The Cotswold Big Cat reports

Record summary

The Cotswold Big Cat is a regional body of reports describing panther- or puma-like animals in the Cotswolds. Sightings and alleged evidence were discussed in local newspapers and by British big-cat investigators during the 1990s and 2000s. The case matters because it illustrates how an attractive rural landscape, abundant deer and repeated retelling can produce a persistent cryptid geography. Conventional explanations include escaped exotic pets, ordinary cats seen under poor conditions and exaggeration of livestock incidents. No accepted specimen or DNA result demonstrated a resident unknown species.