Some 200 Elk have become established in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park 13 years after introduction....................Time to take another swing with the Eastern Wolf and the Puma?

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2014/sep/02/elk-thriving-smokies-13-years-after-introduction/

Elk thriving in Smokies

13 years after introduction

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by The Knoxville News Sentinel 
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A young male elk cranes its neck skyward while feeding in a meadow in

 the Great Smoky Mountains National Park outside Cherokee, N.C. on T

hursday, Aug. 21, 2014. As rutting season approaches, mature male elk

 have begun their seasonal bellows to attract females and advertise their

 dominance over other bulls.

Photo by The Knoxville News Sentinel /Chattanooga Times Free Press.

CHEROKEE, N.C. — The field had been mowed for hay, giving it the appearance of a freshly cut lawn. Across this wide-open expanse of green, a small elk herd slowly made its way toward the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. While the yearling calves romped in the cool, early morning air, a young bull with spike antlers made amorous overtures to the female members of the herd.

In the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the elk rutting season is off to an early start. And while the bulk of the park’s herd — an estimated 150 to 200 animals — still remains in Cataloochee Valley at the southeastern end of the park, a group of about 20 elk has taken up residence near the Oconaluftee Visitor Center just inside the park near Cherokee, N.C.