Lightning: Identifying Characteristics
| Identifying the stress: | Damage can range from minimal injury to serious destruction. Injury is most often to the trunk but roots, branches, and leaves or needles can be affected too. Minimal damage includes the loss of a few pieces of bark and the loss of needles, leaves, and branches due to the flying bark and debris. The usual injury to conifers is a uniform 2-10 wide furrow along the trunk where only the outermost layers of sapwood are exposed. Severe damage may include complete trees being literally "blown apart" or the trunk severed enough to cause the tree to fall over or major branches fall off. |
| Susceptible trees: | Any tree can be hit by lightning, the tallest trees being the most likely targets. |