A bear known as ‘Hank the tank’ had been the subject of a bear-hunt in California; but the truth was slightly more complicated. Image source: California Department of Fish and Wildlife
A large black bear, dubbed ‘Hank the Tank’ by locals, has been captured in California late last week after an alleged crime spree.
Authorities in South Lake Tahoe had been looking for a large bear since February 2022, following reports of a single male bear that had been the cause of “152 reports of conflict behavior”, including a total of 28 alleged home break-ins.
However, the initial report were based solely on witness accounts and were actually including three different bears with similar behaviour patterns, and had incorrectly assumed that all the bears were male.
DNA testing conducted on the bear that was captured last week, formally known as Bear 64F, was a female, and believed to be behind 21 of the alleged break and enters, and had three of her cubs in tow.
As more homes were vandalised in Tahoe Keys, a waterfront community east of Sacramento, the public became increasingly defensive of ‘Hank’, putting fault on habitat encroachment and homeowners who had failed to secure the garbage.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) typically euthanises “conflict bears”, but instead chose to relocate Bear 64F, citing “widespread interest” as the reason for its choice.
CDFW will also rehabilitate and relocated Bear 64F’s cubs, aiming to have the bears regain a fear of humans.
One of the cubs also appear to have suffered serious injuries as the result of a vehicle strike earlier this month.
Bear 64F had originally been located in March, with local biologists collecting her DNA, and attaching both a ear tag and satellite tracking collar at the time. However the collar slipped off two months later.
According to one local resident, at least on of the “Hanks” had a taste for ice cream, reportedly eating a 2 gallon (7.57 litres) tub of ice cream from a trash can.
While bears typically eat a plant-based diet, their ability to adapted to their environment is part of what makes them a top predator — including for ice cream.
Earlier this month, a bear caused chaos on a plane when it escaped its enclosure within the plane’s cargo hold.
