Please send us your comments on the following photos 
Aberdeen Pictures
The contents of this page have been modified from their original format.
I have never accepted that these photos were a hoax, although I was prepared to accept that it might be case of mistaken identity. If the cat was 200 metres away, it would be difficult to identify at that distance. The mad axeman photo could be explained if the University wanted something to scale the cat against, took a photo of somebody standing by the wall, then merged the two photos.
Unlike before, the case has now been thoroughly investigated by a qualified professional who has come to his conclusions based on a full examination of the negatives and the location of the sighting. We are happy to conclude that this was not a hoax. The debate is open once more.
We are very grateful to Mr Jim Burnett for these photographs and would like to apologise for the comments and accusations made by Mr Fraser which in no way represented the opinions of Scottish Big Cats.
Christina Smith, Scottish Big Cats
My wife and I sighted a puma yesterday afternoon at about 13.50. It was basking in the sun on a rock in woodland behind our house in Peterculter, Aberdeen.
Jim Burnet.
My wife and I were having lunch on the patio at about 13.45 on Sunday 6/5. Alison first noticed the cat after about 5 minutes. It was about 200 metres away and sat on the rock for about 25-30 minutes. The camera is a 35 mm with a 210 mm lens, exposure about 1/250 at f8. The rock would be about 2 m. long. A member of the University Zoology department is coming out to do a survey and comparison of the site so we should have an accurate size available soon. We also observed the cat through binoculars and the fur was short and dense, russet brown in colour. The local paper reported a similar sighting at Elrick, about 4 miles from here at 17.45 on Sunday.
Jim Burnett
We've had word back from Martyn Gorman at Aberdeen University Zoology Dept that the big cat was just that; a VERY big domestic pussycat. He had also showed the pictures and enlargements to an Andrew Kitchener, the curator of mammals at the national museum. He agrees with Martin. We're still not entirely sure.
Jim Burnett
Well, well......we like a challenge don't we.....
I have blown it up, fiddled with it, inverted it, turned it grayscale and back again, despeckled, sharpened and all the usual tricks and I am pretty sure its a puma.
It is certainly a cat....of that I am sure (for once) Although there is no true scale, the rock could be 10 ft or 4 ft across, It is certainly too large for a tom, and I think the width rules out Lynx/Caracal.The colour shouts 'clasic puma'. I attach my doctored version with cleaned and enlarged insert, (this is as good as I can make it, any one do any better?)
Craig
I heard of this sighting via the Moray wildlife liason officer whom I knew when I worked as a vet in Speyside and he knew of my interest in big cats. I contacted Mr Burnett who was very friendly and open and invited me to visit him and see the site and photos, he also gave me the negatives away to make my own prints. It shows what can be achieved with a friendly and courteous approach.
The photos and description of events are genuine. The doctored photo is indeed that- 2 images have been grafted together to help indicate scale.
The rock the cat was on is 4' tall by 4 1/2' wide. While standing at the stone looking back into Mr Burnett's garden I saw his domestic cat sitting on the bird table visible in the photos and it was far smaller then the cat on the rock from the same distance.
I have suggested that Mr Burnett attempts to recreate the photograph as accurately as possible with a domestic cat (as large as you like) on the rock for better comparison.
I am a vet dealing with exotics and wildlife as well as domestic animals so have seen many large domestic cats. However it would be difficult to mistake a large moggy for a puma or leopard sized cat.
I have been following the ABC situation for many years and have carried out post mortems on kills and spoken to several eye witnesses as well as researching the natural history of exotic and indigenous cat species.
I am surprised at some of the misinformation, speculation, inconsistencies and ignorance displayed by many big cat followers and this ignorance does nothing to further the study of exotic cats in Scotland, indeed often distorting and confusing the situation. The views of certain individuals are to be taken with a pinch of salt and it does not credit your otherwise useful website to broadcast them.
Mick Orsi
Many thanks for writing in detail concerning the Aberdeen cat photos. At Scottish Big Cats we're always happy to hear and act upon constructive criticism. I have to admit that I was never happy about the treatment of Mr Burnett by the gentleman in question.
I was very pleased indeed to read about your analysis of the photos which more or less confirm my own thoughts on the matter. With over 1,000 pages on the site, we sometimes lose track of exactly what is there, but having re-read the accusations by our ex-member, I can only agree that it does us no credit at all to have them on our site.
I have removed the comments and can only apologise to Mr Burnett on behalf of the Scottish Big Cats team.
Christina Smith, Scottish Big Cats
I had looked at all the images of the possible cat in question. Without regard to the scale, I saw nothing that remotely resembled a puma. The animal appears to be a common domestic cat. If the scale does prove the cat to be larger, the most exotic it may be would be a lynx, in my opinion.
Ben Willis, Scottish Big Cats
I can see the join on the last but one photo. The tree at the front is transparent and runs right through the "cat" and what about the hand and arm coming out of the coffin?
Good photo of the "cat" though wherever it was taken.
Terry Dye
The last but one photo is a composite of the original photo and somebody standing by the wall for scale. It was taken within Aberdeen city limits, but in a fairly rural Deeside area last year.
I was in Aberdeen just before the sighting and remember that there were two others in the area around the same time. One report was of a "cougar" being watched by a man with binoculars. The man with binoculars later identified the "cougar" as a wildcat.
Christina Smith, Scottish Big Cats
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