All ecological disciplines consider temporal dynamics, although relevant concepts have been developed almost independently. We here introduce basic principles of temporal dynamics in ecology. We figured out essential features that describe temporal dynamics by finding similarities among about 60 ecological concepts and theories. We found that considering the hierarchically nested structure of complexity in temporal patterns (i.e. hierarchical complexity) can well describe the fundamental nature of temporal dynamics by expressing which patterns are observed at each scale. Across all ecological levels, driver–response relationships can be temporally variant and dependent on both short- and long-term past conditions. The framework can help with designing experiments, improving predictive power of statistics, and enhancing communications among ecological disciplines.
