DOI: 10.5061/dryad.q2bvq83zn
title: Landscape, stand and tree characteristics influence the distribution of lightning damage in Central African forests

description: Lightning is an important but understudied disturbance in tropical
 forests. We surveyed 134 km of transects in two Central African forests
 and identified 121 strike locations. Trees on ridges were more likely to
 show damage than those in valleys, while at the stand scale, taller trees
 and trees with wider canopies—and some species independent of size—were
 more often struck. These results suggest that lightning acts as a
 selective force, possibly reinforcing ridge–valley differences and
 influencing forest structure and composition. Together, the datasets
 provided here support analyses of how landscape, stand-level, and
 tree-level characteristics influence the spatial distribution of lightning
 damage in Central African forests.
description: # Landscape, stand and tree characteristics influence the distribution of
 lightning damage in Central African forests Dataset DOI:
 [10.5061/dryad.q2bvq83zn](10.5061/dryad.q2bvq83zn) ## Description of the
 data and file structure The data were collected as part of a field study
 investigating the ecological role of lightning in tropical forests of
 Central Africa. The aim was to assess how landscape features, stand
 structure, and tree traits influence the spatial distribution of direct
 lightning damage. Fieldwork was carried out in Bwindi Impenetrable
 National Park, Uganda, and the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve, Democratic
 Republic of the Congo. During these campaigns, we mapped lightning strike
 locations along forest transects, identified struck trees and their
 neighbors, and measured structural traits such as DBH, height, crown area,
 and canopy exposure. We also collected wood resistivity data for selected
 canopy species to explore potential species-specific differences in
 susceptibility to lightning strikes. This dataset accompanies the
 manuscript **“Landscape, stand and tree characteristics influence the
 distribution of lightning damage in Central African forests.”** It
 consists of three Excel files: **01_Topography_Bwindi.xlsx** – Derived
 from the 30 m SRTM Digital Elevation Model. Elevation, gradient, and
 profile curvature were extracted at 30 m resolution along transects
 surveyed in Bwindi. Each 30 m segment is classified as *valley* (gradient
 &lt; 20°, curvature ≤ 0), *slope* (gradient ≥ 20°), or *ridge* (gradient
 &lt; 20°, curvature ≥ 0), and information is included on whether a
 lightning-struck tree was recorded within the segment.
 **02_Tree_Data.xlsx** – Contains data for all trees struck by lightning
 and their neighbors. For each tree, we recorded species identity, DBH,
 height, relative height, canopy exposure, crown area, and strike status
 (focal, secondarily affected, or unaffected). **03_Resistivity.xlsx** –
 Provides electrical resistance and resistivity measurements for
 individuals from 10 canopy species. For each tree, DBH and corrected
 resistance values are included, along with calculated resistivity. ###
 Files and variables #### File: 01_Topography_Bwindi.xlsx
 **Description:** This file contains topographic information extracted from
 the 30 m SRTM Digital Elevation Model along surveyed transects in Bwindi.
 For each 30 m transect segment, elevation, slope, and curvature values
 were calculated and used to classify the landform as *valley*, *slope*, or
 *ridge*. The file also indicates whether a lightning-struck tree was
 recorded in that segment. ##### Variables * **fid** – Unique segment ID. *
 **track_name** – Transect identifier (e.g., BW1). * **elevation** –
 Elevation at the segment midpoint (m above sea level). * **slope** – Slope
 at the segment midpoint (degrees). * **profile_curvature** – Profile
 curvature of the terrain at the segment midpoint. *
 **tangential_curvature** – Tangential curvature of the terrain at the
 segment midpoint. * **Landform_Category** – Landform classification based
 on slope and curvature: *Valley*, *Slope*, or *Ridge*. * **strike_ID** –
 Identifier of a lightning strike occurring within the segment (blank if no
 strike observed). * **code** – code used to distinguish unambiguous (G)
 and ambiguous (Y) strikes (blank if no strike observed). #### File:
 02_Tree_Data.xlsx **Description:** This file lists all trees recorded at
 each lightning strike location, including the focal tree (directly
 struck), secondarily affected neighbors, and nearby unaffected controls.
 For each tree, species identity, size, structural traits, and relative
 position within the stand are reported. **Variables:** * **Trail** – Trail
 identifier where the strike location was recorded. * **Site** – Strike
 location identifier * **Elevation_DEM** – Elevation (m a.s.l.) from the
 DEM at the strike location. * **Topography** – Local topographic category
 (e.g., Ridge, Valley, Slope, Flat). * **Dist_Big** – Distance (m) from the
 focal tree to the nearest larger tree (by DBH). Blank cell: the focal tree
 was the biggest within 20m.  * **Dist_Tall** – Distance (m) from the focal
 tree to the nearest taller tree (by canopy height). Blank cell: the focal
 tree was the highest within 20m.  * **Tree_ID** – Unique identifier for
 each tree. * **Species** – Scientific name of the tree species. *
 **Struck_Status** – Strike status of the tree: * 1 = focal tree (directly
 struck) * 0 = neighbor tree * **Dist_Focal** – Distance (m) from the focal
 tree. * **DBH_Total** – Diameter at breast height (cm) of the tree. *
 **Height** – Total tree height (m). * **Relative_Height** – Height
 relative to the focal tree, corrected for slope. * **Exposure** – Canopy
 exposure index  * **Crown_Area** – Estimated crown area (m²) based on
 species-specific allometric equations. * **code** – code used to
 distinguish unambiguous (G) and ambiguous (Y) strikes. For each site, the
 code is reported only in the first row; subsequent rows referring to the
 same site contain empty cells in this column. #### File:
 03_Resistivity.xlsx **Description:** This file contains measurements of
 electrical resistance and resistivity for individuals of ten canopy tree
 species. Values were obtained during the 2022 field campaign in Bwindi
 using standardized resistance measurements (see manuscript methods for
 details). ##### Variables * **Species** – Scientific name of the tree
 species. * **DBH** – Diameter at breast height of the individual (cm). *
 **R (Kohm)** – Corrected electrical resistance of the wood (kΩ). * **rho
 (ohm·m)** – Electrical resistivity (Ω·m), calculated from resistance,
 cross-sectional area, and electrode spacing. ## Code/software The data
 files are provided in `.xlsx` format and can be viewed using any
 spreadsheet software such as Microsoft Excel, LibreOffice Calc, or Google
 Sheets.