Abstract: The sea cucumber ( Apostichopus japonicus ) culture ponds may act as a nursery ground for the moon jellyfish Aurelia aurita in the coastal waters along Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea. Fluctuation of salinity in the A. japonicus culture ponds frequently found due to water exchange, evaporation and heavy rainfall. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the effects of salinity on the recruitment dynamics of A. aurita in their early life stages. In the present study, laboratory experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of different salinities levels (18, 22, 26, 30, 34 and 38) on the swimming, settlement and asexual reproduction of A. aurita larvae. Our results showed that the swimming speed of A. aurita planulae was significantly influenced by the salinities. The planulae moved faster at the high salinities (30, 34 and 38) than those at the low salinities (18, 22, and 26); The settlement rates of A. aurita planulae were significantly influenced by the salinities. The highest settlement rate occurred at a salinity of 34. There was no significant difference in the bud reproduction rate between different salinities (18～34). The mean new polyps produced by one polyp at the salinities between 18 and 34 were 2.8～3.7. The polyps incubated at a salinity of 38 produced the least polyps (1.2 ± 0.6). Our results indicate that salinity have different effects on the early life stages of A. aurita. Thus the study provides new information for understanding the adaptation of A. aurita to environmental factors in the coastal waters of Bohai Sea and the Yellow Sea.