Black Bears Take A Dip Alongside Beachgoers In CA Lake

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CA — Californians having a beach day in South Lake Tahoe on Sunday were joined by a large adult black bear and three playful cubs that came down to splash around in the lake, KCRA reported.

Jen Watkins, who filmed the bears that day, told KCRA that she saw one of the bears pull a Yogi Bear. In other words, the bear took off with someone's cooler before disappearing into the forest.

Although it appears the bears were able to cool themselves off on a hot day alongside humans without issue that day, Bears are not uncommon in Placer County, and officials warned the public to take caution around these large animals.

"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," Lt. Nelson Resendes of the Placer County Sheriff's Office told KCRA.

Read more from KCRA: Black bear and cubs get too close for comfort on Tahoe beach

Even if a bear seems to act friendly, a distance should still be maintained. A strange illness among black bears has been reported in the Golden State this year, and one that makes them exhibit friendly and dog-like behavior.

In March, California wildlife officials traveled to a home in Pollock Pines, east of Sacramento, to investigate reports of peculiar behavior from a black bear cub. When they arrived, they watched a young female cub nonchalantly pick up an apple and chomp away at it in someone's backyard.

Instances like these have been reported several times across the Golden State and experts are scrambling to figure out why.

READ MORE: Strange Illness Causes CA Bear Cubs To Act Friendly, 'Dog-Like'