Ok fair enough. What about Spanish introducing them to the New World colonies?
What if The Spanish tried to introduce Indian/African Elephants into Europe in the 1600s?
ETA: Similar attempts are made in the Americas.
I'm sure they could survive, at least in the South and the Southwest. Most of the plants that were fed upon by mastodons are still around, and presuming that mastodon and elephant nutrient requirements aren't too different, the elephants should be able to eat.They would be the first elephants in the new World since the Mastodons. Would the Spaniards use them as drudges ?What would they eat, would they even survive ? Could they roam the wild and adapt ? How would they compete against other species ? How would the native population react ? Would they spread to colder regions and develope some furr ?