Abstract: Lake is an important component of water resources. Lakes have two statusesexpanding and shrinking in the process of evolution, which and lead to neat changes in the area of lakes are the product of bidirectional changes caused by the evolution of the lakes. Taking Jianghan Lakes clusters as an example, the study conducts an analyzes sis of the correlation between distribution and evolution of lakes and human activities from 1984 to 2014. The results show that implementing the project of "returning farmland to lakes" played a positive role in protecting and recovering the lakes after the flood of 1998. In addition, spatial autocorrelation analysis and hot spot detection method were are introduced to explore the temporal and spatial evolution of lakes. The study carries out a hot-spot detection of lake shrinking showing conspicuous characteristics of aggregation by comparing spatial correlation between lake expanding and lake declining in recent 30 years to locate lake shrinking cluster area, and and further the forming reasons are further exploreds their forming reasons. At last, the study delves into the association rules between socio-economic factors and distribution and shrinking of lakes. By exploring the socio-economic regular patterns contained in the evolution of lakes, the decision-making assistance of ecological protection and restoration in Jianghan Basin can be summed up. The results show that lake distribution area is often accompanied by aggregation of population with agricultural yields, especially productivity of aquatic products, at the forefront in the region. But with the advancement of modernization and the adjustment of agricultural structure, primary industry, especially the growth of the fshing industry shows a weaken dependence on local lake resources. Lake shrinking mainly happens in rural areas featuring traditional extensive mode of production., And and rapid expansion of agriculture within a short time is generally at the cost of the overexploitation of lake resources.

Key words: human activity, spatial clustering, socioeconomic factor, Jianghan lake group, lake evolution