Environmental Influence on the Spatiotemporal Variability of Fishing Grounds in the Beibu Gulf, South China Sea

The spatiotemporal distribution of fishing grounds in the Beibu Gulf and its relationship with marine environment were analyzed using the survey data of light falling-net vessels and satellite remote sensing data including sea surface temperature (SST), chlorophyll a concentration (Chl a) and net primary production (NPP), based on the generalized additive model (GAM) and the center of gravity (COG) of fishing grounds. The results showed that the total deviance explained by GAM for the catch per unit effort (CPUE) in the Beibu Gulf was 42.9%, in which SST was the most important influencing factor on CPUE, with a relative contribution of 40%; followed by latitude, Chl a, month and NPP, with relative contributions of 25.2%, 19%, 10.4% and 5.4%, respectively. Fishing grounds in the Beibu Gulf were mainly distributed in waters with SST of 27–29 °C, Chl a of 0.5–1.5 mg m−3 and NPP of 500–700 mg m−2 d−1. Light falling-net fishing grounds were concentrated in waters with latitude of 18.5° N and 20–20.25° N. There was a significant correlation between the mean latitude of optimum NPP and the latitudinal COG of CPUE, with the R2 being 0.91. These were connected with environmental factors such as the northeast monsoon that began in autumn and winter, warm pools near 19° N and local upwelling in the Beibu Gulf.