APHIS HomeAbout APHISNewsroomCareer OpportunitiesHelpContact Us
Decrease Font Size Increase Font Size
Search

USDA in Facebook APHIS in Twitter APHIS in Youtube APHIS Stakeholder Registry APHIS in Pictures APHIS in Blog APHIS RSS News Feeds

Browse by Subject
Animal Health
Animal Welfare
Biotechnology
Emergency Preparedness and Response
Import and Export
International Services
Permits
Plant Health
Regulations and Assessments
APHIS User Fees
Wildlife Control and Management
Wildlife Damage
USDA - APHIS - Wildlife Damage

National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC)

Divider

photo of Tom DeLiberto

Thomas J. DeLiberto, NWRC Assistant Director

Dr. DeLiberto graduated from Colorado State University with a B.S. in Wildlife Biology in 1984.  Upon graduation, he worked as a technician for the Colorado Division of Wildlife. In 1987, he received an M.S. in wildlife management from Texas Tech University where he studied the nutritional ecology of white-tailed deer. From Texas, Tom traveled to Logan, UT, where he began a Ph.D. program at Utah State University studying bison.  In 1997, he obtained his doctorate in Range Science and moved to Pullman, WA, to attend veterinary school.  After receiving his DVM, Dr. DeLiberto began working with Wildlife Services’ National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC) at the predation ecology and behavior field station in Logan, UT.  In 2001, he became the Wildlife Disease Project Leader for NWRC and began researching rabies and bovine tuberculosis in wildlife.

Subsequently, Dr. DeLiberto served as the National Wildlife Disease Coordinator for Wildlife Services from 2003-2012.  His duties included implementation of the National Wildlife Disease Surveillance and Emergency Response System (SERS).  He was the chairperson for the interagency working group that developed the U.S. strategic plan: “An early detection system for highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in wild migratory birds” and was on the writing team that developed the “National plan for sssisting states, federal agencies, and tribes in managing white-nose syndrome in bats.” 

Tom currently serves as an Assistant Director for the NWRC where he continues to coordinate Wildlife Services’ SERS and research projects on diseases, chemistry, and economics.  Dr. DeLiberto also serves on the Interagency Wild Bird HPAI Steering Committee, the White-Nose Syndrome Executive and Steering Committees, the National Biosurveillance Working Group, and the Foreign Animal Disease Threats Wildlife Task Force.  He represents Wildlife Services on the board of directors for the U.S. Animal Health Association and the Wildlife Society’s Wildlife Disease Working Group and on the Advisory Council for the American Association of Wildlife Veterinarians. Additionally, Dr. DeLiberto coordinates wildlife disease surveillance and capacity-building projects in China, Southeast Asia, Indonesia, Greenland, Mexico, Kenya, Uganda, Peru, and the Ukraine.

Expertise/Experience

  • Epidemiology
  • Livestock-Wildlife Interactions
  • Chemical Immobilization
  • National and International Disease Surveillance Systems

Taxonomic Groups of Interest

Mammal, birds, internal and external macroparasites, microbial pathogens

Current Research

  • Feral swine diseases
  • Influenza
  • Avian diseases
  • White-nose syndrome
  • Bovine tuberculosis
  • One Health

Products/Techniques Developed or Tested

  • "An early detection system for highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in wild migratory birds: U.S. interagency strategic plan"
  • " Implementation plan for HPAI surveillance in wild migratory birds in the United States"
  • "USDA/APHIS/Wildlife Services procedures manual for avian influenza surveillance"
  • "USDA/APHIS/Wildlife Services instructions for NAHLN laboratories testing wild bird samples"
  • "A national plan for assisting states, federal agencies, and tribes in managing white-nose syndrome in bats"
  • "USDA/APHIS/Wildlife Services procedures manual for Baylisascaris species surveillance"
  • "Wildlife Services' comprehensive feral swine disease surveillance procedures manual"
  • Trichinella and toxoplasma identification project: genotyping trichinella and toxoplasma"
  • "Guidelines for surveillance of bovine tuberculosis in wildlife"
  • "Plague and tularemia procedures manual"
  • "USDA/APHIS/Wildlife Services procedures manual for canine parvovirus (CPV) surveillance"
  • "Hepatitis E virus (HEV) procedures manual"
  • Brucella culturing project: isolation of Brucella suis and/or Brucella abortus
  • "Influenza surveillance in swine: procedures manual"
  • "USDA/APHIS/Wildlife Services' instructions for NAHLN laboratories testing feral swine samples for SIV"

Education     

  • DVM, Washington State University
  • Ph.D., Range Science, Utah State University
  • M.S., Wildlife Management, Texas Tech University
  • B.S., Wildlife Biology, Colorado State University

Certifications

  • State of Colorado, Active Veterinarian
  • Foreign Animal Disease Diagnostician
  • Foreign Animal Disease Practitioner
  • Basic Bovine TB Epidemiology Certification
  • Advanced Bovine TB Epidemiology Certification
  • Designated Tuberculosis Epidemiology Certification
  • Basic Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Certification
  • Incident Command System Certification Levels 100-800

Previous Positions

  • 2003-Present   National Wildlife Disease Coordinator, USDA-APHIS, Wildlife Services, Fort Collins, CO
  • 2002-2003       Attending Veterinarian, USDA-APHIS, Wildlife Services National Wildlife Research Center, Fort Collins, CO
  • 2001-2002       Project Leader, Wildlife Disease Research Program, USDA-APHIS, Wildlife Services National Wildlife Research Center, Fort Collins, CO
  • 1997-2001       Wildlife Veterinarian / Research Physiologist, USDA-APHIS, Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Research Center, Predator Ecology and Behavior Project, Logan, UT
  • 1997-1998       Attending Wildlife Veterinarian, Utah State University, Logan, UT
  • 1997-1998       Adjunct Assistant Professor, Departments of Fisheries and Wildlife, Rangeland Resources, and Animal, Dairy, and Veterinary Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, UT
  • 1997-1998       Associate Editor, Western Journal of Applied Forestry
  • 1994-1997       Assistant Project Manager, and Wildlife, Range, and Biodiversity Specialist, Pioneer Environmental Services, Logan, UT
  • 1992-1996       President, Wildland Resources Environmental Consultants, Logan, UT
  • 1987-1995       Wildlife Biologist and Veterinary Assistant, Antelope Island State Park, Farmington, UT
  • 1984-1985       Biological Aide, Colorado Division of Wildlife, Fort Collins, CO
  • 1980-1985       Wildlife Technician, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
  • 1982-1984       Wildlife Technician, Colorado Division of Wildlife, Fort Collins, CO
  • 1981-1982       Fisheries Technician, Colorado Division of Wildlife, Fort Collins, CO
  • 1980-1981       Wildlife Caretaker, USDA-Forest Service, Orono, ME

International Experience

  • Canada
  • Mexico
  • Costa Rica
  • Argentina
  • Peru
  • Chile
  • China
  • Thailand
  • Vietnam
  • Cambodia
  • Laos
  • Russia
  • Denmark
  • Greenland
  • South Africa

Contact Information


Last Modified: April 11, 2012