Abstract

As climate change progresses, hydrological regimes of temporary and perennial water bodies are projected to change, affecting biodiversity and ecosystem functions. Researchers have successfully employed the use of satellite imagery, camera traps and site visits to map these changes in hydrological regimes. Though effective, their use can come with considerable cost at high temporal and spatial resolution. A more affordable measure in mapping hydrological regimes has been the use of data loggers of conductivity, but the use of data loggers of temperature and light intensity is uncommon. Using validated data of 213 days of the aquatic and terrestrial phases of a temporary pond, we show that temperature and light intensity data can be used to discern hydrological state. The aquatic phase had lower measures of both parameters when compared to the terrestrial phase. This was caused by the stability of the aquatic environment. The most powerful measures in discerning hydrological state were diel maximum temperature, diel temperature range, and rate of change of temperature. Greater distinctive power was obtained through the use of multiple measures of the parameters. In addition, key events such as flooding and drying were discernible within the temperature and light intensity data. High-resolution temperature and light intensity data are able to aid in understanding these dynamics of hydrological state and can be used to monitor ecosystem functions amid changes in temporary and perennial water bodies.