AN appeal has been made to find the owner of a black cat found living on a 'beach' in Barnoldswick town centre.

The black moggy has made the popular visitor attraction its home since it opened in July but nobody knows who it belongs to.

And there are fears it has been abandoned because the cat does not show up on 'selfie' pictures.

Councillor and Barnoldswick beach lifeguard, David Whipp said: “The sands of time are running out for Town Square beach cat. The Beach ends on August 30 and this friendly moggy will be without a home.

“We wonder if our Town Square cat is a selfie victim?

“It’s very affectionate and not your regular beach bum. It’s quite a fearless feline with an interest in large dogs. You can tell it’s a Barlicker, as it walks in the middle of the road like the rest of us.

“It would be great to find it’s original home or rehome it with a good family. At the moment, it’s sleeping in our beach marquee where it's security cat and eating at the Tree House pet shop.”

Joanne Geldard, clerk to Barnoldswick Town Council, said: “I first noticed the cat right before we put the beach in place.

“It’s really unusual to see a cat in a town centre and so it stood out to me as being unusual.

“Since then, people have reported seeing it sleeping on the beach and the local shops have been feeding it throughout the day!”

A recent report from the RSPCA said that black moggies account for 70 per cent of all abandoned cats and the numbers of growing.

They believe that the upsurge in homeless black cats is partly to do with the craze of taking 'selfies' of pets and uploading them to social media sites as the features of a black cat do not show up as well on photographs as ginger cats and tabbies.

Anyone who recognises the cat can call in at the beach or phone 01282 666777.