A couple walking back from the beach in Rhyl have reported spotting a “very large black panther” on the adjacent golf course.
The animal had a “very long tail” and stayed still with its back to the couple, allowing them to pass along the footpath.
Anthony told us: “As we walked back from the beach down the path that cuts across the golf course my wife said she had just seen a large black dog cross the pathway.
“We stopped and looked out over the golf course and we saw it. It had stopped and was sitting upright some way from us. As soon as I saw it I knew it was not a dog.
“It was still light enough to clearly make out the size and shape of what I am convinced was a very large black cat. My wife also said that when she saw it cross the path. It had a very long tail.”
“It remained motionless with its back to us and we continued on our way.”
The encounter took place around 8:15 PM one evening in mid-June 2021 and was reported via our online form this morning.
A few weeks earlier in May this year, a ‘jet black’ big cat was spotted lurking near Prestatyn train station, just a few miles from the sighting reported today. The animal was reported to North Wales Police and the incident appeared in the national press.
And a few miles on the other side of Rhyl, a black big cat was caught on camera in the Coed Y Gopa woodland adjacent to Gwyrch Castle in December 2020.
Then in March this year, Gwrych Castle shared photos of pawprints found in their grounds, with members of their security staff commenting that they had encountered big cats while working in the castle’s woodland.
Further inland at St Asaph, a suspected puma was spotted last weekend on Saturday morning. Martin reported the sighting to us after contacting North Wales Police, who he says told him they can’t respond unless someone is attacked.
Another sighting occurred on the outskirts of St Asaph back in June when Stephanie spotted a “large black puma” jumping and running through long grass.
A suspected puma was also spotted few miles away at Rhuallt Hill back in January. Footprints were also found in Meliden over winter, with many other nearby sightings featured on our interactive map.
Big cats such as pumas are solitary with a hunting range of dozens of miles. They’re mostly spotted in Snowdonia and the Clwydian hills but reports of sightings in urban locations some distance from these areas are becoming more frequent.
As seen with Llandundo’s now-famous goats, who have taken to roaming the town’s deserted streets during the coronavirus lockdowns, it’s likely that the reduced levels of human activity over the last year is encouraging big cats to roam further from the hills into more populated areas.
Earlier this year, the Welsh Government responded to the recent spate of sightings and confirmed the steps they take to investigate any reported to them, including taking casts of paw prints.
When big cats were banned as pets in the 1970s, it was legal to release them into the countryside to avoid expensive rehoming costs. Owners from across the UK travelled to areas like Wales to release their cats in the remote environment, where small but significant populations have thrived ever since.
IMAGE CREDITS
Promenade, Ffrith Beach
cc-by-sa/2.0 – © Mark Anderson – geograph.org.uk/p/3500278
Path leading to Rhyl Coast Road
cc-by-sa/2.0 – © Ian S – geograph.org.uk/p/4173396