Family of bears takes a dip in Lake Tahoe to beat the heat, people asked to stay away

“The high on the lake that day was 91 degrees,” ABC News reported, explaining why the bears didn’t mind hanging out so close to humans at the beach.

BEAT THE HEAT: The record-breaking weekend temperatures in the West drove this bear family to seek relief in the cool waters of Lake Tahoe. https://t.co/CZaiomFtoE pic.twitter.com/D1Vhx4PI9B

— ABC News (@ABC) July 14, 2021

Many highlighted that mother brown bears are fiercely protective about their young ones and it’s very dangerous for humans to exist in such close proximity. Many urged that wild animals must be given space instead of filming them so closely. As the video went viral, it started a conversation about climate change and how human behaviour is affecting the natural habit of wildlife.

Locals, however, said that many bears in the region keep wandering in residential areas and are accustomed to human presence.

Wildlife biologist here. The people are WAY too close. A black bear with cubs can be VERY aggressive, and what she will/won’t tolerate isn’t always clear. If she hurts someone, the state will euthanize her, and her cubs will either starve or (if caught) spend their life in cages.

— Imogene Cancellare (@biologistimo) July 14, 2021

Do yall understand how hot it had to be for this bear to bring her cubs near all these people https://t.co/iVxCPp8Nvh

— Court 🌞 (@_Courtneyimani_) July 14, 2021

Yeah, hi this is actually a REALLY bad sign of ecological disaster. It might look cute but it also means worse things are coming

— Chaotic Book Boi 🏳️‍🌈 Antiracism BLM (he/him) (@ChrisWards) July 14, 2021

I know this is a very scary situation, but it just makes me laugh. They just nonchalantly walk into the water. 😂🤣😂

— Victoria (@BlueDem_1VV) July 14, 2021

Same mama and her 3 cubs. They “live” in the Tahoe Keys area. I see them weekly, playing in the water, napping in the backyard. Climate change can’t be blamed on this-they’re just being bears. Why they chose a residential area to co-exist with humans? Easy food source is my guess pic.twitter.com/XZLQOGVeuH

— PurpleLotus (@kimihappygirl7) July 15, 2021

This is so alarming… We’re going to kill so many other species with us on our way out.

— Proletariat Bussy (@Searsword_) July 14, 2021

This video is an alarming example displaying how wildlife and people are responding to the dire threat of a warming planet and the danger which is foreshadowed from wildlife further intersecting with human society and utilizing spaces often occupied by public for personal use. https://t.co/jNQAL97WXm

— Tyus D. Williams 📸🐅🐆 (@sciencewithtyus) July 14, 2021

People on their phone clearly haven’t seen The Revenant

— Ramp Capital (@RampCapitalLLC) July 14, 2021

This isn’t cute. This is beyond sad. #GreenNewDeal #ActOnClimate https://t.co/tcm2PCaJ3k

— X (@BeTheChangeX0) July 15, 2021

Bears do not like bringing their children around humans…..

Yeaaaa the planet dying faster and faster everyday 🥴 https://t.co/SDkuwqG1St

— ThatSouthernWaifu (@RealHotNerdShit) July 15, 2021

Welcome to the new era, where on account of climate change wild and wild animals will have to adapt by migrating to spaces that are not their natural habitat, human action destroying everything… https://t.co/zOImpNt60B

— 𝙿𝚎𝚍𝚛𝚘 𝙼𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚒𝚛𝚘 (@designermoco) July 14, 2021

This is however, not the first time a bear family has gone to the beach to get some relief. In last week of June, another family were filmed bathing in Lake Tahoe. Authorities in the area had a stern warning for people not to get too close to the animals. “They can be very dangerous,” Lt. Nelson Resendes with the Placer County Sheriff’s Office said to KCRA. “Don’t feed them, don’t entice them, don’t provoke them and, obviously in a setting like this … don’t approach them … respect their space.”