From The Files: The London Lynx

Every time a report of a large, exotic cat appears on a website or in a newspaper the sceptics crawl out from under their stones and ask the same questions. Why aren't these animals captured ? Where are the dead bodies ? Why no clear photographs ? Sadly, even if a body, clear photo, or animal is presented, certain sceptics still will not believe. This isn't a true sceptical attitude, this is plain ignorance. In 2001 a lynx was caught in a back garden in Cricklewood, London. More of this case will be covered in my upcoming book MYSTERY ANIMALS OF THE BRITISH ISLES: LONDON. The story made the national newspapers after it was originally reported that a leopard was seen by a female witness. A call was made to the police who, aided by London Zoo, visited the area and were shocked to be confronted by a lynx. The animal was visibly shaken - it had suffered an injury to a rear leg. After a few hours chase the animal was tranquillised and sent off to London Zoo. Staff named the animal 'Lara'. It was eventually shipped on to a zoo in France.

No-one came forward to claim their lost lynx - it was extremely likely the animal had been kept illegally. It proved that a large cat could still be kept as an illegal pet and no-one knows for how long this animal had been on the loose, but it certainly proved that such animals can roam even the more built up areas of the country. At the time the sceptics went remarkably quiet, no surprise. In the past exotic cats have been found dead on roads or shot dead, and yet still sceptics argue they do not exist. Maybe they should question their own ignorance and blindness rather than the simple facts that exotic cats DO roam the UK.