Animal Research Building 

The Animal Research Building 

houses NWRC’s attending supervisory 

veterinarian and animal care staff and 

contains modern animal holding and 

research space, as well as animal care 

facilities. It was completed in 1995 and 

has about 33,000 square feet of space. 

It includes surgery and necropsy rooms, 

two simulated natural environments, 

a 2,500 square-foot BSL-3 suite, an 

industrial cage wash area, a food 

preparation room, and loading docks. 

Outdoor Animal Research Facility 

The majority of NWRC’s 43-acre 

headquarters campus consists of the 

Outdoor Animal Research Facility (OARF). 

The facility was completed in 2003 

and totals 24 acres in size. It includes 

20 specialized pen structures and 

4 related support buildings. Testing 

the effectiveness of new wildlife damage 

management tools in a natural setting 

is challenging and very costly. The 

OARF gives researchers the ability to 

house wild animals for study under 

controlled conditions. 

United States Department of Agriculture

The National Wildlife Research Center 

(NWRC) functions as the research arm 

of the Wildlife Services program in the 

U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service (APHIS). Its mission is to apply 

scientific expertise to resolve humanwildlife conflicts while maintaining 

the quality of the environment shared 

with wildlife. 

 The NWRC employs about 150 

scientists, technicians, and support 

staff to develop and evaluate new 

wildlife damage management tools 

and techniques. More than half 

of its personnel are located at its 

headquarters campus at Colorado State 

University in Fort Collins, CO. The 

remaining personnel are located 

at several field stations across the 

United States and focus on regional 

wildlife damage management issues. 

 The 43-acre NWRC headquarters 

campus includes chemistry and disease 

laboratories, outdoor animal holding 

pens, tropical and temperate simulated 

natural environments (SNEs), and 

a Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) suite. 

These unique facilities enable NWRC 

scientists to study traditional laboratory 

animals and wildlife species in both 

laboratory and semi-natural settings 

and to test, evaluate, and modify new 

wildlife damage management tools 

and techniques.

The Outdoor Animal Research Facility includes

 a 1-acre flight pen.

Headquarters 

Campus–Fort 

Collins, CO

Wildlife Science Building

The Wildlife Science Building (WSB) 

contains offices and laboratories for the 

majority of the NWRC headquarters staff. 

The building was completed in 1999 

and has about 82,000 square feet of 

space. Approximately 30 percent of the 

WSB is dedicated to chemistry, genetics, 

and disease laboratories. The remaining 

70 percent comprises office and 

administrative areas, conference rooms, 

the library, and archives. 

Wildlife Science Building

NWRC’s animal care specialist prepares 

food for captive animals onsite.

NWRC includes a 

2,500-square-foot 

Biosafety Level 3 suite.

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

National Wildlife Research Center

April 2016
Learn More

For more information, please contact:

National Wildlife Research Center

Wildlife Services

APHIS, USDA

4101 LaPorte Avenue

Fort Collins, CO 80521

You may also call NWRC at (970) 266-

6000 or visit our Web site at 

www.aphis.usda.gov/wildlifedamage/nwrc.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. 

APHIS 11-55-011

OARF buildings include the following:

•	 Mammal, predator, and raptor pens

•	 Indoor and outdoor aviaries

•	 Rodent buildings

•	 Waterfowl pens

•	 Small bird pens

•	 1-acre flight pen

•	 Warehouse long-term storage space

•	 Bulk chemical storage

•	 Garage and facilities shop

• Equipment compound for storing 

vehicles, trailers, and other large 

outdoor equipment 

Invasive Species Research 

Building 

The Invasive Species Research Building 

(ISRB) allows NWRC scientists to study 

invasive species in many types of 

simulated climates. The building was 

completed in 2006 and has about 

25,000 square feet of space. In the 

building’s SNEs, scientists can control 

the temperature, moisture, and light 

to simulate an animal’s native habitat. 

The ISRB is designed to help scientists 

study the ecology, behavior, and basic 

biology of invasive amphibians, reptiles, 

birds, and mammals. Scientists also 

study detection methods and potential 

control methods, such as lures, 

repellents, capture devices, toxicants, 

and reproductive inhibitors. In addition 

to numerous temperate and tropical 

animal rooms, two large SNEs, and a 

laboratory, the ISRB contains several 

offices and cubicles, a quarantine area, 

a food preparation and storage room, an 

industrial cage wash, a necropsy room, 

and a digital x-ray facility.

Invasive Species Research Building

NWRC animal care specialist in one of the animal 

pens at the Outdoor Animal Research Facility