Celebrating, Advancing and Sharing Wisconsin's Conservation Legacy
Hugh Iltis
1925 – 2016 Inducted 2017
“Most of us are put on this Earth to do one simple thing — and that is to be a good ancestor. Both from a biological and a moral standpoint, we cannot, must not, do less.” — Hugh Iltis
Hugh Iltis was a distinguished scientist, teacher, environmentalist and passionate spokesperson for conservation. In 1955, he joined the UW-Madison Botany Department and for many years served as Director of the UW Herbarium.
In 1960 he co-founded The Nature Conservancy in Wisconsin and championed its efforts to protect natural areas by serving on its Board, providing technical and scientific advice on acquisitions, and working with landowners to protect some of Wisconsin’s most unique ecosystems, including the Baraboo Hills and Chiwaukee Prairie.
In the 1960s he joined fellow citizen activists to launch efforts to ban the use of DDT in Wisconsin and the nation. He also worked with many other national conservation organizations to protect natural areas and promote environmental quality. His technical bulletin Atlas of the Wisconsin Prairie and Savanna Flora co-authored by Theodore Cochran and published in 2000 is still being used today
Nationally and globally, Iltis is best known for his work as UW Herbarium Director, his efforts to protect biosphere reserves in Mexico and South America, and his plant studies, including the discovery in Mexico of Zea diploperennis, a perennial wild relative of corn, now being used for plant breeding.
ltis received numerous awards for his contributions to conservation including TNC’s highest honor – the Golden Oak Leaf Award, and a Presidential Award from the Republic of Mexico for his role in establishing the Sierra de Manantlan Biosphere Reserve.
Hugh Iltis relaxing in dugout canoe on Rio Frio, between Los Chiles, Costa Rica and San Carlos, Nicaragua. 1949. Photo: R.W. Holm. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Flowering specimen of Gunnera held by H. H. Iltis. Ravine in cloud forest, Volcán Irazu. 9,500' altitude. Photo: R. Holm. 1949. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Bob Koeppen, Frank Iltis, Hugh Iltis at sheperds hut on a ridge overlooking Mexico City. Base of Cerro Pelado north of La Cima. Ca. 3,400 m altitude. 1960. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Chiwaukee Prairie State Natural Area in Kenosha County, WI LR: Clifford Germain (WCHF Inductee), George Fell, founder of The Nature Conservancy, Hugh Iltis and Orie Loucks UW-Madision ecologist. Circa 1960s. Photo courtesy of WI DNR.
Hugh Iltis, Frank Iltis, Robert Koeppen, Andy Clewel, and others at the base of Cerro San Felipe. 1960. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Hugh Iltis and the prize teosinte, 2 km. north of El Progreso, Jutiapa. 1,040 m altitude. 1975. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Hugh Iltis with huge teosinte plants at "teosinte stop," 5 km south of Agua Blanca (Punta de Lucha), Dept. Chiguimula. 1976. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Iltis with teosinte stalk talking to local residents outside a house in the pueblo of El Progreso. 1976. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Hugh Iltis by roadside with teosinte on Pan-American Highway, 2 km east of El Progreso (Jutiapa) turnoff. 1976. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Hugh Iltis with tall corn (18') on road to Jacaltenango about 2 km east of San Antonio Huista, Huehuetenango. 1,300-1,400 m altitude. 1976. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Hugh next to huge trunk of Ceiba (Bombacacae) near top of Cerro Azul, Km. 14 west of Guayaquil. 1977. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
A smiling Hugh Iltis on Cerro Microondas Saporis, Chihuahuan Desert, 30 km southwest of Torreón, Durango. 4,300 feet altitude. 1978. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Hugh Iltis kneeling on patio with ears of various races of corn drying in the sun at CIMMYT, Tlaltizapan, Morelos Station. Photo: L. Nault. 1980. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Hugh Iltis with a copper vase, clowning for Rafael and Carmen Guzmán, at market in Guadalajara. 1980. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Iltis and Guzmán after a seminar at the Universidad de Guadalajara, Mexico in celebration of the creation of the Reserva de la Biosfera, Sierra de Manantlán in honor of Prof. Iltis. 1987. Photo courtesy of UW-Madison Digital Archives.
Hugh Iltis at the dedication of the Butenhoff Prairie in Green Co., WI - a site discovered by Gary Eldred (WCHF Inductee). Circa 1988. Photo courtesy of Gary Eldred.
Hugh Iltis at his 85th birthday celebration in Madison, WI. 2010. Photo by James Steakley.
Hugh Iltis was a distinguished scientist, teacher, environmentalist and passionate spokesperson for conservation. In 1955, he joined the UW-Madison Botany Department and for many years served as Director of the UW Herbarium.
In the 1960s he joined fellow citizen activists to launch efforts to ban the use of DDT in Wisconsin and the nation. He also worked with many other national conservation organizations to protect natural areas and promote environmental quality. His technical bulletin Atlas of the Wisconsin Prairie and Savanna Flora co-authored by Theodore Cochran and published in 2000 is still being used today
