MOAPA, Nev. (AP) - A tiny endangered fish found only in streams in a southern Nevada desert oasis is making a dramatic comeback.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says the population of the Moapa dace has nearly doubled over the past year from 572 to 1,226, and appears to be getting stronger.

The finger-length fish with a black spot on its tail has been federally protected for more than 40 years in the streams at Warm Springs near Moapa, about 60 miles northeast of Las Vegas.

Service spokesman Dan Balduini told the Las Vegas Review-Journal it's the first time the annual February count has exceeded the one they do in August when the numbers tend to be highest. Biologists are optimistic this summer's count will be the best in years.

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