Manager of Reproductive Sciences

Education

M.S.—Ecology, University of Missouri-St. Louis
B.S.—Animal Science, Colorado State University

Areas of Expertise

Reproductive management
Gamete banking
Comparative reproductive physiology
Biotelemetry, wildlife monitoring and ambient data collection techniques

About Karen Bauman

Karen's interests are varied; she focused on beef cattle reproduction in college, before finding her niche working in zoos. Prior to starting at the Saint Louis Zoo, she did internships at three other zoos gaining experience in nutrition, animal records/animal health and curatorial management. She began at Saint Louis Zoo as a research intern, and was subsequently hired to work on a two-year grant studying ovulatory cycles in addax (Addax nasomaculatus), a critically endangered antelope. At the conclusion of the grant, she began work in the Zoo's Research Department (now the Department of Reproductive and Behavioral Sciences) where she has been fortunate to work on a diversity of projects with a variety of mammals, birds and reptiles (still waiting for the perfect insect project!).

Karen's job as the Manager of Reproductive Sciences is to design and implement reproductive research projects. She also is responsible for providing services such as fertility assessments, gamete banking and problem solving to increase the reproductive success of zoo-based breeding efforts. Her job assists the Zoo staff in caring for animals by maintaining sustainable and healthy animal populations, as well as contributing tools and scientific data for global in situ and ex situ animal conservation efforts.

Some of her current projects include analyzing mother-infant antelope behavior, developing improved ovulation induction protocols for use in Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) and banteng (Bos javanicus) artificial insemination, evaluating Lifetime Reproductive Planning strategies for managing captive populations (with staff from the AZA Reproductive Management Center), testing cryopreservation methods for gamete banking, and using computer-assisted motion analysis and fluorescent stains to assess the condition of frozen-thawed sperm.

Karen serves as Chair of the AZA Canid and Hyenid Taxon Advisory Group (TAG), the Coordinator of the AZA Fennec Fox Species Survival Plan (SSP), and on several AZA scientific advisory committees. She is a member of the IUCN Species Survival Commission's (SSC) Conservation Planning Specialist Group, as well as the Canid and Hyenid Specialist Groups. These roles allow her to make unique contributions to initiatives of the Department, the Zoo and global conservation efforts.

For a complete list of Karen’s published works, visit her Research Gate profile.