DOUBT has been cast on the veracity of a spate of giant rodent sightings across Barnet.

Around eight residents have reported seeing a capybara scampering across farmland in and around Totteridge in the past three months.

The 140lb creature, known to be the largest living rodent in the world, is native to South America and very rarely seen in English countryside.

It is so rarely seen, in fact, that naturalist John Colman, of Grange Avenue, North Finchley, believes it may never have been here at all.

Mr Colman, 61, believes that what people have seen is not a rodent at all, but a small deer.

He said: "Nearly all the people who report sightings begin by saying that they initially thought they had seen a small deer. This is because they almost certainly had.

"The muntjac deer is a very small deer and, incidentally, almost exactly the same size as a capybara.

"Muntjacs have become well established in the Barnet area in recent years and have been reported from all the major open spaces and even from some large gardens. I myself saw one in the Totteridge Fields Nature Reserve a few years ago.

"They are generally very shy so, although now quite widespread, they are not encountered that often.

"All naturalists know from experience not to dismiss reports of unusual animals or birds out of hand, but I would be very surprised indeed if the majority of these sightings were not attributable to muntjacs."

What do you think? Have you spotted a capybara scampering across fields near you - or was it merely an overweight deer?

Please send all comments to Rebecca Lowe at rlowe@london.newsquest.co.uk or 07795 305271.