Red lions and leopard tops don’t count, according to police data
A holidaymaker claimed to have seen a ‘large dark coloured’ animal, believed to be a puma, at Pen y Berth caravan site on the Llŷn Peninsula(Image: Getty/Google)
Big cat sightings invite scepticism right up to the moment a sceptic sees something they can’t explain. In North Wales, reports keep coming in of large dark animals prowling the countryside and sometimes the outskirts of communities.
Mobile phones are ubiquitous but photographic evidence remains elusive. Despite this, a sightings database compiled by Puma Watch North Wales continues to grow, the most recent reports being submitted in late October.
Police are not fans, wary of wasted resources and pointless paperwork. In the seven years to 2008, FOI figures showed North Wales Police (NWP) logged 45 alleged sightings across North Wales – including claims predators were seen killing other animals.
Since then, the flow of sightings has steadily eased: between 2011 and 2016, 10 official reports were made. And in the five years to July 2025, just one report was logged, of a “panther” with a head “the size of a dinner plate” in Ruabon near Wrexham. Investigations concluded it was probably a large domesticated cat.
Many sightings are made with genuine intent and where there’s evidence, the police will investigate. In 2018, the force released a sketch of a “large cat” resembling a lynx, again seen near Ruabon.
There are two reasons why official reports appear to be declining. One, there are no big cats actually stalking unsuspecting walkers; and two, Freedom of Information (FoI) requests are being stymied by police databases.
Following two recent FoI inquiries, asking for reports of cougars, cheetahs, panthers, leopards, lions, lynx, pumas and tigers in North Wales, NWP protested its database had struggled to cope. Join the North Wales Live Whatsapp community now
Paw prints found at Rhiwlas, near Bangor, in January 2021(Image: Sophie Van Neste)
When searching for these keywords, the force noted: “‘Leopard’ brought up clothing descriptions, and ‘lynx’ and ‘puma’ are brand names and so returned over 1,000 entries.” In another response, an officer said the search returns were irrelevant as they “relate to public houses and other products eg. Red Lion, Lynx deodorant, leopard print top.”
In reality, these searches were conducted only as “gestures of goodwill”. The requests could have been rejected as “excess cost” inquiries.
Puma Watch North Wales’ own reporting pipeline dried up when the website took a year-long sabbatical. The site was reactivated this summer – and the sightings began to flow again, as detailed below. Judge for yourself whether they’re plausible or not.
Report 1: Caravan site prowler
A holidaymaker reported seeing a “large dark coloured” animal, believed to be a puma, at a caravan park on the Llŷn Peninsula, Gwynedd. The sighting occurred at the Pen y Berth site near Pwllheli around 10.15pm on Thursday, October 23.
The report read: “Wife (Jane) was sitting outside caravan drinking a cup of tea, on a bench set (no noise). Heard/saw movement out of the corner of her eye.
“Looked to right and saw 20ft away (approx), what looked like a large dark coloured (black) cat, about the size of a dog, muscular looking with long tail, and had a curl in its tail.
“The cat had stopped and was looking at her. When she stood up/moved the cat jumped and ran off into the dark.”
Puma Watch has logs of just three previous big cat sightings in Pen Llŷn – in Pwllheli and Abersoch. It believes the area’s isolated coastal terrain might provide suitable terrain for feline prowlers.
“Nearby golf courses provide quieter corridors where wildlife can roam,” the site added.
Report 2: Golf course puma
A man was left shaken after encountering what he believes to be a large black puma on a golf course in Old Colwyn, Conwy. The sighting is said to have occurred around 8pm on Saturday, July 5.
Reporting this one was a man called Cassian, who claimed to have almost fainted on seeing it. He said: “I was walking across the golf course in Old Colwyn, and I saw something over by one of the holes.
“It looked pretty big and black. I nearly passed out because of the size of it!”
Puma Watch noted nearby Fairy Glen and Pwllycrochan Wood could provide cover for large predators. It added: “A footbridge in the Nant-y-Glyn Valley, not far from Old Colwyn, is even known locally as ‘Puma Bridge’ due to historic sightings.”
Report 3: Sheep stalking
A couple in a car both spotted a large black cat, thought to be a puma, apparently hunting sheep near the Premier Inn roundabout in Holyhead, Anglesey. This was around 8.15pm on Friday, July 18.
The wife, Jo, said: “We were driving past and spotted the cat stalking sheep. It went behind a bush. We looped back but couldn’t see it. My husband spotted it first then I saw it. It was large, black with pointy ears.”
Puma Watch said the report was unusual in that big cats are mostly spotted in Eryri (Snowdonia) and the Clwydian hills. However it claimed urban sightings are “becoming more frequent”.
Pumas Watch claimed fields around Holyhead are often “teeming with rabbits and sheep”, providing “ample hunting opportunities” for big cats.
Report 4: Cat ‘as big as a Labrador’
Two holidaymakers independently claimed to have spotted a large black cat with a “very long and thick tail” in the Anglesey countryside. It was later reported to Puma Watch in the belief a suspected panther was roaming farmland between Llanfechell and Llanfairynghornwy.
Driving in a convoy of two cars, one occupant from each vehicle said they the mystery animal on the evening of Friday, October 24. Reporting this incident to Puma Watch was a visitor called Joe.
He said: “I was returning from a nice day in the east of Anglesey with a group of friends, back towards our hotel in Llangefni, and I spotted a large black cat in a field beside the road.
“We weren’t traveling fast, so I got a good look at him: much larger than a domestic cat, it looked to be as big as a Labrador-Retriever dog – only with a very long and thick tail.
“I got a good view of the side of the animal for a few seconds, including of its head as it looked towards the car. Unfortunately, neither of the other guys in our car saw it – they were chatting in the front seat and I was in the back!
“Thankfully however, when we got back to the hotel my other friend, who was traveling in a separate car, had also seen the very large cat at the same location.”
You can submit your own sightings to Puma Watch North Wales here. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox
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