ANN ARBOR—Irving J. Cantrall, professor emeritus of zoology at the University of Michigan and curator emeritus of insects at the U-M Museum of Zoology, died here May 9. He was 87 years old.

Cantrall was an internationally recognized expert on Orthoptera (grasshoppers and related insects). He expanded and improved the Orthoptera collection at the U-M Museum of Zoology making it one of the finest in the world. Cantrall also spent eight y ears in residence at the U-M’s Edwin S. George Reserve and was instrumental in developing the Reserve into a nationally prominent field research facility.

Cantrall received his A.B. degree from U-M in 1935 and his Ph.D. in 1940. During the following two years, he served as an aquatic biologist with the Tennessee Valley Authority studying the life history of carp and the influence of water level fluctua tions on fish abundance and distribution. After serving in the U.S. Army Airforce in 1943-46, Cantrall became an assistant professor of biology at the University of Florida.

In 1949, Cantrall joined the U-M faculty as an assistant professor of zoology and curator of the Edwin S. George Reserve. In 1956, he became curator of insects in the U-M Museum of Zoology. He retired from the faculty in 1978.

He was a member of the Ecological Society of America; Michigan Academy of Science, Arts, and Letters; Pan Am Acridological Society and the Michigan Entomologist Society. He was, for many years, the editor of the Great Lakes Entomologist and also publ ished many articles on zoology in scholarly journals.

Cantrall was particularly devoted to teaching large classes of non-science majors. He gave many hours of public service to the Museum and the community working as a 4-H volunteer, judging the Southeastern Michigan Science Fair for 14 years, and answe ring endless inquiries about insects for students, professional colleagues and the general public.

Survivors include his wife, Dorothy; two children, Marion (Michael) Horton and James Cantrall, all of Ann Arbor; two grandchildren, William and Jonathon; one sister, Martha Clement of Forest City, Iowa.; and one brother, Arthur Cantrall of Colton, Cal if. Memorial services will be private.

E-mail: pobo@umich.edu

Museum of ZoologyEdwin S. George Reservepobo@umich.edu