Scots Big Cat expert shares over 850 sighting reports while working on new map

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Sighting of big cats have been recorded in Scotland for decades, and now, one expert is hoping to map them to give a better understanding of this elusive mystery.

Paul MacDonald, who runs the Big Cat Sightings in Scotland Facebook group, explained that they've had over 850 reports of these non-native species from across the length and the breadth of the country.

Now the professional custom sword and knife-maker and historical fencing master, who is based in the Scottish Borders, is hoping to create a detailed map of the recorded sightings, the first of its kind, in a bid to find out more about what the creatures are and where they can be found.The 49-year-old explained: "I've been interested in big cats in Scotland ever since my first sighting about 25 years ago."The subject carries elements of mystery and fascination, and I decided to start researching sightings firstly in the Midlothian and Peebleshire areas more seriously after moving to the Scottish Borders four years ago."Drawing on my experience in Military Intelligence, I started gathering and mapping sighting reports as accurately as possible. "By doing this over time, it becomes possible to start recognising patterns of movement, timings, and habitat as well as determine the consistencies in big cat types reported in certain areas.Having set up a special group on the subject on Facebook, and conducted fieldwork with fellow researchers to make efforts to find physical evidence, he's now cataloguing as many sightings as he can.Paul stated: "We now have over 850 mapped sighting reports throughout Scotland.

These sightings span decades, with our earliest recorded report from 1947 and our latest being only days ago. It is a growing area of study, with various books