Pierre André Latreille (; 29 November 1762 – 6 February 1833) was a French zoologist, specialising in arthropods. Having trained as a Roman Catholic priest before the French Revolution, Latreille was imprisoned, and only regained his freedom after recognising a rare beetle species he found in the prison, Necrobia ruficollis. He entered the of Limoges in 1780, and left as a deacon in 1786. Despite being qualified to preach, Latreille later wrote that he had never carried out his functions as a minister, although for a few years he signed the letters he wrote "" ("the Reverend Latreille") or "" ("Latreille, Priest"). The beetle had been described by Johan Christian Fabricius in 1775, but recognising it had saved Latreille from likely demise, as all the other inmates were dead within one month. As Lamarck became blind, Latreille took on an increasing proportion of his teaching and research work. In 1821, Latreille was made a knight of the .

Later years

thumb|upright|Monument to Latreille over his grave at [[Père Lachaise Cemetery (39th division)]]

From 1824, Latreille's health deteriorated. He handed his lectures over to Jean Victoire Audouin and took on several assistants for his research work, including Amédée Louis Michel Lepeletier, Jean Guillaume Audinet-Serville and Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville.

Commemoration

The raised the money to pay for a monument to Latreille. This was erected over Latreille's grave at Père Lachaise Cemetery (39th division), and comprised a obelisk with various inscriptions, including one to the beetle which had saved Latreille's life: "" ("Necrobia ruficollis, Latreille's saviour").

thumb|A 3D model based on a [[micro-CT scan of the polychaete worm Lumbrineris latreilli, which is named after Latreille.]]

  • Lumbrineris latreilli <small>Audouin & H. Milne-Edwards, 1833</small>
  • Cecrops latreillii <small>Leach, 1816</small>
  • Apseudes latreillii <small>(H. Milne-Edwards, 1828)</small>
  • Orbinia latreillii <small>(Audouin & H. Milne-Edwards, 1833)</small>
  • Latreillia <small>Roux, 1830</small>
  • Cilicaea latreillei <small>Leach, 1818</small>
  • Bittium latreillii <small>(Payraudeau, 1826)</small>
  • Macrophthalmus latreillei <small>(Desmarest, 1822)</small>
  • Eurypodius latreillei <small>Guérin, 1828</small>
  • Sphex latreillei <small>Lepeletier de Saint Fargeau, 1831</small>

Work

thumb|right|Latreille named the rough woodlouse [[Porcellio scaber in 1804, and also established the genus Porcellio (1804), the sub-order Oniscidea (1802), the order Isopoda (1817) and the class Malacostraca (1802).]]

Latreille produced a significant body of scientific work, extending across several fields. He was described by Johan Christian Fabricius as ("the foremost entomologist of our time"), and by Jean Victoire Audouin as ("the prince of entomology"). His "eclectic method" of systematics incorporated evidence from all available characters without assuming a pre-defined goal; Latreille repeatedly dismissed anthropocentrism and teleology.