British Big Cats

# strAInge: British Big Cats For decades, people across Britain have reported seeing animals that should not be there: black leopards crossing country roads, pumas stalking the moors, and lynx disappearing into forests and hedgerows. This episode of strAInge examines the legends of the Beast of Exmoor, the Beast of Bodmin Moor, the Surrey Puma, and the other mysterious cats said to roam the British countryside. We look at confirmed escaped animals, disputed photographs, livestock attacks, misleading footprints, Scottish wildcat hybrids, and recent claims that *Panthera* DNA has been recovered from a sheep carcass. Large exotic cats have unquestionably escaped or been released in Britain. Whether they have formed a hidden breeding population is a much harder question. Fantastic Felines: A World of Wild Cats The Natural History Museum provides an overview of wild cat species, their characteristics, habitats, and relationships. https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/a-world-of-wild-cats.html The Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976 The official text of the British law requiring licences for the private keeping of many dangerous exotic animals, including large cats. https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1976/38 Big Cats in Norfolk, House of Commons Debate In 1998, Parliament discussed reports of mysterious cats in Norfolk. Police had received 54 sightings during the second half of 1997 and continued to receive reports at an average of twice a week. https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/1998-02-02/debates/35073dae-449c-4eed-986c-283248173c6a/BigCats%28Norfolk%29 Felicity the Puma Inverness Museum and Art Gallery tells the story of Felicity, the female puma captured near Cannich in the Scottish Highlands in 1980. Her preserved body is now part of the museum’s collection. https://www.highlifehighland.com/attractions/inverness-museum-and-art-gallery/collections/collection-highlights/felicity A Lynx Killed in Southern England Around 1903 This scientific paper examines the preserved remains of a probable Canada lynx shot near Newton Abbot, Devon, in or before 1903. The case shows that exotic cats were escaping or being released in Britain long before the Dangerous Wild Animals Act. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08912963.2013.785541 Scottish Wildcat Genetics and Morphology NatureScot’s specialist report describes the extensive hybridization between Scottish wildcats and domestic cats. Modern wild-living cats in Scotland form a genetic continuum rather than a clearly separated wildcat population. https://www.nature.scot/doc/scottish-wildcat-action-swa-specialist-report-genetics-and-morphology Forensic Tests for Canids and Big Cats The University of Warwick explains its ecological-forensics testing service for suspected predator evidence. Samples may include hair, scat, and swabs collected from bite wounds. https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/lifesci/research/archaeobotany/ecological_forensics/cats/ Big-Cat DNA Recovered in Cumbria BBC Wildlife reported that DNA belonging to the genus *Panthera* was identified on a swab taken from a dead sheep in the Lake District. The result could indicate contact with a leopard or another large cat, although it does not establish a breeding population. https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/mammals/big-cat-british-countryside The Beast of Bodmin Moor The British Film Institute archive includes this film about the mysterious animal said to roam Bodmin Moor. https://replay.bfi.org.uk/video/b334f061-8f86-59a9-9be3-c624189c6e77 Next time on strAInge, we leave the British countryside and travel east in search of restless corpses that move through the night with their arms extended. The next episode is all about hopping vampires. This podcast is powered by Pinecast.