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Adu-Bredu, S. et al

Forest inventory and lightning strikes data from Ankasa Conservation area, Ghana, 2018-2021

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This dataset is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence

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https://doi.org/10.5285/615481ab-e97d-4c73-9973-4fb80e5fb003
This dataset contains includes measurements of trees and lianas stem diameters and status (e.g. alive, dead), and lightning strike data for forest areas within the Ankasa Conservation Area, collected between June 2018 and July 2021.
We investigated tree mortality drive by lightning strikes in a 50-ha (1000 m x 500 m) plot area in the Ankasa Conservation Area, located in southwestern Ghana. The 50-ha was divided into 50 x 1-ha forest plots. In every census, we measured and tagged all trees and lianas that have a stem diameter at 1.3 m (or above buttresses) of ≥25 cm and notes were taken about the tree's living status (e.g., broken, hollow) or the trees death mode (e.g., uprooted, standing). Lightning strike data was collected from a subsample of the individual trees recorded in the census data.
Publication date: 2024-02-21
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More information

View numbers valid from 21 February 2024 Download numbers valid from 20 June 2024 (information prior to this was not collected)

Format

Comma-separated values (CSV)

Spatial information

Study area
Spatial representation type
Tabular (text)
Spatial reference system
WGS 84 / Pseudo-Mercator

Temporal information

Temporal extent
2018-06-01    to    2021-07-31

Provenance & quality

For each tree measured in the forest inventory, we installed a custom-made Rogowski Coil sensor, that was designed and tested by the Cardiff Morgan Botti lightning laboratory, to record if a tree was struck by lightning, without damaging the tree or altering the tree's electrical resistance. The Rogowski Coil is a non-contact sensor commonly used to measure alternating and impulse current flowing through the axis of the coil (in our case, down the tree). A quick visual check of the fuse allows us to see if the tree was struck by lightning. In addition to tree stem measurements, in each census, we also took notes on the general state of the coil and fuse, and the electrical conductivity was measured. Trees struck by lightning (e.g. with the fuse blown or melted) were identified at the species level and any lightning-associated damage to the tree (e.g. marks in trunks, broken branches, canopy dieback) and in the surroundings (e.g. canopy gaps, sapling mortality) was documented.

Licensing and constraints

This dataset is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence

Cite this dataset as:
Adu-Bredu, S.; Stivanello, S.; Duah-Gyamfi, A. ; Addo-Danso, S.; Dabo, J. ; Ibrahim, F.; Manu, E.A.; Ametsitsi, G.; Streher, A.S.; Feldpausch, T.; Hill, T. (2024). Forest inventory and lightning strikes data from Ankasa Conservation area, Ghana, 2018-2021. NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/615481ab-e97d-4c73-9973-4fb80e5fb003

Correspondence/contact details

Dr. Tim Hill
University of Exeter
 t.c.hill@exeter.ac.uk

Authors

Adu-Bredu, S.
Forestry Research Institute of Ghana
Stivanello, S.
University of Exeter
Duah-Gyamfi, A.
Forestry Research Institute of Ghana
Addo-Danso, S.
Forestry Research Institute of Ghana
Dabo, J.
Forestry Research Institute of Ghana
Ibrahim, F.
Forestry Research Institute of Ghana
Manu, E.A.
Forestry Research Institute of Ghana
Ametsitsi, G.
Forestry Research Institute of Ghana
Streher, A.S.
University of Exeter
Feldpausch, T.
University of Exeter
Hill, T.
University of Exeter

Other contacts

Rights holder
University of Exeter
Custodian
NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre
 info@eidc.ac.uk
Publisher
NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre
 info@eidc.ac.uk

Additional metadata

Topic categories
biota
Keywords
Forest Inventory , lightning , tree , Tree mortality , tropical forest
Funding
Natural Environment Research Council Award: NE/P001564/1
Last updated
06 January 2025 09:14