Devils Hole Pupfish Fall Count Reaches 137, More Than Double Last Fall’s 69, Though the Species Remains One of the World’s Rarest Fish
Death Valley, California — The National Park Service reported that survey teams counted 137 endangered Devils Hole pupfish during an October 10 population survey, nearly double the 77 fish observed in spring 2026 and more than double the 69 recorded in fall 2025. The Park Service called the increase an encouraging sign for one of the world rarest fish.
The Devils Hole pupfish lives only in Devils Hole, a deep, water filled limestone cavern within Death Valley National Park. During the fall survey, scuba divers and surface counters from the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service observed fish in the depths of the cavern and along the shallow limestone shelf where they feed and spawn.
Between March 2025 and February 2026, scientists released 72 captive raised pupfish into Devils Hole, the Park Service said. Given the species average lifespan of just 10 to 14 months, biologists believe most of the 137 fish observed during the fall survey hatched and grew in Devils Hole.
The population remains vulnerable, the Park Service said. Following an October 9, 2026, earthquake in Panama, nearly 3,000 miles away, biologists initially observed signs of stress in the fish but found them in healthier condition during a subsequent visit. The released fish came from a program involving the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Ash Meadows Fish Conservation Facility and the National Park Service.
(Source: U.S. National Park Service)
Source: U.S. National Park Service
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：魔鬼洞鳉鱼。照片：公共领域（美国国家公园管理局），经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: A Devils Hole pupfish. Public domain (U.S. National Park Service), via Wikimedia Commons.
Two South Bend, Indiana Museums Open Free to Veterans, Service Members and Their Families on Veterans Day, November 11: Three Special Exhibitions at the Studebaker Museum2026-11-10
The Health Museum in Houston, Texas, Opens New Permanent Exhibition Sensing Sound on November 21: Five Sensory Zones, General Admission 15 Dollars for Ages 13 and Older, and Free Entry Thursdays 2 to 5 p.m.2026-11-10