National Parks Traveler Podcast | Endemic Haleakalā

National Parks Traveler Podcast | Endemic Haleakalā

Author: Kurt Repanshek December 7, 2025 Duration: 44:14

Haleakalā National Park is deceptively wonderful and rich in biodiversity. But if we're not careful, we could lose some of that biodiversity. 

Located on the island of Maui in Hawaii, the first thing you notice about this national park is its towering dormant volcano, Haleakalā, which rises from sea level to more than 10,000 feet.

While many visitors simply want to head to the top of the volcano to peer into its crater or enjoy a colorful sunrise or sunset, if you take a little time to get to know this park you'll be amazed by what doesn't first come into sight. For instance, there are more than 300 plant and animal species endemic to Haleakalā — found nowhere else in the world —  and many species that are being threatened or endangered with extinction.

Kurt Repanshek headed to Haleakalā this past week with Special Projects Editor Patrick Cone and Assistant Editor Rita Beamish to learn more about the park and its rare and unique species.


There's a world of stories waiting beyond the park entrance sign, and the National Parks Traveler Podcast is your audio guide to them. Led by Kurt Repanshek, this series goes deeper than trail maps and visitor statistics. It connects the natural wonder you experience firsthand with the crucial, often unseen work happening behind the scenes-the science informing conservation, the cultural histories embedded in the landscape, and the policy decisions that will shape these places for future generations. As the audio companion to the editorially independent nonprofit media organization, this podcast delivers a thoughtful blend of on-the-ground reports, interviews with researchers and park staff, and nuanced discussions about the challenges and triumphs in managing protected areas. You'll hear the sounds of the parks and the voices of the people dedicated to them. Each episode is an invitation to better understand the complex tapestry of ecology, history, and society that makes every national park far more than a scenic destination. Tune in for a regular dose of insight that will deepen your appreciation and perhaps even shape your next journey into America's most treasured public lands.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

National Parks Traveler Podcast
Podcast Episodes
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Kilauea's Unrest [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:11
One of the greatest shows on Earth has been going on now for several months in Hawaii, where the Kīlauea volcano at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park has been erupting since late December. The Kīlauea volcano is the most a…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Covering the Parks [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 52:27
There are more stories to be found in the National Park System than one could write in a lifetime. Or several lifetimes. Sometimes those stories can be hard to spot. How many were aware of the factoid from Great Smoky Mo…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | A Little Volcanic Levity [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:15
In this week's podcast we thought we'd take a break from the unsettling news happening in and around our national parks and federal lands regarding park staff reductions and threats of reducing park boundaries to make wa…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | National Park Service Upheaval [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:38
There is, across the country, some upheaval going on as the Trump administration works to reduce the size of the federal government. Whether you support that effort or oppose it, you can't deny there's not upheaval going…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Threatened Lands [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:06
Across the United States there are hundreds of millions of acres of public lands. Indeed, there are more than 500 million acres of federal lands managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Forest Service, and…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | NPS Cast Aside [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:23
It was just over a week ago, on Valentine's Day, that the Trump administration wiped 1,000 employees off the National Park Service staff without any apparent strategy other than that they were dispensable staff still on…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | National Parks in Crisis [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 42:38
The Trump administration's determination to reduce the size of government regardless of the cost is having a hard impact on the National Park Service. Last month the agency was forced to rescind job offers to seasonal wo…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | The Ghost Forest [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:55
National parks are home to many iconic trees. Bristlecones pines, Whitebark pines, Sequoias, even mangroves. And, of course, redwoods. These trees hold many stories. The size alone of redwoods and sequoias are enough to…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Keeping Cape Lookout Above Water [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:37
Rising sea levels, stronger storms, eroding shorelines, and sinking terrain are taking a toll on the fragile ecosystems and historic resources at Cape Lookout National Seashore on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. A new…
National Parks Traveler Podcast | Parks Under Pressure [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:44
Here we are, a week into the second administration of President Donald Trump. It's certainly a time of change, some of which is expected, and some perhaps not. Do we really need to rename North America's tallest mountain…