Meet Johanna Loacker, Curatorial Assistant II in Invertebrate Zoology

Johanna Loacker has always loved animals, but working at a natural history museum was never presented as a career option while she was studying biology as an undergrad. Then she visited the Academy.

Johanna came here for the first time when her parents were visiting from Seattle during her sophomore year at the University of San Francisco. “As soon as I walked in the door, I said, ‘I have to work here someday,’” she recalls.

She began volunteering in 2014, shelving specimens in the invertebrate zoology dry collection. “I thought, ‘This is what I was meant to do with my life,’” she says. “I loved being surrounded by the library of life—the collection.”

When she graduated in 2017, a full-time curatorial assistant position opened up. The Monday after graduation she began working at the Academy full time.

When Johanna first started volunteering, the only thing she knew about invertebrates was that they don’t have a backbone. But her love of learning meant she was a quick study in an environment where opportunities to learn present themselves every day. She even has a favorite invertebrate species, bathynomus (giant isopods), which she likes to show to NightLife guests.

Today Johanna is part of a team of five who manage 800,000 lots or about 10 million specimens. One part of her job involves responding to requests for specimens from researchers all over the world.

“We literally mail snails,” she says. It’s not as simple as it sounds, though: Mailing specimens, sometimes in flammable ethanol, requires navigating a variety of government regulations and filing documents with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and other agencies.

The bulk of Johanna’s work these days is digitizing most of the invertebrate zoology collection. That also involves coordinating a half dozen volunteers, which is one of her favorite parts of the job.

One recent highlight: Picking up a donation last month from a man who just turned 101 years old. “We wrapped up these beautiful shells that this man collected throughout his life and got to talk to him about his experience collecting these shells from around the world,” she says.

Outside of work, Johanna is earning a master’s degree in museum studies from Johns Hopkins University. During COVID, she and her partner also set a goal of walking or biking on as many streets in San Francisco as they can. So far she’s covered 67% of 1,424 total miles in San Francisco.

Academy anniversary (full time): January 2017

Favorite Academy animal: Giant isopods. “I grew up playing with rolly pollies, so it’s amazing to see they can get so big while living on the ocean floor, where it’s pretty sparse and they have to scavenge for food. They call to me.”

Favorite part of your job: “As someone who was a volunteer here, I feel like I can really connect to the younger college student volunteers trying to figure out what they want to do. I can mentor them and share my experience. I also like talking with the retirees and hearing their stories.”

First job: Working at our family’s map store at Pike Place Market in Seattle.

Ronna Kelly is director of communications.