http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/...8172064.stm?ls
Thoughts? My first thought is: "It's not a very big 'big cat'." Looks about the size of a fox, bigger than a domestic cat but smaller than many dogs. So probably a dog.
The previous 'big cat' story that the BBC ran was this one:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/g...re/7885554.stm
Absolutely 100% certainly a dog footprint.
The same story with the same photo ran again in the press over the last couple of days.
Looks like a dog to me. Even walks like a dog, unlike cats which generally slink along furtively.
At least this guy did a marginally better job of holding the camera steady than most paranormal video makers.
My first thought was that this was just a large pet moggy. However, those rails are around 15cm tall so it'sa big animal. It also has the thick, long tail characteristic of big cats like panthers. It is held horizontally as panthers do (see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwT0yihnsjE). The gait and pace are also typuical. So I think it probably IS a panther. It is not so unlikely given that private owners of such 'pets' have been known to 'set them free' when they get too big!
It didn't look unlike a dog to me. But then if I thought it was a panther, it didn't look unlike a panther.
It's hard to tell from that video. To me anyway.
It's just a cat on a miniature railway.
.
Now I've seen it again on the 'news' on a proper telly, it did look like a cat. Still very hard to tell.
Although we shouldn't necessarily believe a witness because of his position in society, this guy was quite close and would appear to be a credible witness. And he has tried to capture what he has seen with the best tools available to him at the time.
With a slight question mark over the size of what he has seen, I do tend to come down on his side now.
It is not a "big" cat. I stood on the platform at East Croydon station this morning overlooking the track with my Metro (free newspaper) in hand featuring a big pic of the "mystery" cat. It was clear to me that it is no bigger than a fox, probably smaller. It was obviously a fraction of the size that a panther or somesuch should be.
So I had a quick "google". If that is a normal UK track (and it looks as if it is) then the guage (measured width from inside of one rail across to inside of the other rail) is 143.5cm. According to wiki the average length of a domestic cat is 46cm plus 30cm tail. There are various cat types where black ones are called "panther" but the smaller are around 125cm body plus 110cm tail.
I'd say it is no bigger than 50cm body length. Even if you think it is as big as 60cm long (and I'd dispute that) then it is still a domestic cat, or dog.
Typical fuss over nothing from the media.
In the opening shot, the cat is perpendicular to the track - so they share the same perspective, allowing accurate measurements to be made (it's also at its biggest apparent size which improves accuracy). Blowing it up to full screen size and measuring it, the cat is visibly around the same length, not including the tail, as the gap between the rails. That makes it around 140cm long without tail. In later shots you see the tail extended where it appears between one third and one half of the body length long. Black panthers are between 0.9 and 2.1m long without the tail which is typically a third as long again.
I'd be interested to hear other people's estimates, measured off the same video.
Last edited by Mulder; 29th July 2009 at 10:47 AM.
I'm looking at a still photo, taken from the vid, in a newspaper. The same photo that I was looking at while standing on a platform over tracks. I simply don't agree with you. So, yes, I'd like some other people to comment. One of us (perhaps both) is wrong.Originally Posted by Mulder
On a purely subjective judgment, it looks significantly bigger than a domestic cat to me - more like the size of a labrador dog (although the movement looks more cat-like).
So try measuring the video itself. I]ve no idea why the still is different - probably not taken at the best moment. As I said, I used the section at the start where the cat is walking away from the track, so perpendicular to it, making a comparison valid from a perspective point of view. If you were to take screen dump of this shot to a photo editor and copy the cat, rotate it, and move it over the track you would see that it covers it from side to side!
How do you get 50cm length from? What are you comparing it with? It would only cover a third of the distance between the tracks them, when in reality it covers them completely.
I also checked rail height in a daring experiment (that's dedication!) - it really is about 15cm. At around 25cm height, a domestic cat has to climb onto a rail to cross and I've seen them do it. The one in the video would just step over it! It's legs aren't even obscured by the rail as it walks next to it.
Last edited by Mulder; 29th July 2009 at 03:25 PM.
IF the guy shooting it is genuine, then I'd be inclined to trust his accuracy because he works with dogs. He sees and watches animals closely enough to train them, pays acute attention which I think makes it less likely he'd be confused between canine and feline, and more aware of animal scale. Even in the distance I think most of us would notice a person twice or half their natural size because we are 'used' to attending to people, especially on rail track, even more so if it's track that a person sees regularly.
Anyway, as someone else said - it's not that unbelievable in the first place, it sure ain't Nessy!
Could be a Kellas cat ...
This is interesting too:
http://www.bigcatsinbritain.org/escapeandcaptures.htm
It's a shame it isn't updated.
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