Abstract
The James E. Deacon Pupfish Research Files (approximately 1960-2015) contain files kept by James E. Deacon, who was a faculty member in the biological sciences and environmental studies department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The collection primarily contains research files and audiovisual recordings about the Devils Hole pupfish, an endangered species of desert fish only found in Nevada. Also included are copies of Deacon’s testimony and reports for a hearing from 2011 on the probable groundwater pumping by the Southern Nevada Water Authority in Spring, Cave, Dry Lake, and Delamar Valleys (SCDD) in Nevada. The SCDD files also contain copies of exhibits referenced by Deacon in his initial and rebuttal reports for the hearing.
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Scope and Contents Note
The James E. Deacon Pupfish Research Files (approximately 1960-2015) contain files kept by James E. Deacon, who was a faculty member in the biological sciences and environmental studies department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The collection primarily contains research files and audiovisual recordings about the Devils Hole pupfish, an endangered species of desert fish only found in Nevada. Also included are copies of Deacon’s testimony and reports for a hearing from 2011 on the probable groundwater pumping by the Southern Nevada Water Authority in Spring, Cave, Dry Lake, and Delamar Valleys (SCDD) in Nevada. The SCDD files also contain copies of exhibits referenced by Deacon in his initial and rebuttal reports for the hearing.
Access Note
Collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections and Archives website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.
Arrangement
Materials remain as they were received.
Biographical / Historical Note
James Everett Deacon was a biologist and environmentalist who taught at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) from 1960 to 2002 in the Department of Biological Sciences where he was instrumental in establishing the master's and doctorate programs. Deacon also helped establish the Department of Environmental Studies as part of the Greenspun College of Urban Affairs. In the early 1960s, Deacon discovered the pupfish, an endangered desert fish, during a scuba diving trip at Devils Hole in Death Valley National Park. The biology and conservation of the Devil’s Hole pupfish, sustainable water supply and use, and regional ecology were areas of research for Deacon throughout his career.
Deacon testified in defense of the pupfish in the 1970s during a legal fight over groundwater pumping. He also played a major role in securing water rights for Death Valley and Zion national parks and aided in the establishment of Ash Meadows and Moapa National wildlife refuges in southern Nevada. Deacon was a founding member of the Desert Fishes Council (established in 1970) and chaired the organization from 1976 to 1978. He was the recipient of many awards from the American Fisheries Society, the National Wildlife Federation, and The Nature Conservancy. He was named as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and received the E.O. Wilson Award for Outstanding Science in Biodiversity Conservation from the Center for Biological Diversity in 2012. Two local desert fish species were named after Deacon, the Spring Mountains springsnail (
Sources:
Brean, Henry. "Noted UNLV biologist James Deacon has died."
“James Deacon obituary.”
Preferred Citation
James E. Deacon Pupfish Research Files, approximately 1960-2015. UA-00102. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada. http://n2t.net/ark:/62930/f18q7g
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Acquisition Note
Materials were transferred periodically to the University Archives; accession number 2020-081. Additional folder of material was donated in 2024 by Paula Jacoby-Garrett; accession number 2024-042.
Processing Note
The collection was minimally processed by Tammi Kim in 2020. The materials were quickly reviewed to provide a general description of the contents of each box and an estimate of dates represented in the material. Loose papers were foldered. No further work was performed on the materials. In 2024, Sarah Jones added an additional folder of material to the collection.