It had been hoped that tests carried out on the remains of a deer found on National Trust land would prove once and for all that big cats are roaming the British countryside.
But extensive DNA tests commissioned by the trust have concluded the only beast that made a meal of the roe deer that met its bloody end at Woodchester Park in Gloucestershire was a boring old fox.
Dr Robin Allaby, associate professor at the school of life sciences at the University of Warwick, who did the testing, made the anti-climactic announcement on Thursday morning.
"Other than deer, by far the strongest genetic signal we found on the Woodchester Park carcass was from a fox," he said. The fox DNA was found on the ribs legs and on bits of fur plucked from the carcass.
DNA from a member of the dog family was also found on a second deer carcass found nearby. That too is expected to turn out to be a fox.
Allaby took 45 samples from the wounds of the deer carcasses with the aim of testing specifically for DNA from the saliva of any canid (for instance dog or fox) or felid (cat) species which had killed or scavenged from the deer.
Sadly for those who rather like the idea of a mysterious beast being at large – not to mention an expectant media salivating at the idea of a good-old fashioned animal saga – there was no sign of cat.
David Armstrong, the head ranger for the National Trust in Gloucestershire, continues to believe that big cats may roam the area (in fact, he says he has seen a lynx nearby).
He insisted time and energy spent researching the kill had not been in vain.
"The story of the investigation of the dead deer has really sparked off local curiosity with a lot of people coming out to Woodchester Park to explore. People love a mystery like this and although we haven't found a wild cat, many of our visitors clearly believe there might be something interesting living quietly hidden in Woodchester."
Rick Minter, author of a new book on big cat sightings in Britain, said: "There has been speculation of breeding among feral big cats in the UK.
"We are no closer to indicating that with these results, but lessons have been learned from Warwick University's valuable input to this exercise.
"The strong media interest suggests an appetite to look into this subject further, and recent community surveys in Gloucestershire have indicated a strong desire for big cat evidence to be researched carefully."
The trust continued to offer advice to people if they do meet a big cat: "Big cats will do their utmost to avoid contact with people but anyone who does see a big cat in the wild is advised to stay composed and back away from the animal."