Black panthers may roam the UK countryside - and Bucks?

A team of documentary makers has 'confirmed' that big cats such as black panthers roam the UK countryside.

The group, who are currently making Panthera Brittania Declassified, have seemingly confirmed that the large felines are prowling rural areas in the UK.

DNA taken from hairs at the site of a sheep attack in Gloucestershire is offering 'definitive proof' that black panthers may roam the British countryside.

READ MORE: Buckinghamshire's big cat sightings mapped - see the reports near you

A number of sightings of big cats have been made in and around Buckinghamshire too in the last few years, with the most recent report coming from Wendover Woods, Aylesbury.

The black panther was allegedly sighted by a walker, who shared the news with the Big Cats of the Chilterns group.

They wrote: "Many of you will be very familiar with the continuous sightings of black leopard like animals we get from Wendover. In the past these have also been accompanied with reports of repetitive roaring and rumbling sounds.

"Such (sawing) sounds are typical vocalisations of leopards in their native ranges. Such behaviour is used to communicate an animal of its presence to others for both territorial and mating purposes."

Other sightings have been reported towards the end of last year, with three reports coming in of sightings in Flackwell Heath of what looked like a puma.

There have also been sightings in the past of a sandy-coloured puma in Hodgemoor woods, High Wycombe.

Either way, the team of documentary makers has now confirmed that big cats may be roaming the country, lending more credence to the theory that the fabled beast of bucks is indeed real.

Strands of hair were taken from a wire fence in Gloucestershire following a sheep attack, and after being analysed in a laboratory confirmed a 99 per cent match to a species of big cat.

Speaking to the Mirror, Matthew Everett, from Dragonfly Films, said: "The DNA was from hairs caught on a barbwire fence where there had been some unusual predatory activity.

"There is a great deal of 'secondary evidence' for these cats, such as consistent witness reports, but hard evidence like DNA is hard to get, so the contribution from this documentary is very helpful."

Sightings of large cats have been reported across Bucks for decades, given its proximity to the Chilterns AONB.

In 2021, big cats were sighted in Windmill Lane in Widmer End on May 10, 2021 while walker Natalie Godliman told the Bucks Free Press in April she saw a "tan-coloured puma" in Keep Hill Woods in High Wycombe.

So, with new DNA evidence from the documentary team, could this confirm the sightings of big cats across Buckinghamshire in recent years?