Abstract
Shrimp populations are threatened by overfishing and climate change. Despite this, there are limited studies on the variations in biomass, number, and size of Eastern Neptune rose shrimp, Parapenaeus fissuroides, in different fishing grounds across seasons in the Southern Yellow and East China Seas of China, as well as habitat area change under different climate scenarios. In this study, the data was obtained from the bottom trawling surveys conducted from November 2018 to September 2019 at 26.5-35° N 120-127° E. We found that the major cohorts were concentrated at depths of 70-110 m in spring and summer, 80-90 m in autumn, and 60-100 m in winter. The greatest abundance was observed at sea bottom temperatures of 18-20 °C in spring, 18-21 °C in summer, 19-22 °C in autumn, and 17-19 °C in winter; and sea bottom salinity levels of 34-35 across all four seasons, indicating the influence of high-salinity Taiwan Warm Current and Yellow Sea Warm Current. The annual mean catch per unit effort in weight and number were 16,623.65 g·h(-1) and 4304.525 ind·h(-1), respectively. Climate variations may negatively impact the habitat area range of P. fissuroides. For migration route, P. fissuroides concentrates in Yushan and Yuwai for the upcoming spawning season in spring, with offspring occurring in high-temperature and high-salinity waters of Zhouwai and Yuwai in summer. The newborn recruited cohorts remained in Yushan, Wentai, and Mindong for nursery grounds in autumn and winter. We suggested a seasonal closure from August to November in Yushan, Yuwai, Zhouwai, and Mindong to protect and conserve P. fissuroides populations.