Do Black Panthers roam the Australian bush?
by Murray Byfield
Also known as Phantom Cats or Alien Big Cats, however this article will focus mainly on the sightings of anomalous Big Cats in Australia.
There are several locations throughout Australia where Phantom cats have been reported usually, they are named after the area or region they are sighted in such as:
* The Gippsland Big Cat
* The Blue Mountains Panther
* The Lithgow Panther
* The Queensland Tiger (see QLD Tiger article)
Australian Big Cats are often described as large black cats that are puma, jaguar or panther like animals approximately 80cm in height and 1.2m long. It has been seen both on its own and sometimes with cubs.
Sightings go back to 1880, and they have been sighted in four states in places like Gippsland, The Blue Mountains, Lithgow, Mudgee, Grampian region, Buderim, The Hawkesbury, Sydney’s Northwest, NSW Great Dividing Range, and Gloucester Tops.
As Australia has no large native predatory animals the appearance of a large feline creature in the Australian bush is looked upon skeptically by the public at large. Many dismiss the sightings of large puma/panther like animals as misidentifications of very large black feral cats.
The Australian Government has shied away from commenting or even acknowledging the existence of ABC’s however a report from The New South Wales State Government reported in 2003 that it was “more likely than not” that there was a colony of exotic big cats living in the bush near Sydney
There are a few theories what the big cats are or how they got into the Australian bush:
* They are a surviving relative of Thylacoleo carnifex which was once Australia’s largest Marsupial carnivore.
* Pumas brought to Australia by American gold miners in the 19th century. Numerous sightings have been reported in the Great Dividing Range area of NSW where early gold mining took place.
* Are the descendants of US Army mascots from WWII who were released into the wild after the war when troops departed.
* Big cats that escaped from traveling carnivals/circuses.
* Zoo or private collection escapees.
* Are simply overgrown black feral cats.
Evidence
Photographs, Video footage and plaster casts point to the existence of the creature eyewitnesses describe. However hard definitive evidence such as a carcass has yet to be found to prove without a doubt that Phantom Big Cats are roaming the Australian Bush.
However, a Deakin University Study states a Big Cat population in Southwest Victoria is “beyond reasonable doubt”.
