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Published on April 25, 2023

Audubon Remembers Hugh Willoughby 

By Robert Bushnell

Hugh Willoughby served the Audubon Society as a volunteer in many capacities.  He was a former Board member, property committee member, and an enthusiastic Chairman of the Field Trip Committee in the 1970s and 1980s. He was a long-time leader of Block Island Weekends and of numerous and varied natural history walks. He was known for his expertise in birds, mammals, dragonflies, wildflowers, and geology (and a long list of other fields of study). He was also known for still remembering the names of most, if not all the participants on his many walks.  

Hugh was a life-long learner with an incredible memory for details. This, combined with his love of observation and field identification, made him a master teacher, and teaching others about the natural world was Hugh’s passion.  

Hugh Willoughby passed away on April 10, 2023, at age 91. His greatest legacy is the many of us he taught and influenced, a legacy we will continue to pass on to others. For this, we are all indebted to Hugh. 


Robert Bushnell is the former Audubon Board President. 

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