NATIVE PLANTS & ANIMALS HALEAKALA

NATIVE HAWAIIAN PLANTS & ANIMALS IN HALEAKALA NATIONAL PARK

The barren, moon like surface of Haleakala Crater may look like a lifeless place… and for the most part it is. However there are some very unique plants and animals here that are found nowhere else on earth and are perfectly suited to this extreme environment.

Unfortunately many of Haleakala’s plants and animal habitats are near extinction due to decades of invasive species and livestock destroying this fragile landscape. Years spent fencing off and reducing populations of these invaders has led to many areas of recovery… but the work is ongoing to this day. Below are some the plants and animals found here along with some ways you can help protect and preserve this beautiful but fragile habitat…

Native Plants of Haleakala

Here are a few of the plants that the Haleakala National Park Service and many island organizations and volunteers have worked tirelessly to save and/or reintroduce throughout this stunning National Park…

Argyroxiphium virescens

This is a plant that once thrived just above the dense rainforest at 6,000 – 7,000 ft elevation. The species was lost from the park lands due to cattle and goat grazing. Also much of the native forest that these plants evolved in is gone – having been logged during the sandalwood trade in the early 1800’s.