Li and colleagues analysed data on climatic, ecological, economic, societal and governance aspects of China’s domestic fisheries across 67 species and 11 coastal regions, finding large variations in the category and magnitude of hazard impacts experienced by different aquatic species. Productive species, such as hairtail and mackerel, demonstrated climate adaptations that enhance their resilience even under the stress of overfishing. However, high-risk taxa, such as large yellow croaker and sand lance, showed poor climate change adaptation. Sensitivity to ocean acidification due to species’ heavy reliance on sensitive taxa for food or habitat, the overexploited status and susceptibility of fish stocks, narrow thermal tolerance and limited larval dispersal capability emerged as important factors for determining vulnerability to climate change. Sparse and uncoordinated monitoring data presented challenges for the analysis and highlighted how data could address important fisheries management challenges, for example, in combatting illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, habitat degradation, juvenile species exploitation and the use of restricted fishing gears.