Temporary water bodies can be divided into two categories, those that are flowing and those that are standing. They are most commonly associated with areas of the world that are subject to very rapid changes in conditions for example regions of Africa that have a wet and dry season. However, temporary water bodies do occur everywhere and their presence indicates a healthily diverse aquatic system. In the UK some rivers in the south of the country only flow during winter and are referred to as winter bournes.

These habitats present a particular challenge to organisms which inhabit them. They encourage opportunism and specialisation of the organisms that inhabit them. One method of dealing with the changing conditions is to have a rapid life cycle, Killifish for example, inhabit seasonal pools in equatorial regions and grow to adulthood, mate and spawn in one season. The eggs are then able to lay dormant when the pool dries up until the onset of the next rainy season.

At the other end of the spectrum, one of the most famous of a specialised organism is the African Lung fish, which is able to encase itself in a mucus cocoon and spend the dry season in a state of “suspended animation” emerging when its temporary pools have refilled with water.