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This past January, Karen Bjorndal officially retired from her positions as a Distinguished Professor of biology and the director of the Archie Carr Center for Sea Turtle Research, marking the end of a more than 50-year career at the university.

Bjorndal first discovered her love for sea turtles right before coming to UF. As an undergraduate student at Occidental College, she took part in a 6-month research excursion on Santa Fe Island in the Galapagos, being the only human living on the island for two of those months. There, she would watch the local sea turtles as they swam to the surface for air, marveling at how the turtles “lived in two worlds.” This experience inspired her to begin her sea turtle research and conservation efforts and led her to the University of Florida.

After graduating from Occidental College and spending a year working at Grace Central Hospital in Detroit, Bjorndal got her start at UF as a graduate student in the Department of Zoology in 1973. As a PhD student, she was mentored by the legendary Archie Carr, a pioneer in sea turtle conservation efforts, and with his guidance she undertook a year-and-a-half long residence in the Bahamas for her doctoral project. From the southernmost island in the country, Great Inagua, she observed feeding and digestion habits among the local population of green sea turtles.

Bjorndal received her PhD in 1979, and for the next eight years she would continue to work with UF as a postdoctoral associate. During this time, she continued to work on sea turtle conservation projects with Carr and the World Wildlife Fund, as well as a project on methane production of biomass with John Moore from the Department of Animal Sciences.

In the August of 1987, she officially joined the UF faculty as an assistant professor of zoology and as the director of the newly established Archie Carr Center for Sea Turtle Research. She would hold the directorship position for the remainder of her career while working her way up through the ranks of professorship. She became an associate professor in 1992, a professor in 1996, and a distinguished professor in 2012. In addition to research and teaching, Bjorndal was also a mentor to many, just like Archie Carr before her. She has helped many graduate students earn their PhDs, and she considers their successes to be her proudest accomplishments.

It was while working at UF in 1977 that Bjorndal met her husband, Alan Bolten. Bolten was a faculty member of the Department of Biology, and the two worked closely on many projects in the Bahamas, the Azores, and Brazil. The pair got married in 1982 and continued working together until Bolten’s passing in 2021.

Looking back, Bjorndal considers those projects some of her favorites, both for the research she was doing and the people she met along the way. “The faculty and staff of the Department of Zoology/Biology have been a joy to work with,” said Bjorndal. “I am very grateful to have enjoyed the support of so many wonderful colleagues.”

Although Bjorndal’s time as a professor and director is over, she has no plans to stop working altogether. “ I plan to continue to mentor students, conduct research on the biology of sea turtles, and support ongoing efforts to conserve sea turtles,” she said.