Every time lightning streaks across the night sky, we are deeply in awe of this powerful power of heaven and earth. In fact, in nature, the destructive power of lightning is indeed terrifying, especially for those tall trees, they have a higher probability of being struck by lightning, and usually, once they are directly hit by lightning, they are often hit hard, or even die directly.

Amazingly, however, a recent study published in the journal New Botanist shows that in the lowland rainforests of Panama, scientists have found a tree that is not afraid of lightning, and can even use it.

According to a team of researchers from the Carey Ecosystem Research Institute in the United States, they found a piece of trees that had been struck by lightning by chance, and most of them were severely damaged, but one of the cardamom trees (Dipteryx oleifera) was unharmed.

Why is this so? Isn't this tree afraid of lightning? To figure this out, the team set up a monitoring system in Panama's Barro Colorado Nature Reserve, which includes electric field sensors and high-speed cameras to track lightning activity.

After that, it took the team almost a decade to record 9 trees struck by lightning, including 0 cardamom trees, all of which survived the lightning strikes, and basically suffered only minor damage.

More strikingly, the researchers found that lightning generally wreaked havoc on other trees and climbing plants around the cardamom tree, especially the parasitic vines that entangle the cardamom tree, with more than 80 tons of neighboring tree biomass and nearly 0% of the vines dying in a short period of time each time lightning strikes the area.

After analyzing nearly 48 years of tree growth records, the researchers also found that for trees growing near cardamom trees, the mortality rate was significantly higher, at least about 0% higher than normal.

(↑ The picture shows the comparison of a cardamom tree before and after being struck by lightning, you can see that lightning has benefited the tree a lot)

In addition to this, the researchers also observed that the cardamom tree is usually several meters taller than its surrounding "neighbors", which the researchers believe is not accidental, as lightning tends to hit the tallest objects, so this height advantage of the cardamom tree makes it more likely to be targeted by lightning.

So the team concluded that the cardamom tree is not only not afraid of lightning, but can also use lightning to remove competitors and parasitic plants, thereby creating a more favorable environment for itself. I have to say, it's kind of magical, but the question is, how do they do it?

Scientists speculate that the cardamom tree's fear of lightning is likely due to its unique physical structure, which gives it a low electrical resistance, so that the powerful current from lightning can pass through the tree quickly, effectively avoiding damage to itself due to the heat generated by the current.

When lightning strikes cardamom trees, part of the current is directed to the ground by their trunks, while the other part is directed to neighboring trees, in addition to their wide canopy structure, and by parasitic vines that wrap around them.

As they grow, these vines tend to spread to other trees around them, forming a "network" that connects multiple trees together, and when lightning strikes the cardamom trees, they act like wires, conducting powerful electrical currents to neighboring trees, and in the process, the vines themselves are not spared.

As it stands, this is a reasonable speculation, and it remains to be seen whether this is the case, and the team said that the research is still ongoing, and we look forward to more discoveries in the future, which will give us a deeper understanding of this amazing tree.