14 Animals That Were Driven to Extinction By Humans

14. Tecopa Pupfish

The Tecopa pupfish was endemic to the outflows of a pair of hot springs in the Mojave Desert. There, these heat-tolerant little fellas reproduced for more than 10,000 years. In the 1950’s and 1960’s, however, the Tecopa Hot Springs gained favor among Californians as a travel destination. Bathhouses sprung up, the springs were expanded, and the pupfish’s habitat was changed irreversibly. As a result, the Tecopa pupfish was forced to move down river and mate with another species, becoming something altogether different. Those that stayed behind went slowly extinct. The Tecopa pupfish was declared entirely extinct in 1970.