'Lion' on the loose in Cornwall now thought to be a puma

Decapitated deer and large paw prints found near the animal sighting

Residents have been warned not to go searching for the animal (Reuters)

A 'lion' that was thought to be on the loose in Cornwall is now suspected to be a puma.

Initial reports suggested a lion was roaming around between Nanpean and Whitemoor in St Austell, after a local resident claimed one jumped out in front of his vehicle.

A decapitated deer and large paw prints were found near where the animal was sighted.

The lorry driver who first spotted the creature, named only as Duncan, told a local radio station: "I've since looked at pictures and I definitely saw a big cat.

"It was like a puma - quite a big thing, bigger than a domestic dog.

"It had black at the tip of its tail, like a tan colour it was, black round the head, wild-looking, flattish ears - that's basically it and I can still see it now,” the Plymouth Herald reported.

Duncan also claimed a week after he spotted the creature a local farmer informed him he had seen something similar nearby.

Expert Danny Bamping from the Big Cats Society told the Daily Mail that a puma sighting was more probable than a lion, as people once kept pumas as pets before releasing them into the wild in Cornwall.

Local residents have been warned to not go searching for the animal.