Big Cat Conversations

Rick Minter

The People's Podcast on Big Cat encounters in Britain. In each episode Rick Minter discusses big cat sightings with different witnesses, finding out what they saw or sensed, how they felt, and how these cases fit a bigger picture.

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142 episodes
Updated Wednesday

Episodes142

Newest first

Apr 18, 2020 · 1 hr
BCC EP:22 A cub breaks cover…
John our guest watched a mother and cub at close quarters in Shropshire, making him determined to photograph a big cat - he got his wish 5 years later in a Herefordshire wood. Word of the week: melanism 18 April 2020
Apr 2, 2020 · 56 min
BCC EP:21 Night patrol – sensing nature’s secrets
Rhoda and Jay discuss searching for wildlife, people and big cats, by using tracking skills and senses, and thermal drones. Jay describes a black panther seen against the bright landscape of China clay in Cornwall, and Rhoda reflects on skills learnt from her time with Kalahari bushmen. You can also watch the shorter version of this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=12&v=bxcSVqSI65Y&feature=emb_logo Word of the week: ecotone 3 April 2020
Mar 21, 2020 · 50 min
BCC EP:20 Jupiter rising - jungle cat prowling
Craig recounts his time as a countryside ranger at Forfar Loch in Angus when he twice encountered a jungle cat. Several visitors also glimpsed the cat(s) and were more fascinated than fearful. Rick the podcast host compares his experience seeing and hearing a jungle cat in Gloucestershire. Word of the week: meso predator 21 March 2020
Mar 5, 2020 · 1 hr 7 min
BCC EP:19 Forest beasts and boar slayers
We join Alyn and Neil as they stake out the Forest of Dean and find a large wild boar carcass, eaten-out and despatched by a wild predator. They explain a recent big cat sighting through their thermal camera, describe cub sightings (check photo on the BCC web site), and discuss how tracking gets you closer to nature. Words of the week: diagonal walking March 5 2020
Feb 23, 2020 · 53 min
BCC EP:18 Panther chat in the pub – scary stories?
From a Forest of Dean pub four guests discuss their big cat encounters. We hear from local residents Meri and Walter, Tim from Gloucester and James from Shropshire. They compare their different panther sightings and consider whether we should be fearful of these alpha predators in our woods… Word of the week: Topography 23 February 2020
Feb 7, 2020 · 1 hr
BCC EP:17 Bodmin Beasts – farming alongside the legends
John our first guest farms in Wiltshire where he lives alongside black panthers – they’ve been resting in his barn and strolling across pastures… Neil our second guest farms in Cornwall amongst local reports of big cats. He describes two past attacks on his ewes which show the hallmarks of a large cat. He now has trail cameras on his land and is alert to the prospect of a silent Bodmin Beast passing by. 7 February 2020 Words of the week: prey switching
Jan 24, 2020 · 49 min
BCC EP:16 Scottish landmarks – big cat hideouts
Our guest Paul recounts his big cat encounters at Glenfinnan and then at Arthur’s Seat near the heart of Edinburgh, where the police also documented a big cat. Paul also re-lives his experience confronting a mountain lion in the Canadian Rockies. Paul now investigates reports of big cats in the Scottish Borders and networks with local people to understand the nature of the cats. Word of the week: naturalise 24 January 2020
Jan 13, 2020 · 1 hr 3 min
BCC EP:15 Southern Spain’s stranded panther
Peter our guest explains the challenge of living with a freshly released black panther around his property in southern Spain. (An area which is not part of the Iberian lynx’s range). As he realised a panther was making regular visits close to his home, Peter had to adapt to the animal itself, and the different views of his guests, local people, hunters and the police… Words of the week: Xeric, Xerocole 13 January 2020
Dec 28, 2019 · 47 min
BCC EP:14 Cumbrian predators - panthers & the Tasmanian tiger
Cumbrian sculptor Shawn Williamson recounts his view of a panther spooking deer in the back lanes of the Lake District. He explains how panthers and big cats inspire some of his sculpture making. Rick and Shawn also discuss people’s elemental connections with wildlife including big cats and even the Tasmanian wolf or Thylacine, which itself has a historical link with Cumbria, as Shawn explains. Words of the week: General Impression of Size and Shape (GISS) 28 December 2019
Dec 15, 2019 · 53 min
BCC EP:13 Lincolnshire - Cats of all sizes
Lincolnshire witnesses Wendy and Angela discuss the quandary of spreading the word about local big cats amongst sceptical neighbours. Wendy was growled at by a puma when she disturbed it stalking feral cats. Her friend Angela is 12 miles away and has encountered black big cats, seeing a mother and young one night. Word of the week: Feral 15 December 2019
Dec 1, 2019 · 43 min
BCC EP:12 Secret lynx & soft rewilding
Our guest Peter Taylor suggests that rewilding helps nature and the human soul. He meets Rick at Wild Place, a new outpost of Bristol Zoo. Here brown bears, wolves and lynx can be viewed in a British woodland setting. Peter considers how Eurasian lynx could be re-introduced in Britain but only with support from local communities. Rick and Peter note that spontaneous rewilding has already happened in parts of Britain where large cats are a hidden part of the ecosystem. Watch the video version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qseZzVejfyM Words of the week: Intra-guild predation 1 December 2019
Nov 13, 2019 · 43 min
BCC EP:11 Puma in the Park – in Orlando and Gateshead
We meet Gareth who lives in Gateshead district in north-east England. He describes how he had a surprise view of a puma stalking a deer on holiday in Florida a few years back. He then explains what happened early one morning in October 2019 when walking his dog in his local park, when he witnessed the same type of animal. Gareth and Rick consider how a puma might pass through residential areas like Gateshead, and other north-east sightings are discussed. Gareth also wonders why, several years back, he and colleagues never found anything when rushing out of their office into adjacent woodland, to sounds which they thought were a woman in distress… Word of the week: Introgression 13 November 2019
Oct 30, 2019 · 1 hr 7 min
BCC EP:10 Aussie panthers – secrets of the Bush
An in-depth discussion on the panthers and pumas reported across Australia with author and researcher Simon Townsend from Victoria. Simon explains why he feels the Australian panthers match black leopards and are not outsize feral cats. Tawny coloured cats resembling pumas are also reported, which Simon includes in his accounts of witness reports. The discussion ranges over the origins of these cats, the likely prey carcasses which Simon examines, and attitudes of remote communities. Documentary makers are now on the case with Simon, revealing another side to the Australian Bush. Words of the week: Macropod , Marsupial lion 31 October 2019
Oct 16, 2019 · 49 min
BCC EP:09 Signs on the prey - the science of the tooth marks
We discuss how big cats use heathland as their territory with Jonathan McGowan, and hear about two of his encounters in Dorset and the New Forest. He scouts out suspected prey remains of deer in these areas, looking for tell-tale tooth marks on the bones. We then hear from Dr Andrew Hemmings in the lab at the Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester. After receiving these skeletal remains from Jonathan and others, students gauge the tooth marks to identify those which match the scale and pattern of puma and leopard carnassial teeth. Andrew discusses how tooth-pit analysis can contribute to the evidence base for big cats in Britain. Words of the week: Citizen science 16 October 2019
Oct 3, 2019 · 44 min
BCC EP:08 The film-maker & the leopard – a Somerset stand-off
Matt Everett describes holding the gaze of a black leopard after he confronted the animal from his car on a sunken Somerset lane. The incident inspired him to create the forthcoming documentary Britain’s Big Cat Mystery. We hear some of the highlights and challenges from making the production. Our second guest Paul explains his sighting of a black panther in deepest Dorset and the reaction of his dogs on rushing back to the scene. Paul explains how you become more immersed in nature when searching for signs of big cats. Word of the week: Stealth 3 October 2019
Sep 22, 2019 · 51 min
BCC EP:07 Middle England Pantherwatch
An in-depth interview with Nigel Spencer reveals how he and his late father supported police follow-up work on big cat reports in Leicestershire & Rutland. Nigel recounts his own sighting of a puma in Essex and summarises key big cat incidents from Leicestershire including from farms, quarries, stables and gardens. Our second guest Emma from Leicestershire explains how she is now extra-cautious when walking in the countryside after retreating from the scene of a panther consuming a rabbit or hare in fields close to her house. Words of the Week: The Recorder Effect 22 September 2019
Sep 7, 2019 · 56 min
BCC EP:06 Call of the Wild – a deeper view of the Chilterns
If you thought Buckinghamshire and the Chilterns was a tame area of countryside close to London, maybe think again… We hear from Darren who kept close watch of his dog when he realised a young puma was nearby in scrubby land by an airfield – he felt the mother could be close by. Darren is a councillor and discusses the pros and cons of acknowledging the presence of big cats. We then discuss the recent history of big cat sightings in the Chilterns with Paulo. He grew up in North London but was inspired to learn about Chilterns big cats by his teacher who claimed to have seen some. Paulo takes us through highlights of recent reports, discusses what we can learn from the leopards of Mumbai, and reveals how he accidently called up a leopard through the sound of his chainsaw. Word of the week: Varmint 8 September 2019
Sep 1, 2019 · 1 hr 9 min
BCC EP:04 Big cats from the Cotswolds to Corbett’s India
Gloucestershire’s Frank Tunbridge recounts his own close-up encounter with a big cat in the Cotswolds – he watched it snatch some rabbit bait at dusk and it later crept behind and gave him a warning growl. Frank then discusses the stealth of cats like leopards and pumas and refers to the writings of Jim Corbett who tracked leopards and tigers in India last century. We hear highlights from some of the witness reports Frank receives, and the questions these beg… Are the big cats here sometimes targeting domestic cats? And are some of the panthers seen in Britain assumed to be black leopards but possibly something else…? Word of the week: Digitigrade 1 September 2019
Sep 1, 2019 · 1 hr 7 min
BCC EP:05 Sheep farming in the shadow of a big cat
Our two different guests explain the challenges of sheep farming when a big cat makes a visit. Gordon ran a small sheep enterprise when he was based in south Wales. A silent predator would sometimes take one of his ewes (also called yowes) or a tup (young male). Gordon explains how he made adjustments to life on the farm as he realised a large cat was making occasional visits. Our second guest Jean runs a croft in North Scotland. At certain times she and especially her neighbour lose yowes to a large predator on their crofting land – they feel they are experiencing a rogue big cat, and a black panther gets reported in the area... Word(s) of the week: Obligate carnivore 1 September 2019
Aug 22, 2019 · 47 min
BCC EP:01 Two panthers together, two pumas together
Most witnesses of big cats in Britain claim to see one cat. This would match the fact that most species of wild cat are mainly solitary in their lifestyles. In this episode each of our guests watched two cats together. We meet Di who watched a mother and cub black panther as she walked in her local Somerset countryside, and then we hear from John who came close to two adult pumas (also called cougars and mountain lions) as he cycled to work down a back lane early one morning in Gloucestershire. Word of the week: Crepuscular (and Dimpsey) August 2019