OVER 10,000 WILD ANIMALS LOOSE IN THE UK

OVER 10,000 WILD ANIMALS LOOSE IN THE UK

RESEARCH REVEALS THE ZOO ISN’T THE ONLY PLACE TO SEE WILD ANIMALS IN BRITAIN!

Willy the Whale hits the Thames, Spongebob the spider monkey is found playing with children on Clapham Common and last week a 5ft ostrich-like bird escaped from a Farm in Kent and could kill anyone who approaches it, the RSPCA warned. Just some examples of a staggering 10,000 sightings of wild animals reported in the UK since 2000, according to a new study. In fact, there are more wild animals on the loose than ever before including an astounding 5,931 big cats, 332 wild boars and 3,389 sharks in British waters.
To mark the Disney DVD release of The Wild, Disney has teamed up with a number of leading animal and conservation organisations to look at the growing number of wild animals at large in our green and pleasant land and this figure looks set to grow. The British Big Cat Society alone has reported a dramatic increase in big cat sightings in recent years, with 2004-5 figures already up 3.5% up on the previous year’s study.
A nation of animal lovers, Brits may be astonished to learn that hundreds of wild and exotic animals, usually found in the zoo or the jungle, are sighted every week up and down the country. As a result of climate change, zoo thefts and animals escaping, it is no longer uncommon to see wild animals such as panthers, leopards, snakes and raccoons in the UK.
The most fascinating animals sighted since 2000 include:

5,931 big cats (including panthers, pumas, leopards, lynx and jungle cats)
3389 sharks
332 wild boars
51 wallabies
43 snakes
15 owls
13 dangerous spiders (including a Tarantula and a Black Widow)
13 racoons
10 crocodiles
7 wolves
4 eagles
3 pandas
2 scorpions
1 penguin
1 elephant

Chris Mullins, Founder and Co-ordinator of Beastwatch UK, who compiles data and reports on wild, exotic or rare animals animals in Britain comments, “Beastwatch (UK) was founded in 2001 and we now have many members as well as people with just an interest, who report and look out for wild animals across the country. Since the start of our organisation the number of reports has increased at a rapid rate. Including monkeys stolen from zoos and private collections, to colonies of Wallabies and Wild Boar, and more unusual reports such as a chinchilla found in post box, to a Piranha in the Thames, it is clear the UK contains far more exotic wild animals than the British public could ever imagine.”
Climate change is one of the many reasons animals that are able to live in the wild and, conversely, one of the reasons that these animals are in danger. Changing winds can cause damage to animal enclosures that can lead to animals escaping into the wild, whilst changing temperatures allow the animals to survive in new areas for longer. Climate change also affects breeding habits with statistics from last year showing that 63% of birds nested on average nine days earlier than normal.
It seems though that some areas of the country are more attractive to animals than others. The south-west is the big cat hotspot with Devon, Cornwall and Somerset all in the top ten counties of sightings. Over one hundred wild boars can be found inhabiting Kent and East Sussex, whilst Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire house a large population of wallabies with over 26 sighted in recent years. Wild inhabitants of Leicestershire include numerous racoons and Oban is home to several monkeys.
Not only are these wild animals taking over the country, but they get up to some pretty nutty things too. Last year a deer was seen swimming 2.5km across a busy shipping lane in Hampshire apparently in search of pastures new and this month a family of squirrels caused chaos when they shorted a power cable in Exeter cutting the power for 10,380 homes. Earlier this year an African tawny eagle escaped from her new home in Reading and flew 200 miles back to her original owner’s home in North Yorkshire and around the same time a family fled their room in terror when they opened their new TV to find a hissing python in the box! Then there is the story of Britain’s two most famous pigs, who saved their bacon by escaping from an abattoir. Due to face the chop, they made their escape across the fields of Wiltshire and after hours of searching with helicopters and on foot they were finally recaptured.
Carolyn Spivey, Senior Brand Manager at Disney said, “Disney is thrilled to have been part of this research and was completely overwhelmed by the statistics presented. We were fascinated to discover that wild animals across Britain can live with humans and seem to show the same types of behaviour as the characters in The Wild!”
This research was compiled for the release of The Wild on Disney DVD on 18th September. The film follows a group of zany and hilarious animals from the New York City Zoo, who find themselves in unfamiliar territory when they embark on the adventure of a lifetime from the urban jungle to the untamed world of the African wild. The brilliant animation, action-packed story and an array of fun-filled bonus features will take your breath away. Featuring non-stop fun and adventure, loveable characters and a host of star voice talent, The Wild will have kids everywhere roaring with laughter!

Includes The British Big Cat Society, Beastwatch UK, The Wild Boar Society and CABI
Taken from The British Big Cat Society, Beastwatch UK, Marine Conservation Society Basking Shark Annual Report 2005, The Wild Boar Society
Source: Bird Life International

-ends-

For further information and statistics, please contact Julia Clark or Liz Fay at Consolidated Communications, 1-5 Poland Street, London, W1F 8PR. Tel: 020 7208 2087 or email juliac@consol.co.uk

Buena Vista Home Entertainment: 18th September 2006

Do you have any information on the above reports. Were you the person involved, or are you aware of any more sightings in this area. We would appreciate any information that you could give us.