Paw prints, apparently from a big cat, have been found in a garden in Cornwall, following a report of a "possible panther" attacking a dog.
Police were told about the incident in Harrowbarrow, Cornwall, on 29 March and called in the RSPCA.
Police said a resident "claimed that a panther had been in their garden and attacked their dog, and was later seen with another animal in its mouth".
Officers took a cast of a paw print which was "the pad of a large cat".
A Devon and Cornwall Police spokesperson said: "Police have received a single report of a big cat sighting in the Callington area.
"An officer attended the property and located the footprints in the garden.
"We called the RSPCA for advice and took a cast of the print which they confirmed was the pad of a large cat."
The police moved to reassure the public, saying: "Over the years, there have been a number of similar reports across Devon and Cornwall.
"There is no evidence that such animals represent a danger to humans.
"It is highly likely that they would avoid human contact and only represent a danger if trapped.
"If any animal is sighted it should not be approached."
The RSPCA said: "Our officer attended after reports that a Labrador had been scratched by a large, black cat.
"Thankfully, the dog is fine although he has scratch marks, and the owner is taking precautions to keep an eye on the dog in case of further sightings."
In the 1990s, there was a spate of big cat sightings reported on Bodmin Moor, about 10 miles from Harrowbarrow.
This caused the government to call in investigators to search for the creature which became known as the "beast of Bodmin".
There have also been more recent reports of big cats in Cornwall and Devon.
A Freedom of Information request last year revealed that Devon and Cornwall Police have been called 55 times since the start of 2011 to sightings of big cats in the wild.
Two gorillas have been photographed posing for a relaxed selfie with the rangers who rescued them as babies.
The image was taken at a gorilla orphanage in Virunga National Park, DR Congo, where the animals were raised after poachers killed their parents.
The park's deputy director told BBC Newsday that they had learned to imitate their carers, who have looked after them since they were found.
The gorillas, he added, think of the rangers as their parents.
Innocent Mburanumwe, deputy director of Virunga, told the BBC that that the gorillas' mothers were both killed in July 2007.
The gorillas were just two and four months old at the time.
Shortly afterwards, they were found and taken to Senkwekwe Sanctuary in Virunga, where they have lived ever since.
Because they've grown up with the rangers who rescued them, Mr Mburanumwe added, "they are imitating the humans" - and standing on two legs is their way of "learning to be human beings".
But it "doesn't happen normally", he said.
"I was very surprised to see it... so it's very funny. It's very curious to see how a gorilla can imitate a human and stand up."
Being a ranger, however, is not always fun - it is mainly dangerous work.
Five rangers were killed in Virunga National Park last year in an ambush by suspected rebels, and more than 130 park rangers have been killed in Virunga since 1996.
Eastern DR Congo is mired in conflict between the government and various armed groups.
Some of these armed groups are based in the park, where they often poach animals.
Akhal-teke (horse from Turkmenistan with a metallic look to its coat):
