A BIG “black”cat has been spotted between Frodsham and Helsby.

A member of the public said he encountered the beast on the Sandstone Trail while walking home from Beeston Castle.

The creature was seen between Frodsham and Helsby, from where the long-distance footpath crosses a road next to a caravan park.

In a report to Puma Watch North Wales, the witness described it as walking slowly through private woodlands adjacent to the road.

The witness, called Gregg, told the site: “I was returning from Beeston Castle on the Sandstone trail, as I approached Frodsham I crossed the road outside of Ridgeway caravan park and continued in the direction for Frodsham Hill.

“As I crossed the road, there is some private woodland in which is where I spotted the big cat after initially thinking it was a domestic dog.

“It was walking slowly but went from sight before able to take a photo.”

Gregg’s encounter happened at around 2.15pm on Sunday, August 1.

Tony Jones, founder of Puma Watch North Wales, said the group was receiving more and more reports from Cheshire West that were being added to its interactive map.

He said: "Back in March, a Frodsham couple made national headlines after catching a black big cat on their home CCTV.

"Weeks later in early April, another big cat was spotted in the town on Tarvin Road. More recently, there have been multiple sightings of a big cat from the M56 by drivers in the vicinity of Frodsham.

"Last month, a big cat was caught on camera at Chester FC’s Deva Stadium following a series of sightings around the city.

"On Friday 16th April, someone spotted what could have been a puma near Blacon, at a location well under a mile from four other recent sightings. Just along the canal to the North, a large, black animal with a very long tail was spotted twice within a week, around the abandoned Old Oaks Golf Course and the Countess of Chester Country Park.

"These sightings followed a 4ft-long cat “with a great big tail” being spotted twice in one night in fields bordering Blacon, behind Sealand Road Asda.

"Prior to this, on the other side of the city centre, a member of the public reported an encounter with a “growing and snarling” creature in Huntington’s Caldy Valley Nature Park, while in December, a big cat was caught on camera prowling Chester Meadows."