Nature often manages to correct itself, which is exactly what this video out of the Smoky Mountain of Tennessee depicts.
Any outdoorsman knows that the invasive wild hog species is causing a number of problems in the United States and Canada. That’s why in most of the country, it’s always open season for feral hogs, and why you sometimes see clips of people shooting large packs of them with automatic weapons while flying in helicopters.
And this bear in the Smoky Mountains National Park must have known that the feral pigs are becoming an issue as well, considering that it did its part in bringing one of them down. Much like the 2007 film of the same name with Tim Allen and John Travolta, wild hogs is/are horrible and should’ve been stopped before they even got started.
Back in March of 2021, these Gatlinburg visitors stumbled upon quite the scene, which was playing out just off the side of the road heading into the tourist-friendly town. As they pulled up in their vehicle, they first thought it was a black bear attacking a smaller bear, or even a bear cub.
However, once they got closer and came to a stop, they realized that the bruin was actually battling with a wild hog, and was giving the invasive animal all it could handle. In the beginning, the feral pig is doing its best to still get away, but the bear isn’t letting that happen and continues to attack and attempt to drag “pork dinner” up the hill.
The hog snorts and squeals as it tries to fend off the black bear, though it really didn’t stand a chance against the apex predator. As the tourists look on, the fight for survival ensues for a good 10 minutes, with the bear eventually “taking care” of pig and appearing to immobilize it.
While the bear and the hog were battling, many cars along the road came to a standstill, which appears to scare the bruin towards the end of the video. As the 10-minute clip concludes, the black bear is seen retreating up the hill away from the hog. It can be assumed that once the cars started to move again, the bear probably came back down to retrieve its kill.
The Smoky Mountains are home to around 2,000 black bears, and we know at least one of them is helping fight off the growing population of feral hogs. And rightfully so, considering that the invasive species often eat foods that are a part of a bear’s regular diet.
For some, this video might be hard to watch. For others who feel very passionately about controlling invasive species populations, you’ll probably enjoy watching nature do its thing:
Wildlife Photographer Captures Stunning Photo Of Bull Elk Mauling A Cow In Great Smoky Mountains
Talk about a wild moment caught on camera.
Wildlife photographer Joe Subolefsky recently captured an insane shot of a rutting bull elk goring a cow elk in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, in the Cataloochee Valley of North Carolina.
According to his account in OutdoorLife, Subolefsky had been taking a few pictures early on a foggy morning last October, when he witnessed one of the craziest scenes he’s ever seen in the field.
In the midst of the rut, he noticed a number of bull elks locking horns. However, once the fighting stopped and the pursuit of a female resumed, one bull in particular was too fired up for his own good.
The bull attempted to mount a nearby cow, but when she dodged his advances, he positioned himself to her side, and with his head down and his antlers out, charged forward, goring the cow.
“She took a few wobbly steps and traveled about 15 yards before going down in the grass. The bull had already pivoted and was making a beeline back to the rival male he had been fighting minutes earlier.”
The encounter reminded Subolefsky of just how cruel nature can be:
“The experience allowed me to witness the raw power of wildlife, and it was a reminder that Mother Nature can be harsh and unforgiving.”
If you’re a fan of compelling wildlife photography, give Joe a follow… he’s captured some INSANE stuff.
Black Bear Breaks Into Family’s Car In The Smoky Mountains
Talk about some people who involuntarily found themselves in a sticky situation.
A family was visiting their cabin at The Smoky Mountains in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. And if you know anything about Gatlinburg, Tennessee, you know they got themselves a healthy population of rambunctious black bears.
They’d only been there for five minutes, when outta nowhere a young black bear makes its way to their car.
Sure enough, he smells the birthday cake that’s sitting in the trunk of their car, and it’s doing everything it can to make its way in.
The people begin to try to scare the bear away by turning on the car’s alarm, but it does no good, as the bear miraculously makes its way into the trunk of the car.
Finally, they realize they have to take matters into their own hands, and proceed to walk outside and try to scare the bear away themselves.
Once the young bear has done some damage to the cake, it runs off, but continues to stay close by as it stares the people down.
I have to say, these people have a lot more courage than me.
When a young bear is off by itself, that means the mama bear ain’t too far behind, and that’s when things can get ugly.
Here’s the description from the folks who lost their cake:
“We had just arrived at our cabin in The Smoky Mountains (Gatlinburg). We hadn’t been at our cabin for more than 5 minutes. We were unloading our luggage. We had stopped by a local grocery store to pick up a birthday cake a little while before arriving. The cake was sitting in the rear of the vehicle.
My sister-in-law walked back out to retrieve some more stuff and saw the young bear in the car eating the birthday cake that we had just purchased. She started screaming for us all to come out and see what was happening. The video tells the rest of the story.
I also have the follow-up video that shows mama bear coming a little while later and trying to open the car door to find more cake. I also added a picture of what was left of the cake.”
The black bear is the most common bear to populate the Smoky Mountains, and according to the Smoky Mountain National Park, an estimated 1,500 black bears populate the area.
