[Sudsy]

The loss of these fish really saddens me. I would agree that most jawfish usually do not do well in captivity for very long periods of time like other fish. I am a huge fan of jawfish and after the loss of my BS, and the discovery of the many problems that these fish i decieded that i would not purchase another BS especially given the price and availability. I have however tried other jawfish, namely the black cap/tiger jawfish, and pearly jawfish. Now i kid you not that i have probably purchased about 4 or 5 pearlys before i was able to keep one alive for more than a month. the one i have now i actually purchased as a pair, one of them died but the remaining one i have has been the best one to date. It has been my personal expierence that jawfish should be fed many small meals a day, similar to anthias. in the past when i kept jawfish i was only feeding my tank about 1 to 2 times a week, and slowly it seemed that my fish would one day just disappear. Another firm belief i have is the tank mates that are kept with jawfish. Large aggresive eaters are certainly not good mates. Their constant swimming and darting keeps the jawfish in his burrow, and small bottom dwelling fish that go near the fish will also bother the fish. as of right now i have been lucky with the jawfish that i have and have even been able to find a mate for him/her to share burrows. Oh one more thing if you don't mind. When your fish seems to have chosen his/her sopt to live, usually under a rock. Start placing various sized rubble and shells out side of its burrow and don't ever stop. But not too big he must be able to pick it up it with its mouth. If the fish stops taking the rock then you can stop putting them there. But always try to keep like one or two around. Jawfish are like the old saying "idle hands do the work of the devil" If a fish is busy maintaining his burrow, they seem to be happy. Just like old people! jk haha
Good luck and thanks for the karma.
Mike