A number of fish populations have been subject to severe fishing pressure throughout the world as demand for marine fishery products has increased. As a result, the abundance of many traditional commercial fish species has declined significantly. Climate change, overfishing, pollution, and other human activities are thought to be the primary reasons for habitat changes in certain regions, and have also played a key role in the degradation of fisheries resources. Thus, an understanding of the relationships between environmental factors and fishery communities is critical for the conservation and sustainable exploitation of fishery resources. We evaluated the species composition and diversity of the fish community in Jiaozhou Bay and adjacent waters using data from seasonal bottom trawl surveys collected in February, May, August, and November 2011. We used the index of relative importance (IRI), species diversity indices, and multivariate methods to determine the fish community structure over time, and the relationship between fish community structure and environmental variables. A total of 57 fish species were captured, belonging to 2 classes, 10 orders, 31 families, and 46 genera. Most of these were warm water species. The dominant fish species were Pholis fangi and Amblychaeturichthys hexanema etc..The Margalef species richness index D ranged from 1.02 to 1.65, the Shannon- Wiener diversity index H￠ ranged between 1.36 and 1.73, and the Pielou evenness index J' ranged from 0.61 to 0.76. The species richness index, but not the Shannon diversity index and Pielou evenness index, changed significantly among seasons (ANOVA). ANOSIM analysis also indicated that the fish species composition in Jiaozhou Bay and adjacent waters varied significantly among seasons. The SIMPER analysis revealed that P. fangi, A. hexanema, Liparis tanaka, Konosirus punctatus, Thryssa kammalensis, and Johnius belengerii were the primary discriminating species in the fish community between seasons. The CCA suggested that water temperature, salinity and pH, followed by sediment type, had the most influence on the fish community assemblage. The species diversity indices of the fish community exhibited a stable seasonal pattern, which was consistent with the historical studies. The preference of fish species for different water temperatures may explain the seasonal variation in fish community structure in Jiaozhou Bay.The abundance of goby fish in areas with clay sediment was attributed to the presence of polychaetes, cumacea, and other benthic organisms which provided a food supply. Fish community structure was affected by the combined effects of a range of environmental factors. Further studies are needed to provide management suggestions for fishery conservation and sustainable resource exploitation.