wildlife

The Tahoe Institute for Natural Science (TINS) in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU) will host the sixth annual Lake Tahoe Bird Festival on Saturday June 13, 2015 at the Taylor Creek Visitor Center, located three miles north of South Lake Tahoe on Highway 89.

Residents and visitors are invited to attend this free family event from 10 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.

California cannabis growers may be making millions, but their thirsty plants are sucking up a priceless resource: water. Now scientists say that if no action is taken in the drought-wracked state, the consequences for fisheries and wildlife will be dire.

"If this activity continues on the trajectory it's on, we're looking at potentially streams going dry, streams that harbor endangered fish species like salmon, steelhead," said Scott Bauer of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

As the drought begins to impact wildlife, there is concern that California black bears are breaking into Tahoe homes because the lack of rain is contributing to a lack of food.

Now some wildlife activists want to lure those bears away from neighborhoods by feeding them where they live -- in the woods -- even though that practice is illegal.

The activists argue that the drastic action will help the bears survive.

A project to remove invasive plants from the Lake Tahoe Basin will continue this summer. The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU) will eradicate, control, and contain these plants using chemical treatment. Work will occur at approximately 70 infestation sites beginning May 15 and continuing through September, 2015.

In South Lake Tahoe every year, many new species are brought in and out of the Lake. While some locals have boats, only some use them in other lakes. The city of South Lake Tahoe regulates wildlife brought in and out of the basin and lake by requiring boats to get inspected, but neglects the need to educate the future community about the harmful animals that can be brought into the lake. These are the new workers and people that will be living and giving to the community.

At least 30 fish have been removed from in the area of Lake Tahoe beneath Fanny Bridge as the California Department of Fish and Wildlife combats low oxygen levels caused by the drought.

Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman Kirsten Macintyre tells the Truckee Sierra Sun that 26 brown trout and four rainbow trout were caught below the bridge and relocated to a marina about six miles south. Recent readings showed low dissolved oxygen levels in the stagnant water below the bridge, so while there are fish remaining, the lower population should help.

The majority of Tahoe locals and tourists lack knowledge of bear precaution, causing the growing presence of bears in South Lake Tahoe’s residential areas. In recent years, Lake Tahoe’s black bears have become problematic when outside their natural meadow and forest habitat. Because of human habits, bears have become attracted to local neighborhoods. Passing routines down to their cubs, bears remain dependent on the human food source left outside many residents’ homes.

This week, as part of the first EpicPromise Week, Vail Resorts will present the first ever EpicPromise Awards to two Heavenly or Kirkwood employees for their ongoing commitment to strengthening the local community and fostering a sustainable environment. The EpicPromise Awards are being given at Vail Resorts’ mountains across the country as part of the first annual EpicPromise Week (April 6-10, 2015), a full week dedicated to celebrating Vail Resorts’ widespread commitment to creating a more promising future for generations to come.

El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county.

The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at press time and the story will be updated when provided.

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3:30 p.m. - Driving without a license - Emerald Bay Rd - A SHERIFF'S SERGEANT ON PATROL IN THE TAHOE BASIN OBSERVED AND VEHICLE CODE VIOLATION AND CONDUCTED A
TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT STOP. AN INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT THE 25-YEAR OLD MALE OPERATOR WAS UNLICENSED, AND ARRESTED.

A proposal to ban coyote hunting contests in Nevada was rejected Friday by state wildlife officials.

After hearing from some 50 people for and against the idea, the Nevada Wildlife Commission voted 7-1 to deny a petition sought to end a controversial practice that gives cash or other awards to hunters who kill the most coyotes during so-called “coyote call” events.

Is a bear invasion in Lake Tahoe's near future?

If you listen to veteran Bear League director Ann Bryant, you might want to start taking some serious precautions if you have a place in the Tahoe area.

"We are expecting not only the town bears around Tahoe, but the backwoods bears to start heading in this summer, in record numbers," Bryant said.

The reason: four years of drought have taken their toll on the bears' natural food source. Bryant said she's seeing a warm and relatively snow-free spring that is bringing bears out of hibernation early.

A Lake Tahoe woman is suing a longtime bear protection group after she says she got death threats for reporting an aggressive black bear to Nevada authorities, who then killed the animal.

Adrienne Evans, a professional mountain bike racer and high school science teacher, accuses the BEAR League of igniting an ugly social media campaign that turned into a vengeful attempt to run her and her husband out of town. She said she loves bears and wasn't trying to get the animal killed.

A Nevada wildlife sanctuary is awaiting test results from a California laboratory to determine what killed a tiger and wolf and seriously sickened a cheetah.

The Animal Ark near Reno says a 21-year-old tiger died on Feb. 6, a day before a 3-year-old wolf died and a 9-year-old cheetah was found comatose.

Officials at the nonprofit sanctuary say a barbiturate from an undetermined source is suspected as the cause of the deaths and illness after the cheetah tested positive for the drug. Food also hasn't been ruled out as the cause.

For the first time since World War I was ongoing, a rare Sierra Nevada red fox was spotted in Yosemite National Park. The video above shows the fox making tracks through the snow-covered mountains early this past December.

The National Park Service said in a press release that two documented sightings have occurred in park since early December, one on Dec. 13, and another on Jan 4. These marks the first confirmed sightings of the rare fox in the park in nearly 100 years.

Since the beginning of December, 2014 there have been 19 thefts, six burglaries and two robberies reported in the South Lake Tahoe city limits. While many of these are petty thefts, others have resulted in the theft of valuable jewelry, electronics and other belongings from residences while the owners weren't home.

Have you protected your home to the best of your ability? Many of us may think that "it can't happen to me," but when a home was burglarized around the corner from me, I changed that mode of thinking and started looking into ways to better protect mine.

The Tahoe Area Sierra Club will host Tom and Cheryl Milham of Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care at the their next community outreach meeting on January 29th.

Location

The New Year brings big changes both for me personally and for the Forest Service in Lake Tahoe. After 37 years with the agency, I’m looking forward to retirement and handing over the reins at the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit to a new Forest Supervisor.

I’m grateful for steady Basin leadership that has enhanced relationships making them stronger. Days of past tensions between conflicting interests have passed. Today, local agencies work closely together on solutions that protect our communities and our environment.

It didn't look good for a 39 pound bear cub after being caught in a 400 square mile fire in the state of Washington. Suffering from 3rd degree burns, the cub was found under a horse trailer in Methow Valley, WA.

A state Department of Fish and Wildlife officer captured her, and a volunteer pilot flew Cinder to California. When she arrived at Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care (LTWC) on Aug. 4.

For his "State of the City" address, South Lake Tahoe Mayor Hal Cole took everyone on a trip through the city, celebrating the successes of the last year and creating an anticipation for a future seen with new investments, an improved economy, more businesses and a community that will continue to thrive.

South Lake Tahoe, Calif. - You've walked by them, biked past them, and maybe even seen them on empty lots - what are those random piles of wood? The piles are the first half of a two-step process used by Lake Tahoe Basin agencies to reduce hazardous fuels, provide community protection, and improve forest health.

The Forest Service may have to close the Taylor Creek Visitor Center area if visitors continue to disregard the warnings to keep away from the bears frequenting the area in search of salmon.

Visitors are being asked to keep their distance when encountering bears. The Visitor Center staff routinely encounter unsafe situations as guests ignore their instructions and get too close to bears to take photos and videos.

Environmental groups concerned that the 2004 Sierra Nevada Framework Forest Plan failed to protect old growth forests and associated wildlife species, was not consistent with national environmental laws so they filed suit.

A coalition of conservation organizations led by Sierra Forest Legacy and including the Center for Biological Diversity, Natural Resources Defense Council, Sierra Club and The Wilderness Society have signed a settlement agreement with the U.S. Forest Service, ending the decade long battle.

The University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) invites adults interested in helping others learn about gardening and landscaping to apply to train as a Lake Tahoe Master Gardener volunteer. UCCE Master Gardener volunteers learn University-based scientific information and then share that knowledge with the gardening community. Master Gardener volunteers are people of all ages and from all walks of life.

Improper storage of human food and other scented items, and improper disposal of refuse is a leading cause of human-bear conflict. Due to the fact that bears are attracted to food and things that smell good, proper handing of these items is required at Fallen Leaf and Meeks Bay campgrounds starting October 1.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit has issued the final decision for Forest Order No. 19-14-14 that requires the proper storage of food and refuse.