George Gasiorowski at the spot where he saw what he is sure was a large black cat A businessman has turned from a sceptic to a believer after spotting a large black cat near woodland in west Oxfordshire.

George Gasiorowski's sighting comes only days before the British Big Cats Society releases data revealing 34 "definitive" sightings of a black leopard -- known as panthers -- in Oxfordshire in the past 15 months.

The society said the county was mid-table nationwide. Devon is top with 130 sightings in the same period.

Mr Gasiorowski was walking from his home in Church Hanborough to nearby Long Hanborough along a pathway cutting through farmland, near Pinsley Wood, when he spotted the black cat at about 7am yesterday.

The commercial industrial surveyor said: "I do this walk every morning to the newsagents in Long Hanborough.

"Across the field, near the opening of the wood, there was this black, beautiful animal, about 250 to 300 yards away."

Mr Gasiorowski, who is a Church Hanborough parish councillor, said the animal sniffed around before it saw him and ran into the wood.

He added: "I've been very sceptical about this kind of thing, but there it was. It was too big for a domestic cat -- about two or three times bigger -- and had a long tail, unlike anything I've ever seen on a normal cat."

Mr Gasiorowski has walked the same route every morning for about a year, and this was the first time he had seen anything unusual. He returned home and tried to track the cat's pawprints with a digital camera.

He said: "There were very light indentations, and things that were quite obviously deer tracks, but I could definitely see something."

Danny Bamping, spokesman for the British Big Cats Society, which researches the presence of big cats in the UK, said Mr Gasiorowski's sighting sounded genuine.

The society has exposed several hoaxes, including one in Wales where a photographer planted a soft toy in woodland and claimed he had seen a panther.

Mr Bamping said: "I'm not surprised by this man's sighting. Long Hanborough and Freeland are quite well known to us."

The society has collated research from reports of sightings in different areas, verified by experts.

Mr Bamping said: "Oxfordshire has had 34 definitive sightings in the past 15 months, and 10 sightings that are inconclusive.

"Big cats do exist in Britain, and we would appreciate it if anyone who sees them files a report with us."

Six months ago, a £5,000 reward was offered by Cotswold Wildlife Park for the capture of a big black cat, dubbed the Beast of Burford, but yielded no results.

The reward was offered after the Oxford Mail published pictures of a large, cat-like animal taken near Brize Norton, and reportings of several sightings of a similar creature in the west of the county at the start of the year.

To report a big cat sighting, you can log on to www.britishbigcats.org