On the wildcat's tracks in the Wildcat Barn

The Wildcat Barn is the starting point for visitors of the Wildcat Village. An exhibitions welcomes you to the World Heritage site Hainich and informs about the shy national park dweller – the wildcat – and the "Safety Net European Wildcat".

The modern exhibition informs comprehensively about the reclusive forest animals and the nature conservation project "European Safety Net Wildcat". A small cinema shows various films about the shy hunters and Hainich National Park.

Directly at the entrance you have the Wildcat shop. Here you can buy tickets for the exhibition and a large selection of cat-themed souvenirs – from postcards to cushions to soap. Many products are made locally and by people in sheltered workshops. On the opposite wall there is a screen showing live pictures of the Wildcat enclosure. The National Park Corner is manned by a national park ranger at weekends and on bank holidays. You can take a first sneek peak at wildcat and mouse in the Discovery Forest and the Wildcat Cave. Find out what the "Lockstockmethode" is –  a method using lures to find out if there are any of the reclusive animals living in the woodland. There is an information table where you can sit down and listen to an audio play or look at pictures and books. The big look-and-find picture shows a cross section of the wildcat's habitat. On the cinema repertoire is the film "Im Wald der Wälder" (In the Forest of Forests) as well as a slide show and other films. Next to the big picture you find interesting facts about the wildcat's biology and the "Safety Net European Wildcat". A 3D model shows you what each federal state in Germany does for the protection of the wildcat.