I spent the afternoon there yesterday and as I now have a video camera I walked through the thick bush videotaping as I went.

The sighting of this animal was that the witness had driven into his driveway, and on top of a pile of rock that was to be used for the driveways base he saw this black cat from behind as it leaped from the pile as his headlights hit the pile.

The cat wasn't as big as the many sightings in the area that is ongoing, but was big enough to make the witness think that it was no ordinary cat.

Also he noticed right at the base of the tail near the rump it had one brownish ringlike-circle encircling the entire tail and a thickish tail.

I then spent 2 hours walking where I believe it is coming out into the backyards of other eyewitnesses.

I actually found very good depressions in the thick grass that showed that some kind of animal had walked continually through this area over a considerable amount of time to leave the tracks that I was following (I was told that bush walkers haven't used this area in years).

On the video all I did was follow where I thought it came up into the homes (as its very rocky and this one place was a continuation of the actual tracks I found) and then as I found these tracks in the grass I just followed them and that's how I ended up at the small overhang where the many prints were discovered.

Now and then I would find what appeared to be resting places of some animals that appeared to be quite large judging by the way the grass was flattened.

As I was mainly there to video for future places to go I didn't think I would actually find anything..but I was hopeful. This is very thick bushes and rocky outcrops with a small rocky mountain which borders the houses and the bush.

All I was doing was taking the video so I could sit at home and look for potential places for setting up the cameras etc...

I knew this dried up creek where the long grasses were was probably the places it/they were walking through, and I also knew that the rocky mountain outcrop was more than likely where it was living and possibly breeding.

Its very hard to walk up a mountain while holding a video camera in the other hand and of course I fell and grazed my arm pretty badly, but only because to save the camera from damage I had to let my arm hit a rock.

A small price to pay I think. (a graze over smashing the camera). As I videotaped and panned the area I saw this shell like cavern which was more a shelter than a cave.

The climb to reach it was straight up and as I reached it I could see from a distance that it was covered in prints in the firm and soft soil. The incline into this small overhang though was almost straight up and down and it was difficult to keep my footing in the slippery soil. I eventually worked a way to suspend myself as I videotaped and photographed them all.

There appeared to be a few animal tracks in them. One a small goat, still others appeared to be exactly the same dimensions as the many prints found in the sand at the eyewitnesses place.

They measured 2inches by 1 and half inches, and 3 inches by 2 and a half inches, although 5 of the prints in the sand at the eyewitnesses place were 18cms by 16 cms across the toes, although id estimate they were more 15 by 13 judging by the slippage in the sand where they were found.

My theory is the eyewitness may have seen a smaller cub/kitten (whatever a small animal of this nature is known as) and at the eyewitnesses place, the sand which was covered in dozens of impressions may have shown two small animals and a larger female.

In this cave the way the prints snaked around it, it appeared they were pacing in the small overhang as if waiting for there mother (just a theory).

In this same area and where I started my search another neighbour had seen a large black cat close up right next to his house which backs onto the area I was searching. He estimated the size as of a big bull terrier but with legs that he thought were skinny compared to its actual size.

He had also heard a dreadful mournful lion like (his words) sound which he said made his hair stand on end.

His cat also stood when this sound was heard and made loud screeches in the direction of the sound.

One other thing, the area where I walked for two hours borders 15 homes and there are no small dogs in this entire area..and in this particular street..there are no dogs there anymore either.

I will post some photographs of the many prints I found in the past 2 weeks through the week.

We have bull-dozed the sandy area where the dozen of prints where and watered it to make impressions hard enough to cast.

Also we are going to setup a camera system on the lights that pick up movement around the house and where these black cats have been seen to walk under the carport and around the back of these three homes in the vicinity.

Also one of the eyewitnesses has a pond with many fish in them. I asked did they ever notice these fish going missing.

We walked over to the pond and out of a possible 35 fish there was only 4, yet usually once they feed them (as we did) they all come to the surface, yet none did.

Maybe this is a food source for these cats as well (prints have been found right next to this pond in the past). So we are putting some dust around the area each night as it is solid rock and maybe we will have an impression.

As im caring for my mum as she recovers from her knee replacement operation I will be spending the next month as much as I can over there.

There have been 25 sightings since January in the Kenthurst area.

I had picked this area, as last year for 8 months I searched for approx. 5 square kms and worked out where these animals were not. The area they live and possibly breed is less than a 2 km range for the most part.

I dont believe other sightings out of this area but within range are the same animals. I do believe there are many of them and have their own niche, especially if they have been breeding for the amount of time they are known to have been seen in these area..

For instance; a sighting three weeks ago at Kenthurst of a very large black animal could not have possibly been the same sighting the same night at Glosodia.

There was a rabbit poisoning program in this area but for the past year was suspended and the rabbits are back in large numbers. There are feral goats in abundance in this area and water is plentiful now. Last year it was non- existent except for one pond, which is where I found hundreds of bird feathers and numerous carcasses of birds and rodents.

Hi greg,

just wondering if you have had any recent sightings in the maraylya area? speficially near Longneck Lagoon?

ness

vanessa@pendulumdigital.com

Hi Vanessa.

Actually not near the lagoon, but in the general area there have been three in the past month.

Did you hear of anything near the lagoon area?

Ive been up near Springwood this past week looking into a few good close sightings.