Lightning strikes lead to the destruction of forests. The tonka bean tree, scientifically known as Dipteryx oleifera, has developed a mechanism that benefits from lightning rather than enduring destruction. Researchers began studying the impact of electrical encounters on the tree species and how it removes its competitors and the parasitic vines called lianas that cling to the tonka bean trees for survival. Therefore, using a custom-built system of electric field sensors and cameras that track, analyze, and plot graphs, the researchers were able to study about 100 lightning events in Panama’s Barro Colorado Nature Monument.
Evan Gora, a forest ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, told Live Science, "We started doing this work 10 years ago, and it became really apparent that lightning kills a lot of trees, especially a lot of very big trees. But Dipteryx oleifera consistently showed no damage.” Trees are essential as a carbon source and to support the biodiversity of a forest, but the damage caused by frequent lightning strikes is difficult to compensate for. More so, climate change and rapid deforestation do not help. Hence, the researchers studied the exact points of strikes and evaluated the damage done with a high-resolution detection system to find the surprising results about the tonka bean species. @cary_institute shared a YouTube video showing detailed glimpses of the tree species.
While most of the flora crumbled and burned down with lightning storms, tonka bean trees stood tall, showing no signs of damage. Gora explained, “Over those 40 years, there's a quantifiable, detectable hazard of living next to Dipteryx oleifera. [As a tree], you are substantially more likely to die than live next to any other big old large tree in that forest.” The secret was the tree species' physical structure and high internal conductivity, which enabled the electricity from the lightning to flow through without damaging the tree. To put it into perspective, it is similar to the earthing provided on tall buildings and houses.
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