What is Big Cats in Britain

Friday, 30 December 2011

30th December

THE Ministry of Defence (MoD) has dismissed claims that it attempted to cover up the existence of large cats prowling the North York Moors.
A new book has detailed reports of a large wild cat being found on the A169 Pickering to Whitby road, near RAF Fylingdales, while dozens of sightings of panther or puma-like creatures have been reported to police across the North-East and North Yorkshire in recent years.
Witnesses stated seeing a large cat “the length of a sheep” near the base in 2004, with one delivery driver claiming he saw the body being loaded into a car, possibly used by MoD police.
Rick Minter, author of Big Cats: Facing Britain’s Wild Predators, claims staff at the ballistic missile early warning station saw the body of the creature and that it was kept in a vault at the isolated base.
Mr Minter compared the incident to the US government’s alleged cover-up of an alien in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947.
He said: “It is at RAF Fylingdales that we have Britain’s Roswell moment on big cats.”
A MoD spokeswoman declined to comment on the claims, other than to describe them as “rubbish”.
However, Mark Fraser, of Big Cats in Britain, which investigates sightings, said it was possible the Fylingdales big cat sightings had been covered up, but there would be no sinister motive behind it.
He said: “The Government is not going to want people to panic – there is a lot of money in countryside industry. I don’t see why these people would lie about seeing large cats.”
Mr Fraser said evidence pointed towards isolated big cats surviving from hunting rabbits and originating from the numerous private zoos in North Yorkshire and the North-East before the Second World War.
Freedom of Information requests have revealed the region’s police forces received more than 30 calls about big cats in recent years, but Mr Fraser said police officer members of his group said the figures underestimated reported sightings.
A County Durham police spokesman said: “Reports of sightings are followed up as appropriate.”
In 1995, North Yorkshire Police opened a file on the Beast of Ryedale and drew up a contigency plan, after a pumatype animal was spotted.
Other incidents recorded by the police include one near Richmond, North Yorkshire, last December, when two sheep carcasses were found stripped to the bone.
In 2006, a Durham farmer reported that one of his sheep had been attacked by what appeared to be a large cat, while in October 2010 there was a report of a sheep in Darlington with its front legs and half its neck eaten.

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Big Cats In Britain: Is It A Ministry Of Defence 'Roswell' Cover Up?

The Huffington Post
30th December 2011

Big cats are stalking the country lanes of rural Britain, but their existence is being covered up by Ministry of Defence, a new book claims.
Rick Minter, author of Big Cats: Facing Britain's Wild Predators, claims that the body of a large black cat was carried into an RAF Base in North Yorkshire, and the corpse is now being kept in a MOD vault.
"It is at RAF Fylingdales that we have Britain's Roswell moment on big cats," claims Minter in his book, referring to the reported alien crash landing in New Mexico, which conspiracy theorists believe was covered up by the US air force.
"Retired staff apparently talked about a 'body on the table' and a witness outside the base reported a puma-like creature being trundled off in the scoop-arm of a tractor."
Big cat sightings in the UK are common according to Mark Fraser who runs the website Big Cats In Britain.
However no corpse of a puma or leopard has ever been found.
North Yorkshire seems to have the dubious distinction of being a hotbed of puma and pather sightings. A spokesperson for the North Yorkshire police told the Huffington Post UK:
"There's been various sightings over the years. Every summertime, we get a good spate of sightings right across the county, in both forest areas and close to the coast. There's never been any proof though."
Sheep and deer carcasses are hailed by farmers as evidence of a panther, puma or black leopard roaming the countryside.
A savaged sheep found sprawled across a North Yorkshire road in December 2010 was widely attributed to a big cat. At the time, PC John Wilbor told local newspaper "The Press":
“The evidence seems to fit with a possible big cat attack.”
Mark Fraser of Big Cats In Britain told the Huffington Post UK: "We get reports of big cat sightings almost every day. I don't believe there are hundreds out there though.
"He [Minter] quotes reports of a large black leopard in RAF Fylingdales. One investigator talked to a guard at the gate who saw the leopard come in. I don't believe for a second it's being kept in a vault though. The government will never admit it."
The Ministry of Defence declined to comment.

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'Big cats roaming British countryside'

Punjab Star News
29th December London, Dec 29 (IANS)

Big cats were stalking the British countryside but top government officials tried to cover it up, says a new book.
Hundreds of sightings have been recorded over the years, of the Beast of Bodmin Moor to the Surrey Puma, but the book 'Big Cats: Facing Britain's Wild Predators' now claim that such evidence of them was suppressed by officials from the ministry of defence, according to the Daily Mail.
Author Rick Minter claimed that the body of a 'fearsome puma-like animal' was also being kept hidden in a top security vault at the Royal Air Force Fylingdales base.
'Retired staff apparently talked about a 'body on the table' and a witness outside the base reported a puma-like creature being trundled off in the scoop-arm of a tractor,' the book says.
It was reported in June 2004 that a large cat 'the length of a sheep' was killed on a road near the base.
Farmers also claimed they lost sheep to a large animal roaming the area. A video footage was released in 1998 that showed a black animal resembling a wild cat.
In 1983, around 100 sheep were killed near South Molton, and photographs showed a big cat. But no creature was ever caught, the report said.
The department for food and rural affairs says the claims were unsubstantiated.
Read more about Punjab news Online in punjab star news by webmaster

London, Dec 29 (IANS) Big cats were stalking the British countryside but top government officials tried to cover it up, says a new book.
Hundreds of sightings have been recorded over the years, of the Beast of Bodmin Moor to the Surrey Puma, but the book 'Big Cats: Facing Britain's Wild Predators' now claim that such evidence of them was suppressed by officials from the ministry of defence, according to the Daily Mail.
Author Rick Minter claimed that the body of a 'fearsome puma-like animal' was also being kept hidden in a top security vault at the Royal Air Force Fylingdales base.
'Retired staff apparently talked about a 'body on the table' and a witness outside the base reported a puma-like creature being trundled off in the scoop-arm of a tractor,' the book says.
It was reported in June 2004 that a large cat 'the length of a sheep' was killed on a road near the base.
Farmers also claimed they lost sheep to a large animal roaming the area. A video footage was released in 1998 that showed a black animal resembling a wild cat.
In 1983, around 100 sheep were killed near South Molton, and photographs showed a big cat. But no creature was ever caught, the report said.
The department for food and rural affairs says the claims were unsubstantiated.
Read more about Punjab news Online in punjab star news by webmaster

London, Dec 29 (IANS) Big cats were stalking the British countryside but top government officials tried to cover it up, says a new book.

Hundreds of sightings have been recorded over the years, of the Beast of Bodmin Moor to the Surrey Puma, but the book 'Big Cats: Facing Britain's Wild Predators' now claim that such evidence of them was suppressed by officials from the ministry of defence, according to the Daily Mail.

Author Rick Minter claimed that the body of a 'fearsome puma-like animal' was also being kept hidden in a top security vault at the Royal Air Force Fylingdales base.

'Retired staff apparently talked about a 'body on the table' and a witness outside the base reported a puma-like creature being trundled off in the scoop-arm of a tractor,' the book says.

It was reported in June 2004 that a large cat 'the length of a sheep' was killed on a road near the base.

Farmers also claimed they lost sheep to a large animal roaming the area. A video footage was released in 1998 that showed a black animal resembling a wild cat.

In 1983, around 100 sheep were killed near South Molton, and photographs showed a big cat. But no creature was ever caught, the report said.

The department for food and rural affairs says the claims were unsubstantiated.

Read more about Punjab news Online in punjab star news by webmaster

If you have any news on this item please let us know by leaving a comment or email bcib@btopenworld.com Please report any sightings at http://www.bigcatsinbritain.org/localreportform.htm If you wish to comment on any of the items please click the header of the story.

‘Big cats roaming British countryside’

Thaindian News

29 December 2011 11:55:25 by IANS
London, Dec 29 (IANS) Big cats were stalking the British countryside but top government officials tried to cover it up, says a new book.
Hundreds of sightings have been recorded over the years, of the Beast of Bodmin Moor to the Surrey Puma, but the book “Big Cats: Facing Britain’s Wild Predators” now claim that such evidence of them was suppressed by officials from the ministry of defence, according to the Daily Mail.
Author Rick Minter claimed that the body of a “fearsome puma-like animal” was also being kept hidden in a top security vault at the Royal Air Force Fylingdales base.
“Retired staff apparently talked about a ‘body on the table’ and a witness outside the base reported a puma-like creature being trundled off in the scoop-arm of a tractor,” the book says.
It was reported in June 2004 that a large cat “the length of a sheep” was killed on a road near the base.
Farmers also claimed they lost sheep to a large animal roaming the area. A video footage was released in 1998 that showed a black animal resembling a wild cat.
In 1983, around 100 sheep were killed near South Molton, and photographs showed a big cat. But no creature was ever caught, the report said.
The department for food and rural affairs says the claims were unsubstantiated.

If you have any news on this item please let us know by leaving a comment or email bcib@btopenworld.com Please report any sightings at http://www.bigcatsinbritain.org/localreportform.htm If you wish to comment on any of the items please click the header of the story.

MoD chiefs 'hid evidence' of big cats prowling UK, new book claims

Puma's body 'is being kept in secure vault at RAF base

By Damien Gayle
Last updated at 7:52 PM on 29th December 2011
Ministry of Defence chiefs are covering up the existence of big cats stalking the British countryside, according to explosive claims in a new book.

Hundreds of big cat sightings have been recorded over the years, from the Beast of Bodmin Moor to the Surrey Puma, but it is now claimed that evidence of them has been suppressed.

Rick Minter, author of Big Cats: Facing Britain's Wild Predators, claims that the body of a fearsome puma-like animal is being kept hidden in a top security vault at an RAF base.

He likens the alleged cover-up to the U.S. government's veil of secrecy surrounding an alien crash landing in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947.

In the book, seen by the Sun, he writes: 'It is at RAF Fylingdales that we have Britain's Roswell moment on big cats.

'Retired staff apparently talked about a "body on the table" and a witness outside the base reported a puma-like creature being trundled off in the scoop-arm of a tractor.'

A local paper from the area reported in June 2004 that a large cat 'the length of a sheep' was killed on the Pickering to Whitby road near to the base.

Mark Fraser, who investigates big cat sightings as part of the Big Cats In Britain group, told the Sun such a body was the 'Holy Grail' of his investigations.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2079676/MoD-chiefs-hid-evidence-big-cats-prowling-UK-new-book-claims.html#ixzz1i3lqCOU7

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Thursday, 29 December 2011

MoD ‘hid big cat sightings’

‘Puma’s body in RAF vault’
The Sun

By RHODRI PHILLIPS

Published: Today

DEFENCE chiefs are trying to cover up the existence of big cats stalking Britain's countryside, a new book claims.

The body of a fearsome puma-like animal is said to be hidden in a top security vault at an RAF base.
Hundreds of big cat sightings have been recorded over the years — from the Beast of Bodmin in Cornwall to the Surrey Puma. The Government's environment department Defra insists evidence is "unsubstantiated".
But Rick Minter, author of Big Cats: Facing Britain's Wild Predators, claims staff at RAF Fylingdales, North Yorks, saw the body of the "puma".
He likens it to the US government's alleged cover-up of an alien in Roswell, New Mexico, in 1947. He writes: "It is at RAF Fylingdales that we have Britain's Roswell moment on big cats.
"Retired staff apparently talked about a 'body on the table' and a witness outside the base reported a puma-like creature being trundled off in the scoop-arm of a tractor."
In June 2004, a local paper reported that a large cat "the length of a sheep" was killed on the Pickering to Whitby road near RAF Fylingdales.
Mark Fraser, of Big Cats in Britain, which investigates sightings, said: "What is the cover-up here? The Holy Grail in these investigations is a body. If the MoD have a body, we'd like to know about it."
A series of photos taken in Cornwall claim to show the Beast of Bodmin. In 1983, the Beast of Exmoor was blamed for the deaths of 100 sheep near South Molton.

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Wednesday, 28 December 2011

Mapped: Big cat spotted twice by Welsh farmer as carcass of lamb found dangling from tree

Brendan Hughes, South Wales Echo

Dec 14 2011

A FARMER has told how he found the carcass of one of his lambs dangling from a tree – after spotting a big cat prowling through his fields.
Philip Davies now has fresh fears for his flock after seeing the black cat for a second time. It is the latest sighting of a creature being described as a “big cat” in the South Wales Valleys.
Mr Davies, 51, of Aberfan, said: “It’s very worrying – you’re watching the sheep all the time.
“The lambs are coming up in March and April and so I would like to catch him by then.”

Mr Davies was with his two sheepdogs on his Ynys Y Gored farm when he spotted the big cat at about 12.30pm on December 5.
That was just two days after coach driver Robert Davies, 61, of Hirwaun, said he witnessed a large feline “bounding” across the road at the Cyfarthfa Retail Park near Merthyr Tydfil as he returned from work. The two locations are just a short distance apart along the A470.
Farmer Mr Davies said he was between 150 and 200 yards away when he saw the cat just above the Taff Trail near the dual carriageway.
“It was just a bit of a shock to me when I saw it. I have told people on the Taff Trail to beware,” Mr Davies said.
“The way it was walking, it wasn’t a pussycat and it wasn’t a dog – I know my animals. I would have gone after it if I had a gun.”
Mr Davies said his wife, 48-year-old Susan, also saw the big cat, which he said was about three-to-four feet in length.
“I phoned my wife as well just to make sure I wasn’t seeing things and she was seeing it as well,” Mr Davies said.
Mr Davies said he discovered one of his lambs hanging from a tree after he first spotted the big cat two years ago.
“The lamb up the tree could have been as a result of the cat, but I can’t say for definite it was the cat,” said the lifelong farmer, who also works as a lorry driver for Merthyr Tydfil council.
But big cat expert Mark Williams said no other animal in the UK would be capable of carrying a carcass up a tree, and said the animal could be a panther.
Mr Williams, who has been studying big cats sightings for the past six years, said: “They stash their carcasses in high places, in trees and bushes.
“They stash it out of reach of foxes and badgers and return to it later to eat it again.
“It’s just their habit to keep it out of the way of other predators.”

Big cat sightings in Wales

Read More http://www.walesonline.co.uk/cardiffonline/cardiff-news/2011/12/14/by-the-way-it-walked-it-wasn-t-a-cat-and-it-wasn-t-a-dog-91466-29952920/#ixzz1hoPc0nuo

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Latest 'sighting' of big cat roaming the area

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Tamworth Herald

69-YEAR-OLD Austrey woman has reported the latest sighting of a big cat.
The woman, who does not wish to be named, claims she saw the beast at the end of November in Warton Lane.

She told the Herald: "It was the evening and we were driving towards Warton. I saw the black cat just walk across the road and disappear into a hedge.
"It was definitely not a dog, I could tell by the way it moved. It had a cat's walk, it sort of sauntered across the road."
Her husband says he has seen the big cat twice before – once in the No Mans Heath area and once in Cinder Lane in Austrey.
There have been many sightings in the Warton area over the last nine years – and some possible 'evidence', including a horse bearing what its owners believe were 'big cat' claw marks – and a sheep which had its carcass stripped bare by what the farmer believed was a big cat.
The latest sightings in our area have been in Shuttington and Baddesley Ensor – with both people describing a black panther-type creature.
This week sees the launch of a new book on the subject – 'Big Cats: Facing Britain's Wild Predators'.
Author Rick Minter spoke to the Herald about the evidence he had seen during research for the book.
He said: "The big cats are most frequently seen by people walking dogs or riding horses, and by far the most common time to see them is at dawn or dusk.
"I first saw one over ten years ago in Cumbria and it made me realise that they are real – they are out there.
"There have been lots of sightings and there is also some compelling photographic evidence.
"I think there is more footage out there too, but people don't want to come forward, sometimes just because they're shy and sometimes because they want to protect the big cat.
"Gloucestershire and Thames Valley police say they have evidence that big cats are breeding in their area.
"Melanistic leopards account for three-quarters of the sightings, with most of the rest being mountain lions or lynx. There is an abundance of food out there for them."
Rick added: "Black panthers are a little like a stretched black labrador, but they walk in a straight line with a rolling, confident movement, whereas a dog's movement is much more erratic."
He also suggested that much evidence for big cats has come from carcasses of other wildlife believed to have been attacked.
"The kill has to be fresh to determine whether a cat has been at it. There will be clamp marks at the windpipe and the animal will be eaten from the back.
"There will be few other marks on the animal – the big cat has a tidy, almost clinical way of eating."
Have YOU seen the big cat? Email helen.machin@cintamworth.co.uk

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Merthyr’s big cat mystery deepens

by Jonathan Whiley, Merthyr Express

Dec 15 2011

THE MYSTERY big cat of Merthyr Tydfil has been spotted again.
Phillip Davies, a farmer from Aberfan, told how he spotted a big cat prowling through his fields.
Mr Davies, 51, said: “It’s very worrying – I’m having to watch the sheep all the time.
“The lambs are coming up in March and April and so I would like to catch this big cat by then.”
Mr Davies was with his two sheepdogs on his Ynys Y Gored farm when he spotted the big cat just above the Taff Trail near the dual carriageway.
“It was a bit of a shock to me when I saw it. I have told people on the Taff Trail to beware,” Mr Davies, pictured, said.
“This animal was jet black with a long tail.”
In an earlier incident, he found the carcass of one of his lambs dangling from a tree.
“The lamb up the tree could have been as a result of the cat, but I can’t say for definite.”
But big cat expert Mark Williams said no other animal in the UK would be capable of carrying a carcass up a tree, and said the animal could be a panther.
Mr Williams, who has been studying big cats sightings for the past six years, said: “They stash their carcasses in high places, in trees and bushes.
“They stash it out of reach of foxes and badgers and return to it later to eat it again.
“It’s their habit to keep it out of the way of other predators.”
Karl Griffiths also spotted the predator, which he describes as a “dark cat-like figure”, as he was walking his King Charles Spaniel through the woods in Heolgerrig.
Reliving his encounter, the 32-year-old said: “As is the norm, I took my dog for a walk through the woods up the top of Heolgerrig.
“I always leave my dog off the lead, he has a sniff around, I walk on, he walks behind. However, on this morning, while he was doing his usual stop and sniff routine and as I was walking ahead, he let out a massive yelp, as if something had scared him.
“ I turned around, only to see my dog darting towards me as well as a dark cat-like figure leaping across the path, running deep in to the trees in the opposite direction.”
The latest sightings come less than a week after coach driver Robert Davies had spotted a large black cat “bounding” across the A470 near Cyfarthfa Retail Park in Merthyr.
Chris James, 51, a cat owner, also spotted what he thought was the beast at Cyfarthfa Retail Park: “It just bounded across the road in front of me.
“It was the length of the front of my car – it’s tail was 3ft long in itself. They are scavengers, they are not interested in mice or birds, they want something bigger, like sheep.”
Les Richards, a retired police officer, says he saw the big cat as he was driving to a petrol station in Penydarren.
“It was about 30 yards in front of the car,” the 62-year-old said.
“It was low to the ground, jet black and shiny with a long body.
“It was like a leopard with its legs outstretched. My wife thought she saw a dead cat by the side of the road as we drove past. I had never seen anything like it.
“I worked in central area control for the police and people ring about all sorts – we had a lot of alien sightings. But I am not a crank and I know what I saw.
“There is no doubt in my mind it was the creature.”
Mr Griffiths said that he had studied big cats for many years but had never spotted one on the prowl before last week. “It is common belief that a load of these animals were released in to the wild when the dangerous pets licence came in to play some years ago,” he said.
Have you seen the cat? Call Jonathan Whiley on 029 2024 3972 or email jonathan.whiley@mediawales.co.uk

Read More http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/south-wales-news/merthyr/2011/12/15/merthyr-s-big-cat-mystery-deepens-91466-29954628/#ixzz1hoPDTL7I

Read More http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/south-wales-news/merthyr/2011/12/15/merthyr-s-big-cat-mystery-deepens-91466-29954628/#ixzz1hoPA2V99

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Big cat with silky fur spotted in Abbeymead

This is Gloucestershire
Monday, December 12, 2011
"IT had silky black fur and it was the size of a big dog. When I saw it I just turned and ran away."
Those are the words of Mark, from Abbeymead, who froze in his tracks last Sunday when he came face to face with a big black cat.

winter sightings: Big cat tracker Frank Tunbridge.

He was confronted by the animal in Upton Lane when returning from a night shift at 2am.
"I couldn't believe it," he said.
Bushes
"I was walking down the lane and I just saw this thing come out of the bushes. It stopped and looked at me. I just turned and ran.
"There was no mistaking it, it was definitely a cat. Just by looking at it I knew. It was the size of an extra large German Shephard."
Mark, who did not want to give his surname, admits to being fairly sceptical about the presence of wild cats before the encounter, but now there is no doubt in his mind.
"When I got in and told my wife. She told me to stop being silly, but I'm adamant that's what it was," he added.
"I have never seen anything like it before in my life.
"I have been assured there is nothing to worry about in terms of safety though, and I understand there have been a few sightings here before."
Following the incident, Mark contacted local big cat expert Frank Tunbridge.
Frank, who keeps a log of sightings reported to him, said: "We have had quite a few sightings from that area over the past few years.
"We tend to get a lot more sightings at this time of year due to the cold snap.
"The cats tend to head to where it is warmer, towards the more urban areas.
"Also their normal food, mammals, head underground for the winter so they tend to scavenge more off humans."
He added: "In all my 25 years monitoring big cats I've never known or heard of a dangerous attack on humans, so there's no need for people in the area to be afraid.
"The cat that Mark has described fits the description of 80 per cent of sightings."
Frank receives at least two, and sometimes as many as four, reports of big cats each month.
Gloucestershire has a high proportion of big cat sightings, especially in the Stroud Valleys.

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Cemetery visitors’ shock at ‘big cat’

Cardiff News

Dec 9 2011

Read More http://www.walesonline.co.uk/cardiffonline/cardiff-news/2011/12/09/cemetery-visitors-shock-at-big-cat-91466-29922315/#ixzz1hoNxlQdT

THEY are more often found stalking the high plains and mountain ranges of the American continent.
Now a mountain lion has apparently been spotted in a rather more unlikely location – a South Wales cemetery.
Retired secretary Margaret Thomas, 76, of Roath, Cardiff, was more than a little surprised when she came “face to face” with the big cat in June.
The close encounter came when Mrs Thomas and her daughter Sarah, 42, were paying a visit to a relative’s grave in the city’s Thornhill Cemetery.
The pair, who said they were too embarrassed to tell authorities at the time, contacted the Echo after we revealed on Tuesday that a “panther-like” big cat had been spotted prowling on the outskirts of Merthyr Tydfil.
Coach driver Robert Davies, of Hirwaun, was driving home from work when he claims he saw a large black cat “bounding” across the A470 near Merthyr.
Mrs Thomas said her brush with a big cat came at around 6.30pm on June 28 when she and her daughter were walking through the cemetery near to where it backs on to Caerphilly Mountain.
The two were returning to their car after visiting Mrs Thomas’ mother’s grave when the beast walked across their path, turned to look at them and then headed off through the graveyard. She said: “It walked across and then stopped and stared right at us, as if to say ‘what are you looking at?’.
“It wasn’t a dog and it certainly wasn’t a fox. It just stood there about 20 yards away, with a dead rabbit swinging back and forth in its mouth.
“Both of us stood stock still, terrified to move, and then it turned around and sauntered on its way up the path.
“I remember the way it moved as it walked away, with a sort of swagger, almost like an arrogance – as if it owned the place. We didn’t appear to worry it in the least.”
The shaken pair then walked back to their car, where Sarah found her camera phone – but by then the cat had disappeared among the gravestones.
Sarah, of Thornhill, who owns a string of coffee shops in the city, added: “When I got home I Googled ‘big cats’ straight away and from what I could tell it was most similar to a mountain lion, except its fur was a greyish, minky colour.
“It had a long tail and pointy ears that were sticking up.”
She said she and her mother did not tell the cemetery staff because they were afraid no-one would believe them.
Mrs Thomas added: “Who would you call, and what would you say? ‘We’ve just seen a big cat walking through your cemetery?’
“But I know what I saw and it will stay with me for the rest of my life.”

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Sheep killed in field 'by Beast of Buckinghamshire'

The Mirror

by Alun Palmer, Daily Mirror 17/12/2011

A SHEEP has been found mutilated by a puma – in a Hertfordshire field.
Farmer Johanna Collings, 40, who discovered the dismembered remains, said: “One of his front legs was gone and his rib cage was completely exposed.
“All the insides had been cleaned out perfectly, which is a typical trait of a cat. ”

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The find in Loudwater, near Rickmansworth, follows 24 reported sightings of a big cat since January 2010 in the area. It has been dubbed the Beast of Buckinghamshire.
It comes after experts confirmed paw prints found on Wycombe Heights golf course, Bucks, were those of a puma. And Thames Valley Police wildlife officer PC Simon Towers recently found a big cat paw print in woodland in Oxfordshire.
He said: “We are not just getting reports from members of the public, but also from gamekeepers. They are coming from professionals.”

Read more: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/12/17/sheep-killed-in-field-by-beast-of-buckinghamshire-115875-23640963/#ixzz1hoKDbIRC
Read more: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/12/17/sheep-killed-in-field-by-beast-of-buckinghamshire-115875-23640963/#ixzz1hoJsUfdM

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Big cat spotted in town?

The Warrington Guardian

2:30pm Monday 12th December 2011 in News

THERE has been another big cat sighting in the town. The lynx or jaguar-like creature was last spotted in Lymm in the summer but has been more recently spotted on Silver Lane, Risley.
The cat, which has been described as four feet long, brown in colour with a long tail, appeared in front of a car from bushes between the exit road of the m62 motorway and Silver Lane.
Nick Elliott, who spotted the cat, said: “It slowly strolled across the road ahead of us and looked straight at us with its eyes glaring bright in the headlights then darted into Pestfurlong Hill.
“I have heard rumours of a big cat since the 80/90s around Risley Moss.”

Comments(1)

motorhead2009 says...
12:56pm Tue 13 Dec 11

I used to live next to the Noggin back in the 1980's. i do recall a large black cat, more like a golden retreiver size in the field at the back one afternoon, but this is a long time ago !

Maybe its the moss boggart ? amyone ever heard of that ?

Could this be the big cat?

The Warrington Guardian

2:30pm Friday 16th December 2011 in News

A READER believes he has solved the mystery surrounding a big cat sighting in Risley.
Reports described a four foot long cat which was brown in colour with a long tail and appeared in front of a car from bushes between the exit road of the m62 motorway and Silver Lane.
But reader Nigel Balding thinks a young male fox he has spotted within 200 metres of the sighting fits the description.
He said: "The fox is a little darker in colour than usual.
"He is very bold and has twice approached me when I have stood very still at the top of Pestfurlong Hill."

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The Beast of Bodmin is . . . Tony of Bolton!

The Bolton News

9:33am Friday 16th December 2011 in News

DURING the working day Tony Lee trains people to stay safe — but in his spare time he roams the moors as a “terrifying”
beast.
For the 52-year-old is the official Beast of Bodmin Moor in Cornwall.
Mr Lee got the “job” after he wrote to a group of Cornish businessmen who run a marketing group entitled The Best of Bodmin Moor.
They invited him to a meeting and he turned up in a tiger skin catsuit after being unable to secure the panther-style costume usually associated with the Beast of Bodmin Moor.
The father-of-two was presented with a contract, certificate and a plastic box of chocolate mice, and his life as the official Beast of Bodmin Moor began.
It is a world away from his job at Bolton firm Encompass, where he trains pub, hotel and restaurant staff in first aid techniques. Mr Lee works across the country and also organises fire marshal courses, how to handle and lift sessions, and food safety and hygiene courses.
Using his first name Michael, Mr Lee is also the author of three books of collections of outrageous letters. These range from inventive job applications, such as the Beast of Bodmin Moor, to requests for unusual and often non-existent posts or items, such as searching for a Freudian slip for his wife.
He said: “It all started when I became a minor celebrity on American TV and in the Spanish press when they picked up on a spoof letter I sent applying to be the mayor of El Paso.
“I had an idea I could write funny letters asking for silly jobs, get some replies and publish them in a book.”
He has applied to become the official Government scapegoat, asked how he could acquire a corporate ladder to help his career and written to Harry Ramsden’s complaining about the chip on his shoulder.
Other job applications have included to be the new hunchback of Notre Dame and The Man in the Moon.
He has appeared on This Morning TV programme with Philip Schofield and Fern Britton and on regional TV and radio.

ON THE PROWL Tony Lee, in his Beast of Bodmin Moor costume, roaming the moors above Bolton and, inset, with his book, Letters From A Professional Nuisance

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Beast of Merthyr? Latest British Big Cat Sighting

Now Public

by Ben Steinmeier | December 6, 2011 at 12:30 pm

Panther-like beast sighted in densely-populated urban Wales
As odd as it sounds, experts have warned pet owners in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales to keep their pets inside due to the danger of a reported "panther-like creature" in the area. The warning came after a reported sighting of the big cat and is the latest of the British big cat sightings.

The sighting and other evidence
It all began when coach driver Robert Davis was coming come from work when he saw animal. As he described it:

He said: “I had just come off the roundabout, so I was only doing about 20mph when it just appeared in the middle of the road.“It was about 25 feet in front of me and ran straight into the light from my headlights.
“I used to own an Irish setter and it was definitely much bigger than that, black, with a long tail and a head a bit like a boxer dog. It bounded across from the central reservation in about three leaps.
“I had to do a double take, but there was no mistaking what it was.”

Later on Monday morning, staff of a retail park arrived to find "unusual damage" done on a bin and garbage strewn around the area.
British big cats
Despite the incredibility of the claim, there have been thousands of similar sighting reported throughout Britain since the 1950's, most reports claiming the same thing: a large black or tan feline. While photographic evidence has been brought forward, many of these photos have been hoaxes, been merely claimed as misidentification or do not have enough quality to prove anything.
While the average British citizen doesn't believe in these big cats, big cat expert Danny Nineham says this all changes when someone has a sighting.

“Until they see a big cat, most people don’t believe it,” he said. “But we’re not claiming it’s Big Foot, the Loch Ness monster or that aliens have invaded Wales – it is very real and very tangible.“We have got hundreds of these things, they are everywhere.”

While the South Wales Police have not confirmed the sighting, Police Wildlife Officer Matthew Howells gave the following information should one encounter it:

Do not approach the animal
Do not leave any food out for it
Report the sighting to the police and give as much information as possible: detailed description, where the sighting took place, direction it left, etc.

Continue reading at NowPublic.com: Beast of Merthyr? Latest British Big Cat Sighting | NowPublic News Coverage http://www.nowpublic.com/strange/beast-merthyr-latest-british-big-cat-sighting-2867564.html#ixzz1hoHrAZXt
Continue reading at NowPublic.com: Beast of Merthyr? Latest British Big Cat Sighting | NowPublic News Coverage http://www.nowpublic.com/strange/beast-merthyr-latest-british-big-cat-sighting-2867564.html#ixzz1hoHhUrzN

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Scotland in Denial over Big Cats on the Loose

The Beast of Merthyr? Pet owners told to lock up animals after sighting of 'panther-like' creature

by Clare Hutchinson, Western Mail

Dec 6 2011

THEY are the elusive shadows that stalk the countryside, feeding on sheep and terrorising rural communities – but a big cat now appears to have found its way to one of Wales’ most densely populated areas.
Experts warned pet owners in Merthyr Tydfil to lock up their animals after a “panther-like” creature was spotted prowling on the outskirts of the Valleys town.
Coach driver Robert Davies, of Hirwaun, was driving home from work when he claims he saw a large black cat “bounding” across the A470 near Merthyr.
The 61-year-old was turning off a roundabout near Cyfarthfa Retail Park at around 10.30pm on Saturday when he claims the animal ran across the road in front of him in the direction of Gellideg, Cyfarthfa.

He said: “I had just come off the roundabout, so I was only doing about 20mph when it just appeared in the middle of the road.
“It was about 25 feet in front of me and ran straight into the light from my headlights.
“I used to own an Irish setter and it was definitely much bigger than that, black, with a long tail and a head a bit like a boxer dog. It bounded across from the central reservation in about three leaps.
“I had to do a double take, but there was no mistaking what it was.”

The A470 in Merthyr, where the big cat was apparently spotted

Meanwhile staff at the nearby retail park reported arriving at work on Monday morning to find “unusual” damage to a bin on the site and rubbish strewn around the area.
A worker at the site, who did not want to be named, said: “It looks like something has got into the bin from the back and pulled rubbish out.
“It’s very unusual to see that and, to be honest, the cleaner was really quite surprised.”
Big cat expert Danny Nineham, who works as a consultant for UK police forces, said it was typical of many sightings.
“Until they see a big cat, most people don’t believe it,” he said. “But we’re not claiming it’s Big Foot, the Loch Ness monster or that aliens have invaded Wales – it is very real and very tangible.
“We have got hundreds of these things, they are everywhere.”
In 2006, Wales was placed fourth on a list of “big cat hotspots”, according to the British Big Cat Society, with hundreds of sightings reported across the country in the past decade.
According to Mr Nineham, who keeps a log of thousands of sightings reported to him every year, increasing numbers of big cats are being spotted in urban areas as the animals apparently follow prey, like foxes, into towns and cities.
He said while most big cats will instinctively hunt, many turn to scavenging, because it is easy pickings.
“When you have got these retail parks, a cat doesn’t know what it is, it only sees it as a potential source of food,” he said.
“This is absolutely typical of a big cat sighting, and I would advise people living locally to keep their pets indoors as much as possible, because pet attacks make up a lot of the incidents reported to us.
“As far as people themselves are concerned, there is really no need to worry.
“Big cats in the UK will very rarely, if ever, attack to kill because they have plenty of other food sources.
“If you are walking in the area and you come across the animal, just stand tall, look big and try and back away without taking your eyes off it, so you know where it is.”
A spokesman for South Wales Police was unable to confirm if the incident had been reported to the force.
But Dyfed-Powys Police Wildlife Officer Matthew Howells said: “Don’t approach the animal and don’t leave any food out for it as this could encourage it to come closer to your home.
“Report the sighting to the police and give them as much information as you can, such as a detailed description of the animal, where it was seen, how far away it was, and the direction it was travelling in,” he added.

Read More http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2011/12/06/coach-driver-stopped-in-his-tracks-by-panther-like-big-cat-outside-shopping-park-91466-29901048/#ixzz1hoGkmuBI

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