The Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) spans over 800 square miles, supporting a wide variety of wildlife. Visitors often confuse the largest resident species with the most frequently seen. The largest animal is a massive herbivore that was successfully restored to the region, not the park’s most iconic animal. This overview clarifies the difference between the largest current resident and the most common large mammal, while also looking back at the truly enormous species that once roamed this Appalachian landscape.
The Largest Resident Mammal: The American Elk
The largest animal currently residing in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park is the American Elk, also known as Wapiti. Mature males, called bulls, are colossal animals that can weigh up to 1,000 pounds and stand about five feet tall at the shoulder. Females, or cows, are smaller but still massive, often weighing up to 600 pounds.
The presence of the elk is a conservation success story, as the native subspecies was eliminated from the area by the mid-1800s due to overhunting and habitat loss. The reintroduction effort began in 2001 when the National Park Service released elk to establish a new herd.
The elk population today is concentrated in two primary viewing areas: the Cataloochee Valley and the fields near the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. Visitors are most likely to see these impressive animals grazing in open meadows during the early morning and late evening hours. While the herd is thriving, federal regulations prohibit knowingly approaching within 50 yards of an elk.
The Most Common Large Animal: The Black Bear
While the American Elk is the largest animal by weight and height, the American Black Bear is the most common and widely distributed large mammal in the park. Biologists estimate the park is home to between 1,500 and 1,900 black bears, resulting in a population density of approximately two bears per square mile. This ubiquity means a bear sighting is significantly more likely than an encounter with the geographically restricted elk.
An adult male black bear typically weighs around 250 pounds during the summer months, but they can double their weight by autumn in preparation for winter denning. The largest males documented in the park have exceeded 600 pounds, demonstrating the size variation within the species.
Black bears are omnivores, with approximately 85% of their diet consisting of plant materials, such as berries, nuts, and grasses. They can be found at all elevations throughout the park, including developed areas like campgrounds and trails. Visitors must maintain a distance of at least 50 yards from bears to prevent them from becoming habituated to human presence, which severely reduces their natural lifespan.
Notable Large Species No Longer Present
The truly massive historical resident of the Smoky Mountains was the Eastern Bison. The Eastern Bison, an ecotype of the American Bison, was substantially larger than any elk, with bulls capable of weighing over 2,000 pounds and standing up to six feet tall at the hump. These huge herbivores were extirpated from the region by the mid-1800s.
Apex predators, such as the Eastern Cougar and the Red Wolf, were also once part of the historical ecosystem, contributing to the balance of the large mammal community. The Red Wolf was the subject of a reintroduction program in the 1990s, but the effort ultimately failed. The removal of these immense herbivores and large predators by early European settlers dramatically altered the park’s biological landscape, making the successful return of the American Elk a meaningful conservation achievement.