Gippsland phantom cat
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The Gippsland Big Cat is a cryptid. Although feral cats are present in Victoria as in the rest of Australia and there have been hundreds of reported sightings, yet no proof of the existence of big cats has even been established[1].
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[edit] Sightings
A leaked government document cited 59 reported sightings between 1998 and 2001. Dr John Henry, a researcher from Deakin University, studied the reported sightings from the 1970s and concluded that it was "beyond reasonable doubt" that large cats were roaming the Grampians region.
The tale of the Gippsland big cat is closely related to similar tales of exotic carnivorous felines that have been reported for many decades in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney, and commonly known as the Blue Mountains panther.[2] and in the Cordering area of Western Australia. In recent years, reports of people being stalked and even attacked in such towns as Lithgow - presumably as a result of human population-related expansions into traditionally unpopulated areas - combined with the pressures on animal habitats of recent droughts, have led to widespread discussion of the subject in the media, and calls from local politicians and some scientists for the conduct of a full scale scientific investigation into the phenomenon.
[edit] Theories and Myths
Some believe that the origin of the Gippsland Phantom Cat, if it did indeed exist, may be traced back to animals let loose by United States soldiers based in Victoria, Australia during World War II. A pair of pumas (or other large cats) were used as mascots. Upon the end of the war, it is speculated that the pumas were released into the wild, somewhere in the Gippsland region (although some claim the cats were released in the Grampians National Park) where they subsequently bred[3].
A variations of this myth is the claim that large cats were the descendants of animals which escaped from a travelling zoo or a circus (common at the turn of the century), or were kept as pets by gold miners during the 1850s gold rush.
There are no native felines in Australia and the rare quoll or native cat is too small to be mistaken as a big cat. Despite this, some Cryptozoologists speculate that big cats may be sightings of the extinct large marsupial lion or Thylacoleo carnifex which seems more far fetched since fossil records show its extinction as early as 50,000 years ago.
[edit] Recent Controversy
In June 2005 Kurt Engel, a deer hunter from Noble Park, shot what he claimed was a large cat in rugged terrain near the town of Sale. Engel photographed the dead cat, before cutting off its tail and dumping the body in a river. DNA testing results determined that the beast was a giant feral cat[4]. Experts are now debating just how big felis cattus can grow to, with suggestions more mutated specimens may be roaming the Australian bush.
[edit] See Also
[edit] References
- [1] The Cat's In The Bag, 'Australian Shooter', Nov 2005.]
