Charlie, IVCC’s resident owl, has a new home.

Jim Kilday and Mark Quincer, physical plant personnel, have built Charlie a new, spacious cage.

The condominium, as it is being called, can be separated into two cages in order to house another bird in the Raptor Rehabilitation Program. When the second cage is not in use, the doors can be opened to give Charlie an ample flight area.

The new cage, located where the old one was, near the greenhouse, is made of pretreated wood and the bars are made of conduit. The roof is now enclosed and shingled.

The old cage was made of non-treated wood and wire, which caught the birds’ wings.

Charlie, a Great Horned Owl, has lived at IVCC since 1986 when she was found in the pine forest behind the gymnasium. Lee Ann Johnson, natural science laboratory instructor, said Charlie had underdeveloped pectoral muscles which kept her from flying long distances. If she had been left in the wild, she would’ve died.

Now 14 years old, she has a life span in captivity of 16 to 18 years.

For the last several years, Charlie has participated in IVCC’s educational programs, traveling to schools throughout the area with Johnson.

"Charlie is a great visual aid for the children," Johnson said.

Since 1992, Johnson has been in charge of the college’s Raptor Rehabilitation Program, providing temporary care for 40 to 60 birds a year that would die if left in the wild.