Obituary of Frederick W Munz

Frederick Wolf Munz died February 27, 2016 at Cascade Manor, where he had resided since 2011. He was born September 3, 1929 to Phillip and Alice Munz in Claremont, California. Fred graduated from Webb School in 1946, and from Pomona College summa cum laude in 1950. In grad school at UCLA, Fred learned to scuba dive for his research. He and three friends built their own prototype wet suits, forming the “4 Skins” dive club. Completing his MA in 1952, Fred then served in the Army Counter Intelligence Corps in Germany. In 1954, he married the love of his life, Dorothy. After completing his PhD at UCLA in 1958 and a post-doc in England, Fred came to the University of Oregon in 1959 to teach biology. Fred made significant contributions to the field of “visual ecology.” He researched how retinal visual pigments evolved to support vision in fishes. He later compared visual pigment absorption spectra with radio-metric study of underwater light quality. In 1968, with a Guggenheim Fellowship, Fred and Dorothy took their three young children to Europe where Fred continued his research on vision in fishes. Collecting trips took Fred to many rivers and lakes in Oregon, and in the 60’s and 70’s Fred traveled to Hawaii and Eniwetok Atoll with grad school buddies for research. Dr. Munz gave his best to the craft of teaching, always working on effective ways to explain difficult concepts to students. The family explored the West on wonderful camping, backpacking, and cross-country skiing adventures, seeking truly wild and remote natural places, as well as the best small-town bakeries. In retirement, Fred & Dorothy enjoyed language studies and world travel until her death. Fred was an avid cook and baker, fly tyer and fisherman, and vegetable gardener. He loved bird watching, and was the first person to report spotting a Cerulean Warbler in the state of Oregon (in 2012). Fred's curiosity never diminished. From learning about Arduino and hex bugs with his grandson to exploring the strange world of the tardigrades, he continued to learn and explore new things. Fred was survived by children Sara and Carl of Portland, Alice of Eugene, son-in-law Robert, and grandson Max. He will be greatly missed by family and friends. A celebration of life is planned for Saturday May 14; contact Poole-Larsen at 541-484-1435 or check for updates in the online obituary at www.musgroves.com.