, but now she and her three bear cubs will get the chance to start life anew. Hank the Tank, also identified as Bear 64F, was found by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife alongside her little ones on Friday morning. Unfortunately, one of the cubs had been seriously injured after being hit by a car last month, but the young bear was still mobile and keeping up with the rest of the family.
Back in March, DNA samples from the Tahoe black bear helped CDFW officials connect her with 21 separate home break-ins between February 2022 and May 2023. All of these invasions occurred in South Lake Tahoe, a popular tourist destination with a population of over 21 thousand people. That's a 1-in-1000 chance of being Hank the Tank's target of choice!
Now that the massive bear and her cubs are in captivity, they'll all be sent to new homes. As for the Mama Bear, she's off to The Wild Animal Sanctuary near Springfield, Colorado. The most likely plan is that her cubs will be cared for at Sonoma County Wildlife Rescue, where they will hopefully be prepared to be released back into the wild. As long as they don't continue the family tradition of home break-ins, that sounds like a great plan.
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