Black bears are increasingly breaking into homes around Lake Tahoe, leaving residents to spend thousands of dollars protecting their properties from hungry wildlife. So far this year, South Lake Tahoe police have received 174 bear-related calls, compared with 97 during the same period last year, according to The Wall Street Journal . A female black bear sits in a tree in Lake Tahoe, California. The increase in encounters has also sparked debate among Lake Tahoe residents over whether bears or people are driving the problem. Others said bears have remained a routine part of life around Lake Tahoe and that conflicts can often be avoided.