Mystery big cat caught on camera in Arizona mountains

Nov. 16 (UPI) -- Wildlife officials in Arizona are trying to identify a mysterious big cat caught on camera in the Phoenix Mountain Preserve.

A video uploaded to YouTube by user Jen Fletcher shows an unidentified creature that appears to be a large feline in the mountain range.

Tom Cadden, a spokesperson for the Arizona Game and Fish Department, said officials have seen the video, but have not yet been able to identify the animal.

"It's not one of our native big cat species, mountain lion, bobcat, ocelot or jaguar," Cadden told the Arizona Republic. "It's pretty big for a house cat."

He said one possibility is that the creature is an exotic cat that escaped from a private owner, "but that's just speculation."

Jim DeVos, assistant director with the Arizona Game and Fish Department, echoed the theory.

"My guess is that it's probably something that was bought at a wildlife auction. Could be from Africa or South America. It's nothing I'm familiar with, but it's not a house cat," he told KPNX-TV.