Uploaded August 2017 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Incident Happened in November 2013
It happened in the Cataloochee Valley of Great Smoky Mountains National Park more than 3 years ago. Photographer James York was photographing elk from a distance when one young bull decided to come close—very close. York tried to act passively and put his head down and curled forward to protect himself from the animal’s antlers.
The altercation happened in the Cataloochee Valley of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and although it could have gotten very ugly very quickly, everything went okay and elk and human eventually parted ways without anybody getting hurt.
At least that’s what everybody thought until the park confirmed to NBC that the elk was put down by Rangers after the incident because he “could not be re-trained to be fearful of humans.”
According park spokeswoman Molly Schroer, the elk had been coming back to that area in search of food as a result of previous humans feeding him, and had begun associating humans with food.
When York found out what happened, he issued a statement that was added to the description in the video above:
I love and respect animals and that’s why I photograph them and don’t hunt them. I am deeply hurt by the loss of such a beautiful creature that in its own way bonded with me. I looked forward to watching him grow to a mature bull as the years passed.
I’m truly heartbroken to know he is gone.
Park Rangers assured York that he did nothing wrong in the video. The elk had been exhibiting aggressive behavior for a long time, and this was apparently their only course of action. This isn’t something the park resorts to often and, in fact, this elk is the first the park has ever put down.
York, however, tells NBC that “all the joy is gone.” Now that the animal has been put down, he says he wishes the photos/video and the viral attention they garnered had never happened.
Incident Happened in November 2013
It happened in the Cataloochee Valley of Great Smoky Mountains National Park more than 3 years ago. Photographer James York was photographing elk from a distance when one young bull decided to come close—very close. York tried to act passively and put his head down and curled forward to protect himself from the animal’s antlers.
The altercation happened in the Cataloochee Valley of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and although it could have gotten very ugly very quickly, everything went okay and elk and human eventually parted ways without anybody getting hurt.
At least that’s what everybody thought until the park confirmed to NBC that the elk was put down by Rangers after the incident because he “could not be re-trained to be fearful of humans.”
According park spokeswoman Molly Schroer, the elk had been coming back to that area in search of food as a result of previous humans feeding him, and had begun associating humans with food.
When York found out what happened, he issued a statement that was added to the description in the video above:
I love and respect animals and that’s why I photograph them and don’t hunt them. I am deeply hurt by the loss of such a beautiful creature that in its own way bonded with me. I looked forward to watching him grow to a mature bull as the years passed.
I’m truly heartbroken to know he is gone.
Park Rangers assured York that he did nothing wrong in the video. The elk had been exhibiting aggressive behavior for a long time, and this was apparently their only course of action. This isn’t something the park resorts to often and, in fact, this elk is the first the park has ever put down.
York, however, tells NBC that “all the joy is gone.” Now that the animal has been put down, he says he wishes the photos/video and the viral attention they garnered had never happened.
