DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A metro Atlanta college library could soon reopen after an owl that lived in the library for a week is gone.

The owl flew down the chimney at Agnes Scott’s McCain Library and was perched in the rafters.

The school shut the main floor of the library down to protect both the owl and the students. They hired a professional falconer who left a door open and then tried to shoo the owl away with a long stick. The falconer also set up a special trap with a pigeon and a gerbil inside.

Library director Elizabeth Bagley said the barred owl is not the first bird to take up residence in the building.

“This is our fourth bird,” Bagley said. “First owl, but the fourth bird to come down the chimney.”

“It’s been fun in some ways, but we’d like our library and study space back at some point,” Bagley said.

The owl was finally captured and released on Friday.

Video shows the falconer releasing the owl and the bird immediately flying to a nearby tree.

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