While it might sound like something from a local legend, big cat sightings in the region are surprisingly common, with new data revealing just how often these creatures have been spotted.
BBC Discover Wildlife Magazine recently reported that large cats such as black leopards are quietly naturalising in Britain.
Podcast host and author Rick Minter, who has spent years studying these animals, told listeners of Big Cats: Facing Britain's Wild Predators:
“Sightings, physical evidence and DNA tests suggest some of these animals — particularly black panthers are in Britain.”
He says he became convinced of big cats' presence in Britain 24 years ago, after spotting what he believes was a black leopard in Cumbria.
Since then, he’s collected around 1,500 witness accounts through talks, rural shows, and his podcast Big Cat Conversations.
Listeners - including Clare Balding - have shared sightings of cats basking in the sun, hunting geese, fleeing barns and even caring for cubs, painting a picture of wild cats thriving undetected across the UK countryside.
Of the 40 species of wild cat, just three are repeatedly described by British eyewitnesses — yet many keep quiet, fearing ridicule or backlash.
The history
Back in the 1960s and 70s, exotic pets were a fashionable status symbol. Big cats — including leopards and pumas — could even be bought from Harrods. But in 1976, new laws made it illegal to own such animals without a licence. Faced with expensive paperwork and nowhere to rehome their pets, some owners are believed to have simply released them into the wild.
Could those abandoned cats have survived — and even bred? It’s a question that fuels debate to this day.
While there’s no official record of black leopards living in Sheffield, exotic animal ownership is not unheard of.
In nearby Rotherham, one person legally owns a serval and a Bengal cat.
Sheffield’s own exotic animal registry includes a dwarf caiman — a small crocodilian.
So while it might not be proof, it shows that unusual creatures are already living closer than many might think.
Is there any proof?
There have only been a few confirmed DNA results showing big cats in Britain, but they do exist. Six positive tests have been made public, all matching leopard DNA.
Two of the most recent were from Gloucestershire in 2022, where hair was found on a fence near a dead sheep, and from Cumbria in 2023, where DNA was found on a sheep carcass.
The sightings keep coming, from the edges of woodlands to the hills above town.
The details are in the gallery below.
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5. wo years ago, a night-shift worker shared a chilling story on Reddit. While walking through Ecclesfield Common to work at around 11.30pm, he and a colleague passed a barking dog near a local farm. Moments later, a large black cat — “that I can only describe as a panther” — crossed the path just 10 metres in front of them. The witness said: “It wasn’t dark, the sky was still light. We both saw it — and to be honest, we both s*** ourselves a bit. We swore never to walk that way again.”
Two years ago, a night-shift worker shared a chilling story on Reddit. While walking through Ecclesfield Common to work at around 11.30pm, he and a colleague passed a barking dog near a local farm. Moments later, a large black cat — “that I can only describe as a panther” — crossed the path just 10 metres in front of them. The witness said: “It wasn’t dark, the sky was still light. We both saw it — and to be honest, we both s*** ourselves a bit. We swore never to walk that way again.” | Google
6. Stanton Moor
In July 2023, Bernadette Hall and her husband discovered bones in a tree in the Stanton Moor area and Rick said the skeletal remains are potential signs of black leopards in the area. A few weeks later Paul Stocks, and his two sons Jacob, 20 and Ben, 23, from the Mystic Paranormal UK group, decided to look for the leopard in the Stanton Moor area and were left shocked after they spotted a ‘big black cat’ just six feet away from them. The men described the animal as a very large, silky black cat with a very long swooping tail. They said it was much bigger than a fox and it moved exactly like the big cats you see on TV. | Google Photo: Google
7. Ecclesfield
One big cat sighting which was reported on the website Pumawatch described a big cat in Ecclesfield in June 2023. The witness told the site: “My colleague and I were walking to work along the Blackburn Valley trail in Ecclesfield, Sheffield. A large cat crossed our path before scurrying into the bushes. It was the size of a Labrador.” | Google Photo: Google
8. Bolsterstone
A woman in Bolsterstone was shocked when she saw a cat she “could only describe as a puma” roaming the area – and was seemingly staring at her until it seemed to be spooked and ran off. “I know that the chance of seeing such an animal in the wild, especially around these parts, are practically nil. However this was a huge beast by feline standards and was about two feet tall on all four legs,” she said. | Google Photo: Google