Heather D S Walden,

Dr. Heather Walden’s research interests focus on parasitic disease, diagnosis and classical parasite biology. She has collaborated on several research projects throughout the United States, Mexico, Ecuador and The Galapagos Islands, Zambia and Senegal. She regularly works with zoonotic and non-zoonotic parasites of exotic and domestic hosts, as her training focuses on classical and molecular parasitology, including diagnostic procedures for a diversified parasite assemblage.

Additionally, Dr. Walden teaches parasitology to veterinary students in the first, third and fourth years of their curriculum, as well as gives parasite lectures in other VetMed courses. She actively trains veterinary, graduate and undergraduate students in her laboratory and is active in international and national veterinary parasitology organizations.

Dr. Walden manages a diagnostic/discovery parasitology service in the UFCVM Parasitology Lab. She receives parasite specimens from small and large animal clinics, and private and public zoological organizations and conservation centers specializing in both domestic and exotic animal care. Services range from gross parasite identification to fecal analysis and other diagnostic parasitology techniques.

Research interests include zoonotic parasitic disease, diagnostic and classical parasite biology. Collaborations include studies on the epizootiology of parasites in domestic and exotic hosts, as well as diagnosis of internal and external parasites in all types of host species. Major host species include both wild and captive mammals, reptiles, birds and amphibians. Current research involves host preference, transmission and geographic range of the rat lungworm, Angiostrongylus cantonensis.