The small team caring for some of the last of Hawaii's native snail species

More than a million species are at risk of extinction, many within decades, because of human actions. Kāhuli, Hawaii's native tree snails, are among these at-risk species. They're some of the most endangered animals on the planet.

At one point, there used to be about 750 species of snails in Hawaii — almost all of them found nowhere else. Now, they are rapidly disappearing. NPR climate reporters Lauren Sommer and Ryan Kellman join host Emily Kwong to tell the story of the small team caring for the last of some of these snail species — and their fight against extinction.

Read more of Sommer and Kellman's reporting on this conservation effort.

Curious about other biodiversity news? Email us at [email protected] and we might cover your topic on a future episode!

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This episode was produced by Jessica Yung and edited by Rebecca Ramirez. The facts were checked by Tyler Jones. The audio engineer was Kwesi Lee.