The Devils Hole Pupfish is one of the most endangered animals on the planet, but the tiny creature may be on the verge of a comeback 👏
🐟 A Different Fish
The Devils Hole Pupfish, named after the playful way they swim, are only about an inch in size. Their sole natural habitat is Devils Hole, a water-filled cavern in the Amargosa Valley’s Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge, which is officially a detached part of Death Valley National Park.
👿 Devilish Environment
Devils Hole is believed to be 500 feet deep, although nobody has seen the bottom. It’s filled with “fossil water” which takes thousands of years to emerge through an underground aquifer system. In a strange twist, waves in Devil’s Hole respond to earthquakes and seismic activity as far away as Japan, Indonesia, and Chile. (#creepy)
📈 Pupular Comeback
Researchers and divers count the Devils Hole Pupfish twice a year. At the low point, just 35 fish were observed. However, the number climbed to 191 fish during the most recent count in April.
🌧️ Mysterious Origins
Some believe the pupfish dates back to the origins of Devils Hole itself — tens of thousands of years ago after it separated from a larger body of water in Death Valley. Other theories suggest the fish could’ve been dropped there by humans or birds 🤯 Their existence was a bone of contention between environmentalists and ranchers before the Devils Hole Pupfish was federally protected in 1973.
🚰 Artificial Environments
The Ash Meadows Fish Conservation Facility and Shark Reef Aquarium at Mandalay Bay both have Devils Hole Pupfish tanks to recreate a self-sustaining environment for the species and increase the overall population 🫡
