To provide information needed for managing fish resources and protecting the ecosystem of Cheonsu Bay, bimonthly variations in species composition and abundance of fish eggs and larvae were investigated. The samples were collected by using bongo net at three different stations from February 2020 to December 2021. Fish eggs were divided into Engrualis japonicus and unidentified eggs, of which Engragulis japonicus accounted for 85.6% of the total eggs collected. A total of 21 species representing 17 families and 6 orders were collected. The three dominant species were Gobiidae spp, Thryssa hamiltonii and E. japonicus and these three species accounted for 74.1% in the total number of individuals. The number of species was highest in August, 2020 and lowest in February, 2020 and 2021; the number of individuals was highest in August, 2020 and lowest in February, 2020. Temporal changes in the abundances of pelagic eggs and larval fishes corresponded with temperature.

The ichthyoplanktons were sampled by Bongo net to study the distribution of the eggs and larvae in the West coastal waters of Korea during the study period (February, May, August and October of 2017). Collected fish eggs were divided into Engraulis japonicus and unidentified species. The most dominant species, Engraulis japonicus accounted for 79.52% of the total fish egg, which was followed by unidentified species (20.48%). The total of 36 taxa in fish larvae were identified based on morphological and molecular characteristics. Fish larvae were dominant by Gobiidae species. 48.30% of the total catch in abundance, which was followed by Engraulis japonicus (31.86%). These two taxa composed 80.16% of the total collected fish larvae. The seasonal diversity index of species from the collected fish larvae in the West coastal waters in 2017 was 0.625-1.883 and the evenness index was 0.380-0.865. In addition, dominance index was 0.618-0.920 and richness was 0.573-3.189.

Species composition and yearly variation of fish eggs and larval fishes were investigated from 2014 to 2016. During the study period, the fish eggs were identified as belonging to 14 taxa. The dominant species of fish eggs were Leiognathus nuchalis, Engraulis japonicus, and Konosirus punctatus. These three species accounted for 97.4% of the total number of individuals collected. The collected larval fishes were identified into 37 taxa, 22 families, and seven orders. The dominant species of larval fish were Leiognathus nuchalis, and Gobiidae fishes. These three species accounted for 85.4% of the total number of individuals collected. The diversity index of the larval fishes was the highest in 2014 (H’ = 1.60) and the lowest in 2015 (H’ = 1.15). The evenness index was the highest in 2016 (J = 0.51) and the lowest in 2015 (J = 0.39). The dominance index was the highest in 2015 (D = 83.5%) and the lowest in 2016 (D = 70.9%). In addition, the economically important species in this area were Engraulis japonicus, Konosirus punctatus, Hippocampus coronatus, Sebastes schlegelii, Acanthopagrus schlegeli, and Cynoglossus joyneri.

The ichthyoplanktons were sampled to study distribution of the ichthyoplankton in coastal waters of Nanji-Island in August and November 2015 and January and May 2016. During the study, fish eggs of eight different species were collected. Engraulis japonicus was the most dominant species which accounted 44.80%. Sebastes schlegeli comprised 31.39% of the total larvae and juveniles. The diversity index of species per month of the collected juveniles at Nanji Island from 2015 to 2016 was 0.598-1.770 and the evenness index was 0.432-0.761. In case of dominance index was 0.619-0.897 against the evenness index. The analyzed species diversity index by the each station was 0.818-1.945 and the dominance index was 0.492-0.897 against the species diversity index. The months of August and May exhibited similar results. In addition, the community structure was very similar in state 2 and state 3.