Recent sightings...

A majority of recent sightings will be posted on the FACEBOOK page BIG CATS IN KENT, the original research page from over thirty years of research into sightings and evidence of 'big cats' in the wilds of the South-East.

The last month has been extremely active with sightings at Walderslade (often dubbed 'the beast of Blue Bell Hill'), Ashford and Canterbury. All of these were reports of a melanistic leopard. The Walderslade report concerned a female dog walker who described seeing a large, black and sleek animal whilst at Canterbury sheep remains were found but the Ashford report as the most impressive and took place on Monday 17th September 2018 at 10:05 pm. It concerned a man walking home down an alleyway when he was alerted to the sound of something walking in nearby undergrowth. thinking it was a fox he continued until he came face to face with a big, black cat; he added, "It was not spooked and, strangely nor was I. If I saw one in its own habitat obviously I would have died of fright, but it seemed calm and at ease. Unthreatening. We stared at each other a few seconds and it turned and left. Have looked online and 100per cent sure it was a Black Leopard; The colour, size, faint markings, eyes, tail... All spot on."

Black leopard seen at Hollingbourne

A woman has reported seeing a black leopard at Hollingbourne, Maidstone. The sighting took place at 1:30am on June 19th as she was walking her dog with a friend. They reported being snarled out and then picking out bright eyes of a large black animal.

Many other reports have come in, you can find these at the BIG CATS IN KENT Facebook page.

BIG CATS IN KENT LATEST SIGHTINGS

In the last month there have been sightings at Tenterden, Bethersden and Snodland - all concerning black leopards. for more info join the Facebook page BIG CATS IN KENT.

Latest Kent big cat sightings...

May 2017 has been one of the busiest months on record with sightings in one week from Sheppey, Chartham (2), Hythe, rural Maidstone, Shadoxhurst and Cliffe. All sightings took place at night and involved motorists - leopard scat has also been found at Blue Bell Hill and a badger kill elsewhere in an undisclosed location. For more info join the facebook page BIG CATS IN KENT.

April 3rd 2017 big cat sighting

"Driving home last night from work, Monday 3rd April, was just before midnight. 

I had just driven out of Charing, near Ashford on the a252 and taken the left turn/fork onto the faversham road. 

Just after taking the turn I saw a large black cat at the edge of the road. Was about the size of Labrador, with orange/yellow eyes and a long tail. It had a very dark shiny coat reflecting in my head lights and was just stood staring at the car as I drove past."

Updates...

Apologies for lack of updates; it has been an extremely busy time with sightings; investigations - for further information visit the Facebook page: BIG CATS IN KENT

Another big cat sighting...

"Yes my husband saw a Puma sized large black cat on 21st July 2016. It was 8pm and a lovely dry day. I was in the green house reaching to water a tomato plant otherwise I would have seen it too. He suddenly screamed '"cat!" very long and loud which I just took as come and look quickly but was unable to move quick enough. I had no idea. What he saw was a very large cat in the corner of our paddock which he must have spooked as it bounded along the fence line right across to the opposite corner and ran up the diagonal wooden brace on the corner post and over it into the wood beyond. On reflection it explains the tone of his shout being more like an urgent warning cry. I was really sorry to have missed it and hope to see it again. We have both owned several cats and a Weimaraner and a Labrador in the past, so we know the difference. Especially how differently they move. We have warned the neighbours but have yet to report it to the Ashdown Rangers."

Cranbrook big cat sighting

"Yesterday; the 13th July at approximately 7 15am I saw a large black cat. I believe it is what you call a panther.

It was coming from the broad bean field and into a small wooded copse near Rolvenden Layne.

It was about 15 yards from me so I had a good view, although brief. It didn’t appear to be in a hurry and just sloped the short distance into the wood.

I have never seen one before.

I was with my rather slow dog and she had stopped behind me."

Another Thanet big cat sighting....

"I live in Thanet - we have two large fields at the the back of our garden.
Any way I have a very strange sleeping patterns and woke up at 4:50 this morning and went out into the back garden to have a cigarette and couldn't believe my eyes as I saw a large black cat. Initially I thought it was a black Labrador but then noticed its tail was to long and it had a small head, no snout. But only as it disappeared out of my sight I realised that what I was looking at was walking like a cat. Only after it had gone I stupidly realised I should have run indoors and grabbed my camera, but I was so mesmerised watching it."

BIG CAT SIGHTING IN THANET

"My wife and I went out for a drive and to get petrol from minster around 12:30 am we were on the A256 towards plucketts gutter turn of to gore street when in the car headlights we saw a black animal shot across the road my brain didn't quite comprehend why it would be black in headlights. It's eyes were yellow pin pricks in the headlight as it turned it's head towards us. It was to big to be a domestic cat or fox.....it was quite large maybe bigger than a dog but seemed larger My wife described it's tail as long and thin and it was curved then straight sort of bent. It was all over in less than a second and it was around 50 metres in front of us, I went quite and wanted to turn the car round to check what I'd just seen as it seemed a bizarre experience. Think we may have seen a big cat"

For an update of local sightings and evidence visit the Facebook page BIG CATS IN KENT

BIG CAT SIGHTING AT PADDOCK WOOD

"never thought this would happen to me i was driving back from marden to paddock wood this evening (20th March 2016) and just out side paddock wood on a rd called peasons green rd junction of the turning to old hay scrap yeard i saw in the distance in my head lights what i first thought was the second sighting that night of a fox crossing the rd in front of me but what i saw it was just in range of my head lights a anamal that was bigger then a fox but much taller, higher at the back then the front a long tail, also light in colour but a dark shadow from the tail going along the back, it was a long way off but defo not a deer it was some thing i had never seen before i have lived in the kent country side all my life , am pissed of i was noe a few feet closer with the lights when it crossed the rd"

Ryarsh 'big cat' sighting...

For some unknown reason a rather run-of-the-mill sighting of an alleged black leopard was made to the local press on Wednesday 11th November 2015 and the report has proven popular with sceptics, journalists and believers alike. Either way, what actually happened between 8 - 9am on the 11th was hardly out of the ordinary when one considers the amount of 'big cat' sightings reported each year and evidence found. Sadder still, the websites which run the stories are often littered with people who seem to spend all of their lives waiting - with baited breath -for any story/witness they can ridicule. But anyway, this is the report:

""A delivery driver has described the moment a big black cat, believed to be panther, loomed up in front of him in a quiet village, sparking a police search and urgent warnings to parents.
Yesterday we reported how a school sent text messages to parents warning them there was a panther on the loose. Today we tracked down the man who spotted the cat.

Paul Turk, from Ditton, was so terrified when he saw the large creature in The Street, Ryarsh, on Wednesday morning he had to take a break at his next destination to calm down. Mr Turk, who works for Thomas Ridley Foodservice, said: “I saw the cat standing in the middle of the road. It was big, almost a metre high. It was jet black and had glorious green eyes.

“Initially I thought it was a black Labrador but as I approached in my lorry, I could see it was a panther. It had a long tail about as thick as a broom handle.

“As soon as I could see the cat was not in any hurry, I stopped the lorry about 30 to 40 yards away. I was in shock, panic, and the cat just stood looking at me for what felt like a long time. Then it just walked onto the side of the road.

“When I arrived at the school I was shaking and had to take a seat to calm down. Unfortunately I did not take a photo as I was too shocked.”

The incident happened at 8.15am - during the school run - and Mr Turk was so astonished he stopped a woman in a Volkswagen Polo, who had pulled over to let him turn on the brow of a hill, and warned her about the panther.

He then carried on to his next stop, a primary school.
A Kent County Council spokesman confirmed the shaken driver arrived at Offham County Primary School on Wednesday morning and raised the alarm.
Staff made him a cup of tea and leant him their phone to call police before alerting nearby Ryarsh Primary School, in Birling Road, and Trottiscliffe Primary School, in Church Lane, which both sent text messages to parents.

The message sent to Ryarsh parents said: “There has been a sighting of a black panther outside Brookline Coaches in Ryarsh. The police have been informed.”
A police spokesman said: “A search of the area took place but no such animals were located.”
Panther is the umbrella term for a number of large cats, including jaguars (pictured), leopards and pumas.
Experts say when big cats are spotted roaming in the UK they are most likely to be pumas, leopards or lynx."

Latest Kent 'big cat' sighting...

I feel the need to tell someone as I saw something tonight (15/10/2015).
I was coming back from collecting something from a farmhouse along bogshole lane between whitstable & blean.
there is a long narrow drive about 1/4 mile long down to the road I was about 100 yards from the end when I saw a large black object jump across the lane. It scared me
Then I could see a set of bright yellow eyes in the headlights as I got closer it moved off again across the lane fast but right in front of me.
about 3 foot tall it's tail is what stuck in my mind it was big.
Now I'm no cat expert but this was a cat & a big cat. so black and fast
I'm still in shock it has made the hairs on my neck stand on end just thinking about it.
so surreal

A relatively fresh 'big cat' sighting...

"Just thought you’d like to know that around 1.30pm today a large black cat ran across the back of our field.  I’d been reading in the newspaper at the weekend about black foxes, but it was a bit bigger than a fox and the head was round not long.  It had a long tail which it held upright and curled over towards its back. It was quite a sleek lithe animal.

We live in Betsham, a village about 3 miles from Bluewater on the other side of the A2."

A London-related tale...

A London-related tale:

"Very glad to see the Beast of Sydenham is still alive and well. My husband saw it in Dulwich Woods early one Sunday morning whilst walking our two Doberman a couple of years back. The two dogs were very anxious and wouldn't leave his side!

Round about the time the man was attacked nr Wells Park I definitely could smell 'big cat' musk in our garden.. and having been 'sprayed' at a Wildlife Park visit..it's a smell you NEVER forget. The policeman who attended the incident swears it was a big cat too!"

Dover sighting..

"
Hi, yesterdy morning (17/8/2015) ,at 5 30 am,our cat was running to and fro from window to window growlng.A we have hens in back garden,I thought maybe a fox was visiting.However when I lolooked through pati doors,there was a big black cat.It was approx 3 ft lng and had a long thick tail.It was no way a domestic cat.Something similar to a Labrador size.This happened in Whitfield Dover.Couldn't see any' calling card' , but I know what I saw!!"

Latest big cat sighting...

Latest report: "I was travelling on the a228 between Padock Wood and East Peckham on the 14th August at about 9am, I am an HGV driver I looked to my left and no more than about 40 feet in a field I saw what I thought was a panther, initially I thought DOG but the way it was walking and its stance with its head slung low and looking forward has convinced me that it was a big cat, the sighting only lasted about 2 second due to me driving at about 40mph, unbelievable !!"

South-East London 'big cat' sighting

"My ex came to visit earlier in the week (end of July 2015), and was woken up around 5am by some pigeons on my balcony. She went to my kitchen which overlooks ****** ***** at Sydenham and was amazed when she saw a very large black animal walking along the road. She is fairly certain that it was a panther. My kitchen window looks north, and straight down Seeley towards Sydenham hill station. The animal was on the left hand pavement looking from my kitchen, ver...y near to the entrance of the old early Victorian Kingswood House. Apparently a car drove past it and the animal froze but made no attempt to hide. If the driver had been looking he would have seen it for sure! It walked off in the direction of the station. To the right, and only a few hundred yards away is the ancient Dulwich Wood."

"I also saw a panther In the early 80's when I was returning to Farnham after a gig in London at around 2am near Wisley on the A3. I had stopped by the lake next to the A3 to have a pee. I got into my car, and pulled back onto the road. As I accelerated, I saw an animal coming towards me also on the road, I passed it on my side of the car and had a very clear view of what I was certain at the time was a large black panther. It completely freaked me out as only moments earlier I had been outside.
I wonder why more people haven't seen them as it seemed quite confident and could easily have darted into the side of the road."

Over the years I've received sporadic reports of a large black cat in and around Sydenham. I received photographs a few years ago of a domestic cat that had been eaten by a large black cat and in the same week a jogger, running with his dog, was chased by a "panther" at Dulwich Wood. Although the story from 2005 of the man who claimed to have been attacked by a black leopard was most certainly a hoax; it is very likely that a melanistic leopard does roam the area. If one looks at Sydenham on a map you'll notice several wooded parks dotted around the area, and it's also worth noting that I often receive reports from Bromley too which is just four miles from Sydenham. If one takes this into consideration then a black leopard around Sydenham could also have a territory that covers parts of Surrey and Kent; taking in West Wickham, Chislehurst etc.
Although I'm often dubious of reports of 'big cats' being seen more central to London it is worth taking into consideration that Brixton is only four or so miles from Sydenham!

THIS IS NOT A REAL PHOTO!

There have been numerous websites commenting on the so-called puma (mountain lion/cougar) allegedly caught on film in the UK. However, after a quick trawl on the internet I found the exact same image from the MonteZumaBeach website; oh dear.... http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/convincing-image-big-cat-loose-Westcountry-date/story-26826455-detail/story.html#F51oTw9sy8iZt2TM.01

'Beast of Blue Bell Hill' fresh sighting....

"Having just browsed the internet and come across your ‘Kent Big Cat Research’ website, I thought you may be interested in something I saw today. I was playing a round of golf with 2 friends at Cobtree Manor Park Golf Course at the bottom of Bluebell Hill, and was on the 8^th green at about 10:15 this morning, when I saw a very large black animal come out of the woods about 100m away, walk along the edge of the woods for about 15m, and then disappear back into the woods. It looked to be larger than an Alsatian, but it definitely wasn’t a dog - it padded along with the gait of a cat. One of my friends also saw it, but he only had a fleeting glimpse at it went back into the woods."