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.