Anthropogenic influences and climate change are leading to more frequent and intense heatwaves, which are known to affect marine ecosystems. However, the effects of rising temperatures on in-situ phytoplankton size classes have not yet been adequately studied. In this study, two cell-sized phytoplankton assemblages (>
20 μm, <
20 μm) were cultured at a range of temperatures [i.e., ambient temperature (AT), AT+3 °C, AT+6 °C and AT+9 °C] in Laoshan Bay, Yellow Sea, China, at half-month intervals between June 2022 and July 2023. Total chlorophyll a concentration fluctuated between 0.84 and 7.76 μg L