Strange plant species has the ability to "tame" lightning to destroy enemies

While lightning is often seen as a devastating threat to forests, a species of tropical tree in Panama has evolved to use this natural force to its advantage.

According to new research by American scientists published in the journal New Phytologist, the tonka bean plant (Dipteryx oleifera) not only survives a lightning strike but also uses it to damage rival plants and parasitic vines around it.

“We started this study 10 years ago and noticed that lightning kills a lot of trees, especially large ones. But Dipteryx oleifera always comes out unscathed,” said Evan Gora, a forest ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies and lead author of the study.

After tracking nearly 100 lightning events at the Barro Colorado Nature Reserve in Panama, scientists found that each lightning strike killed more than 2.4 tons of surrounding tree biomass, including nearly 80% of parasitic vines growing on the tonka bean canopy.

A mature tonka bean tree (up to 40m tall) can be struck by lightning at least five times, each time clearing out competing plants and vines, expanding its living space. Remarkably, the tree’s fertility is increased 14-fold by the impact of lightning.

The secret behind the tree's lightning resistance lies in its physical structure. Previous studies have shown that the tree has a high intrinsic electrical conductivity, allowing electricity to flow through it without accumulating harmful heat – much like a well-insulated wire.

“Over the past 40 years, we’ve discovered that living next to a tonka bean tree is a distinct hazard,” says Gora. “You’re significantly more likely to die than living next to any other old tree in that forest.”

Researchers are now expanding their research to forests in Africa and Southeast Asia to see if lightning benefits other tree species./.

(Vietnam News Agency/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/ky-la-loai-cay-co-kha-nang-thuan-hoa-set-de-tieu-diet-ke-thu-post1025346.vnp