A motorist captured the clearest pictures of the enigmatic “muscular big cat” that people thought was a puma wandering about in the British outback.
The photos were taken by an unnamed motorist in Cumbria who stepped out of her van to take the pictures of the massive cat feasting on a pigeon.
The unnamed lady, whose job requires her to drive out to the countryside in routine, clicked three pictures of the cat. When she moved closer to the cat, it ran off.
The pictures clicked by the lady match with the description given by people who regularly see the cat in Bowness-on-Windermere in the southern part of the Lake District.
The photos were posted in a Facebook group called Big Cats in Cumbria by the admin of the group, Sharon Larkin-Snowden.
People in the group have divided opinions on the cat’s identity.
While some think it’s an African golden cat, some believe it to be a young puma. And for some, it appears to be a caracal.
Sharon captioned the photos: “The witness said it was muscular and the size of a collie. Either a caracal or young puma.
“This has to be some of the best photographic evidence up-to-date. To get a decent photo is difficult.
“The size of the cat caught her attention and she was lucky enough to get these photos before it slinked off. To get three shots takes some doing. Brave lady!”
According to Cumbria Police, there have been as many as 40 reports of the sighting of a black panther in the Southern part of the Lake District since 2003.
A couple, Liz and Stuart Wild, were on their way to Little Langdale when they spotted a “jet black” panther looking for a chance to attack a herd of sheep.
Liz Wild, 54, said: “There were some sheep in the field and one of my friends said: ‘Look at that dog’.
“But it was very feline and very, very big. You know how a cat stalks? It was like that. It was jet black and walking slowly.”
Stuart, from Worcester, added: “It had a big, black long tail. It looked exactly like the pictures of black panthers I found when I searched online.”
However, the couple didn’t get the chance to take out binoculars or a camera to have a closer look at the predator that was standing around 70 yards from them, according to their statement.
Liz Wild added: “It’s the first time anything like that has happened.
“We were all quite surprised to see it. We had a big, dry stone wall in front of us, but I would have tried to get a closer look given the chance.”
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