In March 1951, 28 US and Canadian wildlife biologists at the 16th North American Wildlife Conference in Milwaukee Wisconsin founded an organization called the Wildlife Disease Committee which in 1952 became the Wildlife Disease Association. The goal was to establish an international scientific organization dedicated solely to the study and understanding of the health of wild animals.
Dr. Carlton Herman, a scientist at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services’ Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, was the WDA’s founding chairman (1951-1955) and first elected president (1959-1961). He also served as editor of Wildlife Disease, a microfiche journal, from 1959-1972. To learn more about Dr. Herman’s contribution to the WDA and the field of wildlife health go HERE.
Wildlife Disease evolved into the Journal of Wildlife Diseases, the primary peer-reviewed publication for global wildlife health issues and is the cornerstone of the WDA publications catalogue.
From its North American origins, the WDA has expanded to include six Geographic Sections which have further connected members across the globe. These sections: Australasia, Nordic, European, Africa Middle East, Asia Pacific, and Latin America each hold a seat on the WDA Council, as well as undertaking activities in their own geographic regions. In addition, the Wildlife Veterinary Section is open to all members of the WDA and holds a seat on Council.
The WDA is governed by our Constitution and Bylaws and guided by our Mission and Charter of Values. The governing body is our Council which consists of 21 positions including the officers; president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer in addition to the past president, editor-in-chief, six members-at-large, seven section chairs and an elected student member.
The Association currently contracts with two positions, the executive manager, who runs the operational side of the WDA in coordination with the association management portion of Allen Press, and the editor-in-chief who in coordination with the publishing branch of Allen Press oversees production of the Journal of Wildlife diseases.
