With a mixture of awe and surprise, the residents of Reno, Nevada, gaze into the treetops outside their own front door.
In the midst of the urban ambience of their suburb, they discover a surprising guest whose overwhelming presence triggers a feeling of fascination.
However, this fascination is also accompanied by a certain fear, as the surprise guest belongs to a species that is potentially dangerous to humans.
Lost and frightened animal
A 15-year-old bear has apparently wandered away from its natural habitat and climbed one of the trees out of confusion and fear.
A rare sight in this urban environment, it drew the undivided attention of the Nevada Department of Wildlife and the Reno Fire Department.
„When we found the bear, it was already climbing the tree,
ashley Sanchez, spokesperson for the Nevada Department of Wildlife, told The Dodo.
„It’s obvious he can’t get down under his own power.“
The lush wilderness of the Sierra Nevada attracts bears especially in the spring, when they emerge from their dens and begin to explore the world.
They often follow waterways and look for easily accessible food sources in human settlements.
Saving the bear
The rescuers use a ladder to approach the agitated bear in the tree. They sedate it to keep it calm, carefully pull it out of the tree and catch it safely in a large sheet.
After a quiet night in a designated shelter, the bear is ready to return to the wild. At sunrise, it is taken to a reintroduction centre.
The joy of the rescuers is palpable when they see the bear happily returning to its natural environment.
An encounter that the inhabitants of Reno will not soon forget. A story that, despite its uniqueness, has something universal about it: We can all lose our way, but there is always a way back home.
