A TAVISTOCK couple had a bit of a shock in the early hours of last Wednesday morning, when they spotted a 'big cat' while driving along Whitchurch Road.

Peter and Elaine Honisett were coming up the road around 4am on Wednesday morning on their way home to Westmoor Park, after returning from holiday via Exeter airport .

In the headlights they saw a 'big, black cat' swiftly running across the road heading down from Deer Park Lane and in the direction of the surgery at Abbey Rise.

Elaine said: 'All of a sudden my husband said "What's that?' and I said "It's a puma". It was really black with a great big, long, curly tail and a smooth coat. It was far too large to be a domestic dog or cat or a fox, and so quick.'

She confesses to be a real animal lover and believes what they saw was indeed a puma.

Elaine thought that the mystery animal must have come down from the moorlands by Tavistock Golf Club and maybe was heading for a rubbish tip for a source of food.

It is not the first time that the retired couple have witnessed such a creature. They saw a similar big, black cat very early in the morning at Pork Hill six years ago.

South West researcher for national investigative group Big Cats in Britain Shaun Stevens said: 'Dartmoor has certainly had its fair share of big cat sightings over the years and although we are still waiting for definitive proof of their existence, I don't doubt that these cats could quite easily survive on the moors.'

Shaun said that although Elaine thought the cat was a puma, pumas are in fact not black, but varying shades of brown. Only leopards or jaguars have black coats.

'The most recent sighting around Dartmoor was on the other side of the moor in Ashburton in February this year. The witnesses then described a very similar animal. These animals can range 20 or 30 miles a day so it could well be the same animal.

'It is possible it was a black leopard, but without any photographic proof, I wouldn't be able to say for certain.'

Shaun said people should not be worried about them being close to the town.

He said: 'There has never been a confirmed attack on a person by a big cat in the UK, other than from animals escaping zoos and menageries several centuries ago.

'These animals are very secretive and will more than likely move away from you without you even realising they are in the area.

'They feed mainly on small game, rabbits and game birds, with the occasional deer or sheep.'

For more information visit the website at http://www.bigcatsinbritain.org">www.bigcatsinbritain.org