FORGET THE infamous Beast of Balbirnie, it seems that another creature could be prowling the Fife countryside.

Adam Rhind (17) was out walking his german shepherd Glyn on Wednesday evening when he discovered a deer carcase in a field near his home in Cardenden.

Adam immediately took pictures of the remains on his mobile phone and rushed home to show his dad, Nigel, who took a look for himself.

Shocked by what he saw, he is now convinced that something wild is stalking its prey in the central Fife fields.

“I’ve been here 26 years and my wife’s been here all her life and I’ve certainly never seen anything like that before,” he said.

“I reckon it was only a couple of days old, but the carcase was in some state. The back end and back legs had been crunched and the belly had been opened right up.

“The belly and half the ribs are gone it’s definitely been eaten by something or other.

“You can see its been stripped and part of the body is well away from the rest of the carcase.

“The funny thing about Glyn is he would usually go within four or five feet of an animal, but he would not go anywhere near that carcase. There was obviously something up.”

Despite the sheer power of the animal which apparently killed its victim, Nigel admitted he doesn’t know what to think about what caused the roe deer’s death.

“You hear all these stories about wild cats, but a deer that size? I don’t think a wild cat would be able to bring that down,” he added.

“Absolutely no chance, in my opinion, and I don’t think a cat would go for a deer that big.

“Whatever it was, I think it will stir some people’s minds.”

Adam, who lives a short walk away from the field in Jamphlars Road, could hardly believe his eyes when he saw the remains.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before—it was quite strange and the carcase was huge and torn to bits.

“It looked like it had been killed, but I’m sure it was not natural.”

In 1976, the introduction of the Dangerous Wild Animals Act meant that people were banned from keeping big cats.

Police assumed those who couldn’t find homes for their pets released them into the wild and, although irresponsible, the practice wasn’t made illegal until 1981.

Several sightings of a big cat in and around Balbirnie Woods in Glenrothes have been made in recent years, prompting a widespread hunt for the animal by police and staff from animal agencies. Paw prints were also found in the woodland, although it was later claimed the marks belonged to a St Bernard dog.

However, analysts at the Big Cat Survival Trust later confirmed it had been the paw print of a cat, possibly an 18-month-old leopard, and further sightings have been reported.

The police confirmed they would be investigating the Cardenden discovery, and stressed officers always treated this type of matter seriously.

In the meantime, the advice to anyone who sees a big cat in the wild is to stay calm and still, which would usually cause the animal to run away.