Lousiana’s Plaquemines Parish Office of Homeland Security is informing residents of the East Bank of Plaquemines Parish that a large black panther is on the loose, Jay Vise of WWL reports.

Image for illustrative purposes only. This is not the Plaquemines Panther.

In an automated recording delivered to East Bank residents, a spokeswoman for the Homeland Security office says the animal “is believed to be about eight feet in length.”

Officials warn residents to be mindful of where children and pets are, and if anyone sees the big cat, to call 911 immediately.

Parish authorities say the cat may be aggressive and people are recommended to avoid it, keep pets indoors.

WWL Outdoor Show host Don Dubuc, however, told listeners that it was unlikely it is a black panther.

“There has never been a confirmed sighting of a panther or mountain lion in southeast Louisiana,” Dubuc said.

“What we’re talking about here is the cougar, puma, mountain lion, panther, it’s got a lot of names, but it’s the same animal,” Dubuc said. “Its range is mostly out in the western part of the United States. We finally got some documented proof of some up in northern Louisiana, but there’s no reason to believe that they can’t exist in the Atchafalaya. However, this is a possibility that a large, wild cat could be roaming in Plaquemines Parish….if it were, it would most probably be a leopard. Leopards come in black phases, instead of spots, that is what is truly a ‘black panther,’ is in the leopard family. We do not have those indigenous to southeast Louisiana.”

However, Dubuc says it’s not out of the realm of possibility that such a large cat escaped from captivity aboard one of the many ships passing up and down the river, or was released from a local resident’s cage.

Here at Cryptomundo, we sometimes find the explanations for American black panther sightings to be more unbelievable than the notion there might be a mystery cat around. Circus train wrecks, circus trucks, drug dealers’ zoo escapees, and now ships passing in the night? Incredible.

Thanks to John Lutz for the heads up on this new series of sightings.