Erica is the current President of WDA CANUSA and has been involved with the chapter in various leadership roles since its launch in 2023. She is in the final year of her PhD in Veterinary Medical Sciences at the University of Calgary, where she studies muskox health in the Canadian Arctic in partnership with Inuit hunters and communities. Born and raised in Alberta, Erica is also a hunter and enjoys spending time outdoors whenever her PhD allows. Outside of research, she can usually be found shooting her bow or rifles, skiing, or fitting in the occasional hike.

Nick is the President-Elect for WDA CANUSA. He is currently an emerging disease technician at the USGS National Wildlife Health Center. He graduated last fall with his MS from the University of Florida and will be starting a PhD in Fall 2027. Nick has studied a variety of vector-borne diseases (Tick-borne Relapsing Fever, Chagas Disease, etc.) and is broadly interested in studying zoonotic diseases from a One Health perspective. He was the former Communications Chair and is now looking forward to being CANUSA’s President-Elect!

Rebecca Radisic is the Treasuer for WDA CANUSA for a second year! She is a PhD candidate at the UC Davis Weill School of Veterinary Medicine One Health Institute. She also is a DVM and board-certified anatomic pathologist. Her research interests include wildlife disease surveillance, reservoir hosts and their role in the maintenance and persistence of emerging infectious diseases, and viral pathology. In her spare time, Rebecca likes running and hot yoga, and holds a soft spot for emperor penguins and sea turtles 

Emilie is the Communications Chair of WDA CANUSA. She holds a MS in Conservation Medicine from Tufts and is currently a first year veterinary student at the Royal Veterinary College. While she has spent the better part of the last eight years working in sea turtle conservation, she is looking forward to studying marine disease ecology, antimicrobial resistance and toxicology. Though currently studying in England, Emilie is originally from Maryland and loves to spend her free time along the Chesapeake Bay with her pup. Emilie hopes to work as a leader and mentor in Conservation Medicine.

Crystal is the Social Media Chair for WDA CANUSA. She is a first year master’s student at East Stroudsburg University in biology, where she is working on a thesis titled Corridors of Collapse, where she is doing research on different extinct species and how it could potentially impact their environments. One fun fact is that she is a first generation college student. First to get a bachelor’s degree and now master’s, and maybe PhD if she decides to go for it. Baking is for sure her favorite hobby, and her favorite wildlife species is a monkey!

Lily is the Workshop Planning Chair for WDA CANUSA. She is a first-year DVM student at the Atlantic Veterinary College in PEI, Canada. Originally from Florida, she enjoys reading, lying in the sun, and baking. At home, she has two pups, Margo and Harley, and her favorite wildlife species would be whales. She really looks forward to supporting CANUSA in this position!

Maddy is a Member-at-Large for WDA CANUSA. She is a PhD candidate at the Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia. Her work is with Carver Research Group and involves camera trapping canids and assessing the photos for clinical signs of sarcoptic mange disease. Outside of her research, she loves to explore the outdoors with her dog, read, and play the piano. 

Hannah is a Member-at-Large for WDA CANUSA. She is a current master's student at Texas A&M University-Kingsville where she studies Davis Mountains cottontail and helps fill knowledge gaps about the species. When she isn't busy with her own research, she loves to spend time with her dog and scuba dive!

Joy (she/her) is a Member-at-Large for WDA CANUSA. She earned a dual B.S. in Wildlife Conservation and Biological Sciences at Virginia Tech. Currently, she is working towards her PhD in Wildlife and Fisheries Science at The Pennsylvania State University. Joy has previously looked at landcover change relationships with Ebola virus spillover for her research. Now, she is developing species distribution models and pathogen growth models for North American salamander species. She is the founder and the previous President and Treasurer of CANUSA. She currently acts as member-at-large within CANUSA. Outside of research, Joy enjoys creating Dungeons & Dragons campaigns and thrifting.

Katie is a Member-at-Large for WDA CANUSA. She is a Master’s student in Biological Anthropology at the University of Calgary, where she studies the molecular basis of dietary specialization among sympatric mammals in Costa Rica. She is broadly interested in wildlife health, ecology, and adaptive evolution, and has previously worked with wildlife systems ranging from feral horses on Sable Island to caribou and muskoxen in the Canadian Arctic. Outside of research, Katie loves spending time outdoors and embracing her inner grandma with hobbies like knitting. She is excited to become more involved with WDA CANUSA, connect with others, and contribute to the wildlife health community!

Gabriela is a Member-at-Large for WDA CANUSA. She is an undergraduate student at the University of Alberta pursuing a BSc in Animal Health with a major in Food Animals. She is currently a research assistant in a beef cattle genetics lab and is completing a swine practicum, where she is gaining experience in swine nutrition, production, and behavior. Her academic interests center around animal health, especially pathology, and she is passionate about understanding how disease impacts livestock systems, surrounding wildlife species, and the interplay insects have on that connection!

Alayna Sofia is a Member-at-Large for WDA CANUSA. Her first love is the sea and she is in her final year of the Master of Public Health program at Yale School of Public Health and is a hybrid remote student based in Seattle, Washington. She studies environmental health science and epidemiology, and loves learning about fish and food webs. Alayna is most happy when she is outside exploring with her two dogs, Beauregard and Archibald. All three of them love playing in the mud and swimming. One fun fact about Alayna is that she loves dancing in her kitchen while cooking extravagant meals.

Natalie (DVM, MS, DACVP) is an Alumni Representative for WDA CANUSA. She is a veterinary anatomic pathologist developing a subspecialty in zoo and wildlife pathology. Currently, she is based in Madison, WI working as a research associate/wildlife pathology fellow with the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine and the United States Geological Survey’s National Wildlife Health Center. At the end of the year, she will be starting a full time position as a Lecturer of Veterinary Anatomic Pathology at the Royal Veterinary College in London! Dr. Tocco is an avid runner and her favorite animals are pumas and cheetahs! 

Norma is an Alumni Representative for WDA CANUSA. She is a postdoctoral researcher at Université de Montréal, where she studies Indigenous Knowledge, fish health, and environmental change in northern Canada. Her background is in veterinary pathology and computational ecology, and she has also spent a lot of time studying bats! She is particularly interested in wildlife disease surveillance, conservation, and bringing together different disciplines to better understand wildlife and ecosystem health. She also enjoys science communication and connecting research with conservation. Outside of work, she loves photography, art, spending time outdoors, and making memories with family and friends!

Shelli is the Faculty Advisor for WDA CANUSA. Shelli Dubay is a professor of Wildlife in the College of Natural Resources at the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point. Shelli has experience with state wildlife agencies, including the Arizona Game and Fish Department and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Shelli began at UWSP in 2005 and has taught courses including Wildlife Diseases, Wildlife Techniques, Introduction to Fisheries and Wildlife, Forestry and Wildlife, Captive Wildlife Techniques, and Captive Wildlife Management. She is a wildlife ecologist interested in disease epizootiology and physiological ecology. Shelli has been fascinated by mortality and diseases in free-ranging Wildlife, and working with Wildlife in a Lyme Disease lab as an undergraduate reinforced her interest in wildlife health.