MULTIPLE sightings of mysterious 'big cats' running wild in Worcestershire are now being reported daily as evidence mounts of the powerful predators prowling in our midst.
A number of sightings of the big cats, described by some as panther-like or puma-like creatures, are being reported across Worcestershire.
Encounters with the big cats have been reported near Evesham, near Kidderminster, near Stourport and near Upton Snodsbury, not far from the outskirts of Worcester.
More sightings are being revealed all the time in the Evesham and Villages Big Cat Group, including in Welland, Madresfield and Powick.
Some of the encounters go back more than 30 years and others are as recent as last month as Worcestershire lays claims to its own 'wild things'.
Martin Burford, originally from Worcester, sparked fresh interest when he said he had seen both a lynx and a panther at undisclosed locations on the border between Worcestershire and Gloucestershire.
He also shared an image of the remains of a lamb said to have been partially devoured by the panther and a video of what he insisted was a large cat running across a field.
More and more independent accounts are being mentioned in the big cat Facebook group where people can share information about their encounters with the elusive creature or creatures, said to be stalking (and killing) prey in the remoter and more lonely parts of the county.
Membership of the Evesham and Villages Big Cat Group has swollen to almost 700 members from 513 last week.
Fascination grew after one of the founders of the group, Mandy Acres, 37, spoke publicly about her face-to-face encounter with a big black cat.
She told the doubters again this week: "They are definitely out there. Florida has 'Florida panthers' and even have road signs to be mindful of them but they are not spotted very often either."
Speculation has centred on big cat owners releasing the animals into the wild from captivity.
So far, even experts from the Worcestershire Wildlife Trust have not ruled out their existence but have requested that more evidence is forthcoming so the public can know, once and for all, if the stories are real.
One person, writing on the big cats Facebook group, said they spotted something they initially thought was a badger in the Upton Snodsbury/Grafton Flyford area.
They saidL "It didn't move like a badger so I pulled over as soon as I could, got out and looked over the hedge. In the space of less than 20 seconds the animal was on the other side of the field. It had moved quickly and was now 200 metres away. It did stop, look over its shoulder before moving on and disappearing. It was certainly no badger. Was it a big cat? I'll never know, but certainly mysterious."
Another member of the group wrote that she and her daughter had both 'experienced a sighting in our own gardens in Bewdley - a big black cat at night.
"I thought everyone would think I was crazy when describing this cat with big eyes and the long ears. My daughter came to visit and said OMG she had just seen this strange black cat as I had described.
"Now we have seen a picture and the detailed description we know that this is what this must have been, I kept trying to explain it to people.
"Wow, I’m blown away but also reassured that I’m not going crazy."
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Another member of the group wrote: "Going back about 30 odd years ago in my street on Walshes in Stourport which is surrounded by fields, I was returning home from a friend's at 1am in the morning and as I crossed the road ahead towards my flat, to the left of me I saw a big cat approximately 50 to 60 feet away which I believed was a black panther.
"I saw it completely clearly. The cat was black, bigger than an average dog with a very long tail hunched down sniffing the hedge.
"I froze for a few seconds as I was in shock and awe. But instinct got me to run fast. I know what I saw. It was no dog. And afterwards I heard of a few more people saying they had seen one within a few miles from me. Thankfully the big cat didn't see me."
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