Wild Menagerie Britain's New Native Species

 

96 Pages

Print Book: A4 (8.27 x 11.69 in / 210 x 297 mm), 

Standard Color, 60# White — Uncoated, Paperback 

Perfect Bound, Glossy Cover

Price:£12.00 GBP

https://www.lulu.com/shop/terry-hooper/wild-menagerie-britains-new-natve-species/paperback/product-zmr7y52.html?page=1&pageSize=4

For decades there have been reports of “Big Cats” roaming the British countryside killing sheep and deer. Are all of the observers from naturalists,zoologists, zoo personnel, police and others all mistaken?

Terry Hooper-Scharf set up the Exotic Animals Register (EAR) in 1977 to disprove the claims before become a UK police forces exotic wildlife consultant and member of the Partnership Against Wildlife crime (PAWS).  What he found out was almost unbelievable but with the gathered evidence including DNA results and bone analysis it seemed that there were exotic cats in the UK and that some had been here at least going back to the early 19th century.

The presented evidence saw the Department of Environment Farming and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) force him off the PAWS scheme despite police protests.

Now read fact and not sensationalist press or fringe claims.

 

Ready For Next Week. Facts from 49 years research

 

Well...

 I am quite sure that there must be some people reading this blog who have questions. Ask them because if I can't answer them I doubt anyone can (49 years of experience, research)

"People will see a woodlouse and report an armadillo" (Yes, he's talking about Big cats and foxes again)

I have to say that I wonder at times at just how ignorant people are of native wildlife. I just nod my head when "Big cat" people obviously have no idea about British wildlife. habits and habitats let alone those of newer cat species native to the UK.

A very clear photograph or video clip of a black domestic cat with not a single diagnostic feature of a larger cat species can get people excited and even arguing about the new 'evidence'.

On dangerous roads and motorways you will find hundreds of dead animals. Highways England will not remove these unless they pose an accident risk because we must protect the humans who collide with wildlife and drive on leaving the animal for dead or dying. I have seen large domestic -possibly feral- domestic cats used as evidence of big cats killed by cars -one faker who is well known in the "Big cat community" even touted one such animal with tail removed but a TV crew spotted straightaway that it was a domestic. 

I once said, and wrote, in the 1980s: "People will see a woodlouse and report an armadillo" -I will happily take credit for that observation!

One person who ridicules large cat sightings stated in local press and online that all large cat sightings -even if withing 10-20 feet of the observer and the observer being a trained zoologist, naturalist or whatever- were nothing more than sightings of black foxes. Yes, stupid statement based on knowing -and refusing to look at the evidence-  nothing of the material available including a fox changing its DNA so that results came back as Panthera pardus!  There goes wildlife credibility.

But foxes have been misidentified as "Big cats" since the 1980s. Stupidly misidentified but then that is expected. The Beast of Durham photo is incredibly still being used despite being clearly identified but what do police wildlife officers or bearded naturalists know?

Above: The Beast of Durham -even if I had not been studying foxes since 1976 I would have no trouble stating that this was a fox. Only thing that I cannot tell is whether it has mange or spring moulting. It is a fox carrying a fox's favourite and main food: a rabbit and from that you can gauge the size of the animal carrying it just in case the huge illuminated sign above it reading "This Is A FOX!" cannot be seen.

Above is another famous "Big cat" photograph  taken by Mr Selwyn Jolly of Penzance, Cornwall and featured in Nigel Brierly's 1989 booklet The Stalk By Night (pp 74-76. The photo from 19th May, 1989 (Brierly simply states "after this book was written).  The photo was taken by Mr Jolly when he went to the site to take photographs of where the "big cat" was when he saw it. In a phone chat with Brierly he told me that the photo was "convincing". As in his book, he added that some might say "fox" but there was not enough information in the photo to say it was.  The only thing I cannot identify in the photo is whether it is a young or full grown rabbit in the fox's mouth.

And what about this photograph of a dead animal that made me get excited for a couple of minutes?   

Certain persons stole the photo and used it as evidence of a dead "Big cat" and they did so without actually reading my post.  If you see this online it will be missing the copyright info but then, we know most people using it will have no integrity.

The full story is given here: https://terryhoopernaturalist.blogspot.com/2024/05/is-it-dead-puma.html    

Domestic cats and dogs, ponies and many other easily recognised animals appear in photos and video clips (oddly edited) and be cited as evidence of "Big cats in the UK" but all that achieves is to make people look stupid and easily dismissible by mainstream zoologists.

Despite asking people involved in this field for ten years for evidence to be looked at and assessed I have never once heard from anyone. If I did not know better after almost 50 years I would say there were no former exotic cats in the UK but I do know better.

The Time A Dead Fox Became A Dead Puma....

At times I despair.

I don't want to disappoint anyone but.... I'm considered an expert in foxes (I wrote the book on the history of foxes in the UK as well as other wild canids -the other book I wrote looks at the evidence for "big" cats). I work with wildlife rescuers and get to see roughly 250-300 photos of dead foxes each year and the animal in the photo is a fox.

This is believed to have been a  "suspected puma believed to have been killed on the A483 on the outskirts of Chester in April 2024"(Image: No credit) so my question is why the news service did not just enlarge the image and clearly see what it was? Why did the uncredited photographer not do that. WHY has no one on UK "Big Cat" groups done that? It look me a minute to crop and enlarge but even without that I saw it was a fox.

Another part of the press report of two uniformed policemen moving something heavy in a white sheet. No. The police DO NOT remove anything dead in a white sheet –even dead deer are left for nature to take its course. Animals killed on motorways or dangerous roads are only moved IFD they pose a risk to drivers and might cause an accident. We must stop poor humans being hurt, mustn’t we?

There have been reports from people who have seen dead exotics in the UK (I saw a dead panther on the Belgian-Dutch motorway in the 1970s) and I am sure that someone must have caught one on dash-cam footage. As for the current case from Gloucestershire…it is just another unconfirmed dead big cat report so…nothing.  

https://www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk/news/gloucester-news/woman-sees-dead-big-cat-10434468?fbclid=IwY2xjawMROYtleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHlC8dgiGAivs5aoksTO5pK6BGWbZwvlNyyCPti_hpC2ZzzGkbIhpZJ_Myqlk_aem_VmTIEDJSi0S6v1lwQSecwA#4zsbxexhfkn97uc2weieoh9479t8r1y3

A woman travelling back from West Midlands Safari Park claims she saw a dead puma on the central reservation of the M5 near Gloucester Services.

Jodie Jenkins, 38, from Barry Island in Wales, said the creature was laid down on its side, and the rear of the animal had two thick hind legs and a 'a long, thick, rope like tail'.

She saw the animal around 7pm on Tuesday, August 5 and is adamant it wasn't a deer.

She did however watch a wildlife TV show the day before about big cats, and believes the creature she had seen was a fawn-coloured puma.

Jodie said: "We were traveling back from West Midlands Safari Park and shortly before the Gloucester Southbound Services we spotted a deceased animal in the central reservation.

"As we got closer we could see the rear end of the animal. It had two thick hind legs with a long, thick, rope like tail which was long enough to be sprawled out away from its back legs but curled back on its self, so the tip of the tail was under the animal.

"The animal was on its side, legs facing the central reservation, with its back to the road and rear end facing on coming traffic.

"From the size of the legs and body there was no way it was a deer. The length of the body from rear end to shoulder was long and looked muscular. It was sandy and tan colour. I remember thinking you would never have spotted it in the field opposite with the dried out grass as his colouring would have been perfect camouflage.

"I was in complete shock when I turned to my partner and asked "did you see that?' Confused he replied 'yes, what animal was it?' I said 'a big cat'. His response was he was going to say the same but didn't want to look stupid.

"We discussed what we had seen and both agreed, making me believe I hadn't mistaken what I saw.

"I Googled large wild animals in that area, and read that there has been believed sightings in the area of pumas. I 100 per cent believe that is what I saw.

"Intrigued by this i found a big cat sighting group on Facebook, requested to join and once accepted I posted what I had seen. I;d have liked the body of this animal to go to experts who could investigate this animals further and was given Frank Tunbridge's name. After finding his email address online I got in touch with him.

"Unfortunately another member of the Facebook group had said they were traveling to Gloucester Southbound services and also spotted the animal that they too believed was a big cat. After a short stop at the services they headed back north only to see two police officers carrying the large animal in a white sheet, the animal the officers were carrying seem to be very heavy. This was at the same location she had seen the big cat shortly before.

"I saw the big cat around 7pm and the person who seen it being removed said it was still daylight when it was removed.

"Myself and my children are animal lovers and have always been intrigued by reports we have read about big cats living wild in the UK but I have always been sceptical.

"If big cats are living wild in the UK that should be something to celebrate, to be proud of. But that doesn't seem the case. I can only imagine that the reason these animals are kept hidden or secret is to protect the animals safety from humans."

It's not the first time motorists have reported seeing 'big cat' carcasses on busy roads.

A woman was left stunned in April 2024 after capturing footage of a suspected dead puma on the side of a busy road. Courtney Roberts, 21, was travelling on the A483 on the outskirts of Chester when she spotted the dead animal lying in the central reservation.

And almost two years ago, a motorist claimed to have seen a big cat lying dead on the side of a motorway in the West Country. The grim scene was on the M49 near Bristol in November 2023.

 

Wildlife enthusiast, Frank Tunbridge, from Podsmead, Gloucester, said: "On August 6, I received an email from a lady saying that she and her partner had noticed a big cat, similar to a puma laying, presumably dead, on the central reservation of the M5 motorway in Gloucestershire, between J12 and 11A.

 

"The couple were driving south, returning from a visit to West Midlands Safari Park, when they spotted the animal at around 7pm on August 5.

"The lady's description of what she saw certainly matched a puma, or puma hybrid. It is said to have been fawn in colour, with a long thick body, with a long rope like tail.

"She had been watching a programme called pumas in Patagonia the evening before, and noticed the similarities to the dead animal.

"Gloucestershire has always been a hot spot for British big cat sightings, and where this deceased one was located is in an area often frequented by big cats, being part of their territory or home range. A conduit route, which would involve crossing the motorway at some point, probably in the early hours of the morning, when traffic was at a minimum.

"Over the years I have received a number of cases black and fawn big cats, being knocked down and killed on our roads. However the majority of these fatal collisions I believe have soon been removed by the police, or other authority.

"Let's face it though, every form of British wildlife, both common and rare have been killed on our roads at one time or another. So an incident like this is not that unusual, especially considering that nearly every county in the UK has a healthy population of these stealthy predators. with reports coming in week after week. Unfortunately most close up encounters shake people up, and they freeze with a mixture of fear and awe, taking a photo being the last thing on their minds.

"Like it or not, big cats, similar to black leopards, or pumas, and also lynx, are here to stay, but even with overwhelming evidence, their existence is still denied. Which is good in one respect, as any large out of place predator would soon be targeted by hunters, and the authorities combined.

"As their track record, proves, big cats pose no threat to humans, and are now part of our diverse wildlife, alongside, parakeets, beavers, zanda , wallabies, and eagles owls."

"Anyone who has had a sighting of a big cat, or other exotic animal, can email me in confidence at franktunbridge@hotmail.co.uk"

What police and highways say

Gloucestershire Police and National Highways said they have not any reports of a big cat on the M5 near Gloucester, or their legs.

 

Have I wasted 50 years?

 46,401 visitors and no one is interested in the exotics related books or even donating to continuing the work? 

After 50 years (next year) it would be nice to see some interest. Or have I wasted 50 years😩

Danish zoo asks pet owners to donate rabbits and horses to feed its predators

 Miranda Bryant Nordic correspondent

Mon 4 August 2025 at 3:57 pm BST·3-min read

https://uk.yahoo.com/news/danish-zoo-asks-pet-owners-145720328.html

A zoo in Denmark is appealing for donations of healthy small pets to be “gently euthanised” and fed to predators.

Aalborg zoo has urged willing chicken, rabbit and guinea pig owners to hand over their pets to be eaten whole by animals including European lynx.

Live donations, it said, would be killed by trained staff. It promised that “nothing goes to waste”, and also said it would “gratefully” receive live horses.

The zoo said such animals were needed in order to “imitate the animals’ natural food chain – for the sake of both animal welfare and professional integrity”.

“Chickens, rabbits and guinea pigs form an important part of the diet of our predators,” Aalborg zoo wrote in a social media post alongside a picture of an openmouthed lynx. “Especially the European lynx, which needs whole prey that resembles what it would naturally hunt in the wild.”

It added: “If you have a healthy animal that needs to be put down for various reasons, you are welcome to donate it to us. The animals are gently euthanised by trained staff and then used as food. That way, nothing goes to waste – and we ensure natural behaviour, nutrition and wellbeing of our predators.”

To find out more about the scheme, pet owners are encouraged to click on a web link – illustrated by a tiger tucking into a hunk of meat – that outlines the finer details of its pet euthanasia scheme.

The zoo also said it would welcome horses, which would be slaughtered for food. “Our needs vary throughout the year and there may be a waiting list,” it added.

Any horse donated to the zoo must have a horse passport and come with the opportunity for a tax deduction on the horse’s value, which is calculated on the basis of its weight.

The social media post has attracted a wide array of reactions and comments. Some criticised the appeal, with one describing it as a “sick invention”.

Others spoke out in support. “I took a horse to the zoo a few years ago,” said one. “It was the most peaceful and calm way it happened.”

Pia Nielsen, deputy director of Aalborg zoo, said: “For many years at Aalborg Zoo, we have fed our carnivores with smaller livestock. When keeping carnivores, it is necessary to provide them with meat, preferably with fur, bones etc to give them as natural a diet as possible.

“Therefore, it makes sense to allow animals that need to be euthanised for various reasons to be of use in this way. In Denmark, this practice is common, and many of our guests and partners appreciate the opportunity to contribute. The livestock we receive as donations are chickens, rabbits, guinea pigs, and horses.”

Last week a zoo in Nuremberg, Germany, prompted outcry – including from a woman who glued her hands to the ground near the zoo entrance in protest - after culling 12 healthy Guinea baboons due to overcrowding in their enclosure and reportedly feeding them to the lions in view of the public.