Forest inventory and lightning strikes data from the Ngel Nyaki forest, Nigeria, 2018-2021
Cite this dataset as:
Stivanello, S.; Emmanuel, E.; Abubakar, U.; Chapman, H.; Zubairu, M.; Streher, A.S.; Feldpausch, T.; Hill, T. (2024). Forest inventory and lightning strikes data from the Ngel Nyaki forest, Nigeria, 2018-2021. NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/5237ab05-04bd-44b6-9c53-d21eb2083e39
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This dataset is available under the terms of the Open Government Licence 
https://doi.org/10.5285/5237ab05-04bd-44b6-9c53-d21eb2083e39
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 Ngel Nyaki Forest, collected between June 2018 and July 2021.
We investigated tree mortality driven by lightning strikes in a 40-ha area at the Ngel Nyaki Forest Dynamic Plot, located in south-eastern Nigeria. Ngel Nyaki is a submontane forest with an elevation range of 1,588–1,690m and is part of the Smithsonian's Forest Global Earth Observatory (ForestGEO) network. 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).
We investigated tree mortality driven by lightning strikes in a 40-ha area at the Ngel Nyaki Forest Dynamic Plot, located in south-eastern Nigeria. Ngel Nyaki is a submontane forest with an elevation range of 1,588–1,690m and is part of the Smithsonian's Forest Global Earth Observatory (ForestGEO) network. 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).
Publication date: 2024-02-21
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, broke 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:
Stivanello, S.; Emmanuel, E.; Abubakar, U.; Chapman, H.; Zubairu, M.; Streher, A.S.; Feldpausch, T.; Hill, T. (2024). Forest inventory and lightning strikes data from the Ngel Nyaki forest, Nigeria, 2018-2021. NERC EDS Environmental Information Data Centre. https://doi.org/10.5285/5237ab05-04bd-44b6-9c53-d21eb2083e39
Related
Correspondence/contact details
Authors
Stivanello, S.
University of Exeter
Emmanuel, E.
Nigerian Montane Forest Project
Abubakar, U.
Nigerian Montane Forest Project
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8509-703X
Zubairu, M.
Nigerian Montane Forest Project
Streher, A.S.
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