Abstract:In order to provide data support for stock assessment and fishery management of , the spatiotemporal variations of the length-weight relationships for this species were studied, based on the survey data from the bottom-trawl surveys in Shandong coastal waters in the four seasons:autumn (October 2016), winter (January 2017), spring (May 2017) and summer (August 2017). One generalized linear model and 9 linear mixed effect models were constructed to study the length-weight relationships () and their spatiotemporal variations. According to the principle of minimum AIC value, the most complex linear mixed effect model (i.e. regions and seasons have random effects on parameter ) was the best. Cross validation results showed that the prediction effect of this model is the most reliable one among the 10 candidate models. -test between the best model and the generalized linear model revealed that the spatiotemporal variations of the length-weight relationships were significant ( value of the individuals in spring was the largest, followed by autumn and winter, and finally summer; the trend of the increased with latitude, without an obvious trend for depth, which might be resulted from limited sample size. The fixed value of (2.77) was less than 3, indicating the negative allometric growth pattern of . The fatness was negatively related to length and tended towards a slender body. This study showed that season and latitude have significant influences on the length-weight relationships of . The mixed effect model could reflect the heterogeneity of regions and seasons in a single model more accurately and conveniently, which could be applied to more heterogeneity studies of fish life history traits.