Want To Report A Big Cat Or Other Exotic?

I no longer do this by phone. The daily routine used to be talking to farmers, naturalists and members of the public about sightings from 0830-2100 hrs and many times the phone rang from 0700 right up to 2230 hrs.

I once got a shock when I discovered cooked meals were meant to be eaten hot!

But by email initially is how I do it now.

The strictest confidentiality regarding witness names is maintained -as is the case regarding the location of sightings.  Between 1977-2015 NO witness name has ever been published.  I make this clear because I absolutely DO NOT accept anonymous witness emails nor reports from people using internet pseudonyms. Those are IMMEDIATELY DELETED.

Just contact me at the usual private email (not in comments which are public!): blacktowercg@hotmail.com  and remember I need to know:

(1)  Date of incident
(2)  Time of incident
(3)  Location of incident
(4)  Full description of the animal you saw and if you can draw the animal include a sketch scan.
(5)  Your full name
(6)   As full an account of what happened and what you saw and how the animal, if it saw you, acted and your own reaction.

If you took a photograph -after 40 years I can spot a fake- or if you have video footage let me know.  A photo can be attached to a message.

That is it.  Nothing scary.

But I check the emails daily so you should not have to wait long for a reply.

Two Technical Papers: Felids and UK Wolverines

I was just going through some files and found two papers I wrote based on 30 years of survey and report gathering/witness interviews.  These are separate to the work I did with the University of Wales Swansea on exotic cats.

The first is Felids: Wild Cats, Ferals and Hybrids which was published under the Exotic Animal Register (EAR) and Vale Wild Life Group name.  This one was published on the 23rd September, 2000 and went out to eleven bodies including museums, naturalists as well as the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, EU Directorate of Environment and National Assembly Wales.

The UK National Wolverine Population Preliminary Notes was also and EAR paper and published on the 25th November, 2000.  This paper had a more restricted distribution.

Of course, I doubt I'll have thirty years to mount similar studies and certainly not 40 years as in the case of the Canid research.

With the large cat work we are talking 1977-2007 and to compile that into a paper, or rather a manuscript, would  take at least a year.  And as non-sensationalist wild life books do not sell I can't see myself devoting a year to a book that will not sell.  Who is interested in fully referenced facts these days?

As a matter of fact, these days, I like to get answers quickly because I am getting no younger!  That does not mean I don't fully investigate, though.