UPDATED 21 December 2008 *
Possible Big Cat sightings in Staffordshire are becoming more common. There has been over 100 sightings of big cats around the West Midlands in the last 12 months many of these around Cannock Chase in Staffordshire:
Cannock Chase in Staffordshire is a veritable big cat hotspot and there have been many supposed sightings over the last few months. Witnesses report seeing a large black cat with a long tail but this one certainly won’t answer to the name of Felix!
The nearby village of Stretton is also a regular haunt of the creature, and it has been seen in a barn, crossing the A5 and is the suspected killer of two geese.
Sceptical? Well your not alone and villagers are all too aware of reactions to their claims’, which is why they are reluctant to speak out.
Feline tails
But 20 miles down the road in a village near Tamworth, sightings are so frequent that everyone’s got a tale, or should we say tail, to tell?
We meet one man and his dog who need no convincing that a big cat is lurking nearby.
Simon’s dog Jasper was in the garden one night. After hearing a yowl, Simon went outside to investigate. He found Jasper with an eight inch gash across his body and when Simon flashed the torch around the garden, he saw another pair of eyes looking back.
A morning inspection revealed large paw prints which Simon is convinced are that of a big cat. A further 16 sightings around the village strengthen his belief even further.
"When you collate it with other evidence from around the village, it really gives us 100% proof in our minds that this is what actually happened," claims Simon. Jasper, who is now back to full health, can only wag his tail in agreement.
The notion of panthers and pumas living wild in Britain is certainly not a new one. In 1963 the police and army were out in force to hunt the famous Surrey Puma, but no evidence was ever found.....
[1]
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Big Cat Diary
The Stafford Post has recently been running
serial reports of sightings around the County town
31 July 2008
Another sighting of mystery beast
By Lynn Grainger
It seems the Stafford beast has been on the prowl yet gain . . .
Local Hannah Woolley e-mailed us to say her fiance Mark Jackson saw it just a few days ago.
"
We've been following the beast stories in the Post for some time and last Thursday (July 24) Mark is convinced he saw it," she says.
"
We were at my mum's house, which is right next door to Stafford Castle, and Mark saw something big and black walk past the patio doors in the back garden.
"He is convinced it was a big black cat as after he saw it he went out the back and measured the garden bench. It had walked right in front of it and was the same height - and the bench was 2ft high - and there is no way a domestic cat or black dog could be that shape or size."
Hannah added: "
We've not seen it since but if there are black cats in Stafford surely Stafford Castle would be a perfect place for them to be?"
In recent weeks the number of Stafford sightings of a mysterious animal have increased.
It has been seen stalking fields near
Gnosall, prowling the streets of
Castlefields and, more recently, travelling via farm land at
Beaconside.
Prompted by the recent flood of reports of a 'Stafford beast' published in the Post a leading animal expert took to the countryside of the borough this month in search of the elusive creature.
Derek Crawley is the County Mammal Recorder for Staffordshire. Following an alleged sighting of a big cat in fields near
Parkside, Derek attempted to trace the animal.
"I had a look in the area," he said. "
There is an underpass which holds good mud but there were no foot prints and there is no clear path through the hedge where a large animal could have gone."
Mr Crawley, who is responsible for cataloging every mammal species living wild across the county, also called on eyewitnesses to record the size, shape and markings of the beast so it could be identified.
"It would be helpful if people could compare it to an Alsatian, both with regard to height and length, as well as its colour and pattern," he told the Post.
Mr Crawley said it was likely locals had seen dark foxes, dogs or family cats which seen against distant objects could make them seem large. He also dismissed claims that a four-inch long pawprint found in a bunker at Stafford Castle Golf Club earlier this month was that of a big cat, telling the Post he believed it was that of a large dog. He added it was vital the descriptions of the Stafford beast were as accurate and detailed as possible.
"
Statements like 'it was the size of a deer' do not help as most deer species are taller then any big cat. And if they are talking about Muntjac (small deer found on the Chase) then that's about the size of a small Labrador."
[2]
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14 August 2008
The Mystery Black Cat, dubbed the
Stafford Beast, has been in the prowl in Seighford, reports the latest edition of the Stafford post. A Seighford resident contacted the Post in response to suggestions that the Stafford Beast was no more than a large dog. The witness, who asked not to be named, said he had crossed paths with the creature about a year ago. He told the Stafford Post:
"I have seen the Stafford Beast in Seighford and he definitely exists. He was seen by the football field by at least three other people. It happened around last June or July. And my daughter was walking down the lane by the football field and she said it crossed right in front of her."
Animal expert Derek Crawley head of the county mammal group, told the Post two weeks ago that he believed the large paw prints were from a dog - because the claws were visible. He thinks locals are seeing dark foxes, dogs or family cats which, seen against distant objects, may appear larger than they are.
The Seighford resident added:
"It was definitely not a dog or a domestic cat. I saw it at night and its eyes were jet black, it had a really long body with a really long tail. I believe there is something out there. They tend to show up every 18 months or so."
28 August 2008
Expert says kill is proof of the Beast
Norton Bridge resident Katie Hill contacted the Stafford Post after the remains of one of her pet sheep was discovered decapitated and half eaten. Whatever was responsible for the attack had scaled a 6 foot fence before pouncing on the fully grown animal. Local wildlife rescuer Alf Hardy confirmed that the kill was that of a big cat. Neil Arnold of Kent Big Cat Research contacted the Post and backed up the claim.
6 November 2008
Another Sighting of 'The Beast' Stafford cyclist Barry Horton reported a sighting of The Beast in the Wildwood area.
Barry told the Stafford Post:
" I had just passed the duck pond in Wildwood when I saw this enormous cat run out in front of us. My grandson saw it too. .....It was a lot bigger than a fox and it definitely wasn't a domestic cat, you could tell by the way it was running....it was actually bounding".
Barry said the Beast like creature darted out in front of them before disappearing into the undergrowth behind the back of the BMW garage.
13 November 2008
Walking Duo tell of two Big cat Sightings
Stafford resident Bill Gethin told how he and his friend Rob Woolley had seen a 'black panther' twice on the Greenway, which follows the route of the former Stafford to Newport railway line.
They first saw the creature t the end of September just before sunset,it was about three and a half to four feet long and completely black. The cat vanished into the undergrowth.
A week later they saw a second cat in the same location. Bill said:
" This time it was only for five or six seconds, it was about 75 yards ahead of us. I almost think we saw two different individuals because one had a long, curled tail and the tail of the second seemed much bulkier. The second one seemed to be doing on the track. It was aware of us but ther ewas no menace".
* NEW EVIDENCE OF THE BEAST 21 DECEMBER 2008
The Mark of the Beast
This week the Stafford Post published what seems certain evidence of a Big Cat in the area:
The plaster cast of the footprint is over 4 inches in diameter was obtained by the Post from an undisclosed location.
This is clearly definite evidence of a Big Cat roaming loose in the Stafford area.
Sources:
1
. Inside Out, West Midlands, Big Cat Sightings
2
. icStafford, Another Sighting of Mystery Beast
* Have you seen the beast?
contact the Stafford Post on 01785 212370 or write to 35 Eastgate Street, Stafford, ST16 2LZ. or email: stafford_post@mrn.co.uk.
Further information:
Links:
British Big Cats Organisation
(Not updated recently but shows evidence of Big Cats in Britain)
.
Beastwatch (UK)
Cannock Chase has been the site of many sightings of peculiar phenomenon over the years including ghosts; UFO's and werewolves.
See >>
Do Werewolves Roam The Woods Of England? - Nick Redfern's Official Blog
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Song to the Siren
Song to the Siren
Most of these haunted lakes contain similar legends of water spirits claiming that they are bottomless, no animal will drink from them, birds refuse to fly over them and no fish swim in their dark waters. It has been claimed by many that a feeling of desolation comes over you as though some malign influence has cast a dark spell over the landscape. It is said that if you gaze long and hard into the still black waters of these pools of haunted water some can see into the future. Mythology tells us that these dark waters were regarded as sacred places in ancient times and there is evidence to suggest that human sacrifices were once carried out there. The Celts believed that pools such as these were entrances to the other world and the sacrifices were intended to appease the Spirits that dwelled beyond these gateways.
Doxey Pool - Study in Charcoal by Jeebs
