LATREILLE, PIERRE-ANDR

born Nov. 29, 1762, Brive-la-Gaillarde, France died Feb. 6, 1833, Paris French zoologist and Roman Catholic priest, father of modern entomology, who achieved the first detailed classification of crustaceans and insects. Although he was a devoted student of natural history, Latreille was educated for the priesthood and was ordained in Paris in 1786. Publication of his Prcis des caractres gnriques des insectes disposs dans un ordre naturel (1796; Summary of the Generic Characteristics of Insects, Arranged in a Natural Order) marked the beginnings of modern entomology, the scientific study of insects. It also brought him the position of head of the entomology department at the National Museum of Natural History, Paris (1799). In this capacity Latreille published many works, among them Histoire naturelle gnrale et particulire des crustacs et insectes, 14 vol. (180205; Comprehensive Natural History of Crustaceans and Insects). In 1829 he succeeded Jean Lamarck as professor of zoology in crustaceans, arachnids, and insects at the National Museum of Natural History.