Classroom Questions

Questions for ‘For some trees, acting as lightning rods helps them survive’ 

A Dipteryx oleifera tree stand above the forest. It benefits from lightning strikes, new research suggests.

An almendro tree stands tall (front and center) in this jungle. Researchers think the height and large crown of this species can turn it into what’s essentially a lightning rod; it attracts storms to discharge into them bolts of energy that are potentially lethal to their competitors.

Evan Gora

By Science News Explores

To accompany ‘For some trees, acting as lightning rods helps them survive‘

SCIENCE

Before Reading:

  1. Are lightning strikes generally good or bad for a tree’s health? Describe how a direct lightning strike can affect a tree.
  2. What does it mean for species within an environment to be in competition with one another? Consider how plants might compete with one another for resources. List two resources that two plant species might compete for. Describe a scenario illustrating how two plants might compete and how this might lead to one species developing some trait that gives it an advantage in getting these resources.

During Reading:

  1. Explain one potential benefit of a direct lightning strike to an almendro tree.
  2. Describe the 2019 event that caused Evan Gora and his team to reconsider their assumptions regarding the effects of lightning strikes on trees.
  3. During this study, how many lightning-struck trees did researchers document? How many were almendro trees?
  4. After two years, what percentage of documented Dipteryx oleifera trees survived? What percentage of other trees survived?
  5. Describe two specific ways that lianas harm trees.
  6. Explain how a liana on a tree can increase a lightning strike’s range of impact on neighboring trees.
  7. Describe one characteristic of almendro trees that increases the likelihood of a lightning strike.

After Reading:

  1. Scientists puzzle over why lightning strikes do not kill Dipteryx oleifera trees. Write down one hypothesis mentioned in this story. Come up with an experiment to test this hypothesis. What tools will you need? What measurements will you take? Describe the kind of findings that would support your hypothesis.
  2. Besides lightning strikes, list three random events or natural disasters that might harm plants. Imagine how a plant species might develop adaptations to turn such events to their advantage. For one of these events, devise a strategy for an imaginary plant species that might turn this random event into a competitive advantage. Describe what kind of features or characteristics that this plant species might have that the surrounding plants lack. Consider the possibility that this adaptation already exists in nature but is undiscovered. Do you consider this possibility probable or improbable? Explain your answer. If it did exist, in what kind of places might this adaptation provide the most benefit?
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