No.
I was a young naturalist and my interest was specifically mammals although I had to branch out to various other species/ I wanted to put the silly claims that there were large cats -lynx, puma and panther- in the UK. That was 1977. By 1980s I realised that it was not all tall stories and hoaxes. How did I go about checking a report made?
Firstly, I listened and took notes of what the person was telling me but I also had a map in front of me on which I, obviously, mapped sightings. I checked the local geography and then I would ask questions -often for 40 minutes to one hour. There was a list of questions and each one added something more to the report. I am quite sure that most of the witnesses thought they were being grilled by the police (most of the reports came through police channels).
By 1997 I was transferring all the map sightings to a 1997 Collins Road Atlas of Britain with colours denoting what cat type was sighted. This meant that it became very clear that there were territories and answered a lot of questions which, in 2026, "Big Cat" groups in the UK are asking. And if you are still asking certain questions after 5-10 years then you are not looking at the data. That said I am glad that unlike most of these groups I am not adding domestic cats or exotic pet breeds to the record as that means the data base is useless.
Around 1999 the Daily Express newspaper asked me how much I wanted for my maps and data on "where the cats are"? I had already been tipped off that a couple newspapers had provisionally hired 'big game hunters' to track and shoot a "British Big Cat". I declined the offer and also one from The Sun which had similar intentions. Yes, I really could have done with the money to solve financial problems but it would be, potantially, blood money.
Police forces in the UK were being fleeced by one very well known "big cat hunter" and others were also over charging for basic info. I never charged a police force a single penny for advice, looking at evidence or other information.
By 2000 we had DNA as well as a lot more evidence of large cats in the UK and this was backed up by decades of historical records studying.
If youi see someone write that "big cats" were relased during World War 1 and World War 2 and later when the 1976 Dangerous Wild Animals Act came in then the first two are based on the data I distributed in the early days of the work and most writers, etc were simply citing the DWAA before that. Those were early days and by 2000 all of that had changed as various cats had historical records going way back before WW 1 (as outlined in Red Paper: Felids and the 2025 New Native Species book).
The Red Paper books were supposed to be a way of financing future research but it is very telling that none of the members of "big cat" groups or others supposedly seeking answers has purchased a copy of any of the books. In fact even mentioning one got me blocked from one group and that was from simply mentioning that a certain photo came from that. Another group approved my post mentioning the Irish wild cat and the possible British big cat and then...removed my post, took all my Top Contributor and other Face Book stuff from me. Why approve and then remove the post and insult me to the point where being on the greoup was no longer an option? Truth.
Naturalists (at least us dinosaurs and we are becoming quickly extinct) never get into the work for money. Many do today and also for the prestige of "celebrity". It should be about seeing if there is any impact on biodiversity and educating people.
There has NEVER been a large (non captive) cat attack on a human going back centuries.
Cats and other former exotic animals have not had any negative impact on existing UK wildlife but all seem to fit a natural nicheleft vaant by human created extinctions. In one area I was told that predation on sickly or injured deer had created much stronger and healthier herd. Is my information reliable? Well, point out to me a naturalist who has spent 1977-2026 looking at exotic species in the UK and we'll compare data (unlike groups who seem to want and even demand data but will not reciprocate.
We sorted the "exotic cat" in the UK question over two decades ago and it never made me rich!
96 Pages
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.
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