Never thought I'd be weighing in on big cats from Edinburgh, but here we are - we've got our own Beast of Badenoch drama up in the Highlands so I feel spiritually qualified. 😄
Genuinely though, Tennessee keeps cropping up in cryptid circles and the big cat reports there are stacking up in a way that's hard to dismiss. What strikes me is the consistency in the descriptions - that muscular build, the long tail, the distinctive low-profile movement. Doesn't sound like folk misidentifying a domestic moggy, does it.
A few things worth considering if you're actively tracking these:
Trail cam placement is everything. I use a Browning Strike Force for my shadow people vigils and the motion sensitivity is brilliant - worth deploying something similar along known deer trails where big cats would naturally hunt, Paw cast impressions after rain are gold, Livestock kill patterns - the method of the kill often tells you more than eyewitness accounts
The sceptic argument is always ". Escaped exotic pet". But the sheer geographic spread of these Tennessee sightings suggests something more established. Could be a remnant cougar population that never fully disappeared from the eastern states, which honestly would be the least surprising explanation.
Anyone got actual footage or cast evidence from recent sightings? Would love to see what's being captured on the ground over there - us lot in Scotland are dead jealous of your cryptid real estate if I'm honest.