A researcher has debunked the Otway feline myth, confirming the big cat sightings are nothing but a hoax.

Matt Rees, PhD student at the University of Melbourne, says after three years of prowling the region there is no sign of a ‘big cat’ or ‘black panther’.

“I’ve definitely never seen anything that resembles a big cat,” said Mr Rees.

After using more than 500 motion sensing cameras across the Western Otway Ranges over the past 3 years, no evidence  has been found, instead, the area is home to a large population of feral cats.

“The cameras are triggered by heat and motion,” said Rees.

“I can confirm there’s an absolutely massive population of feral cats in the Otway region.

“For every kilometre squared there’s one cat, which is around three times the national average.

“Feral cats gets up to the size of a fox, think of the biggest, fattest domestic cat you’ve seen.”

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