British big cats
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British big cats, also referred to as ABCs, (Alien Big Cats or Anomalous Big Cats,) phantom cats and mystery cats, are supposedly Felidae not native to Britain which inhabit the British countryside. Their existence is unproven and these sightings are often reportedly named as "panthers", "pumas", or "black cats".
Evidence for their existence
First sightings
In the 1760s the great radical writer, William Cobbett recalled in his Rural Rides how, as a boy, he had seen a cat "as big as a middle-sized Spaniel dog" climb into a hollow elm tree in the grounds of the ruined Waverley Abbey near Farnham in Surrey. Later, in New Brunswick, he saw a "lucifee" (North American lynx – Felis lynx canadensis) "and it seemed to me to be just such a cat as I had seen at Waverley."[1]. Another old report was found by David Walker from The Times in 1827 of a "lynx" being seen.[2]
Farther back there is a medieval Welsh poem Pa Gwr in the Black Book of Carmarthen which mentions a Cath Palug, meaning "Palug's cat" or "clawing cat", which roamed Anglesey until slain by Cei. In the Welsh Triads, it was the offspring of the monstrous sow Henwen.[3]
Captures and remains
In July 2005 a farmer in North Devon discovered a large cat's skull, which has since been identified as a puma's. It was apparently taken for scientific analysis, though no results have ever been released. It follows many reports of cats in the area (Beast of Exmoor), and even a report of a farmer shooting and later burying a puma.[4][dubious – discuss]
A Eurasian lynx was shot in summer 1991 near Norwich, Norfolk. It had killed around 15 sheep within two weeks. The story was only reported in 2003, and the lynx is apparently now in the possession (as taxidermy) of a collector in Suffolk. For many years this incident was considered to have been a hoax, particularly by the hunting community, But in March 2006 a police report confirmed that the case was true. It was probably an escapee from a facility in the area that bred animals including Eurasian lynxes.[5]
Video and photographic evidence
In June 2006 a large black cat was recorded in the countryside of Banff, Aberdeenshire. Footage of the cat was broadcast by the BBC on 24 May 2007.[6]
Sightings
The research group Big Cats in Britain[7] publishes reported sightings annually by county. The "top ten" counties or regions of Great Britain between April 2004 and July 2005 were:[8]
| County | Devon | Yorks | Scotland | Wales | Gloucs | Sussex | Cornwall | Kent | Somerset | Leics |
| Number of Sightings | 132 | 127 | 125 | 123 | 104 | 103 | 99 | 92 | 91 | 89 |
The possible species of British big cats
The world's big cats comprise lions, tigers, leopards and jaguars.
- Other Cats: Species that have been noted only occasionally include the leopard cat, which are the size of domestic cats but with leopard-like spots, a clouded leopard, a specialised species from the tropics which was captured after living wild in Kent in 1975, and there are even extraordinary cases of lions being reported in Devon and Somerset.[9]
Reported British Big Cat Sightings
- Cath Palug, Isle of Anglesey, medieval
- Beast of Exmoor, Devon and Somerset, 1970s - Present [10]
- Beast of Bodmin, Cornwall, 1992 - Present [11]
- "Felicity" the Puma, Inverness-shire, 1980 [12]
- Surrey Puma, Surrey and Hampshire, 1959 - 1970 [13]
- Fen Tiger, Cambridgeshire, 1950s - 1990s [14]
- Wrangaton Lion, Devon, 1998 - 1999 [15]
- Bucks Beast, Buckinghamshire, 1995[16] - Present
- The Beast of Basingstoke, a big cat sighted around Basingstoke in the early 1990s, and believed to be a lion or puma.[17]
- The Beast of Bevendean, a big cat which has mauled dogs in the suburbs of Brighton.[18]
Government involvement
In 1988, the Ministry of Agriculture took the unusual step of sending in Royal Marines to carry out a massive search for the rumoured Beast of Exmoor after an increase in the number of mysteriously killed livestock, and farmer complaints over subsequent loss of money. Several Marines claimed to have seen the cat fleetingly, but nothing other than a fox was ever found. The Ministry concluded that reports of the Beast were nothing more than mass hysteria.[19] The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has published a list of predatory cats that they know to have escaped in the United Kingdom, although most of these have been recaptured.[20]
See also
Further reading
- BCIB Yearbook 2007, Ed. Mark Fraser, CFZ 2008
- Beer, Trevor The Beast of Exmoor: Fact or legend? Countryside Productions 1988
- Brierly, Nigel They stalk by night - the big cats of Exmoor and the South West Yeo Valley Productions 1988
- Francis, Di The Beast of Exmoor and other mystery predators of Britain Johnathan Cape 1993
- Francis, Di Cat Country David and Charles 1982
- Harpur, Merrily Mystery Big Cats Heart of Albion 2006
- Moiser, Chris Mystery Cats of Devon and Cornwall Bossiney Books 2002
- Moiser, Chris Big Cat Mysteries of Somerset Bossiney Books 2005
- Moiser, Chris Mystery Big Cats of Dorset Inspiring Places 2007
- Shuker, Karl Mystery Cats of the World: From Blue Tigers to Exmoor Beasts Robert Hale 1989
References
- ^ William Cobbett: Rural Rides (1830), p204 in Penguin 2001 edition
- ^ Inverness Big Cat
- ^ Arthur and the Porter
- ^ British Big Cats - British Big Cats Society, Prove and Protect, Big Cat Sightings, Official Website
- ^ [1] BBC News
- ^ [2] 'Big cat' sighting on video, BBC Scotland, 24 May 2007]
- ^ BCIB
- ^ BBC Wildlife Magazine, April 2006
- ^ Dartmoor Lion
- ^ [3]
- ^ [4]
- ^ [5]
- ^ [6]
- ^ [7]
- ^ [8]
- ^ Bucks Examiner 23rd June 1995
- ^ It's Basingstoke NOT Boringstoke
- ^ Beast of Bevendean strikes again (From The Argus)
- ^ www.ukbigcats.co.uk - The Definitive Guide To UK Big Cats
- ^ http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-countryside/vertebrates/reports/exotic-cat-escapes.pdf
