Devils Hole Pupfish in Death Valley, California, Counted at 137 in Fall Survey: Nearly Double the 77 Seen in Spring, in What the Park Service Calls an Encouraging Increase
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.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: Wikipedia/Wikimedia Commons 词条主图：Devils Hole
