Astonished golf club staff called police when they found a wild panther cat napping in the shrubbery as it sheltered from the Florida sun.

The big cat was discovered snoozing behind bushes at the Bonita National Golf and Country Club in Bonita Springs on 4th December.

Big cat experts from the state’s Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission darted the panther before taking it away for medical checks.

It is expected to be released back into the wild once it gets a clean bill of health, according to authorities.

Lee County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement obtained by Newsflash on 4th December: “Holy meow, we got ourselves a panther!

“Around 9:45 this morning, Bonita Springs Community Policing Deputies responded to Bonita National Country Club to reports of a Florida Panther sleeping near a stairwell behind shrubs.

“After confirming it was, in fact, a panther, we notified MyFWC Florida Fish and Wildlife to assist.

“FWC arrived on scene and humanely captured the panther, which will be evaluated for a health screening and eventually relocated to its natural habitat.”

The Florida panther is listed as an endangered species by the state commission.

There are said to be around 120 adult panthers in the wild population living across Florida and Georgia.