Though being struck by lightning is usually bad, the tropical tree Dipteryx oleifera benefits. A strike kills other nearby trees and parasitic vines.

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/20552909

The fruit is edible, but there’s not much food on it, so probably not worth planting outside of its native range.

  • Lime Buzz (fae/she)English
    3•7 days ago

    but there’s not much food on it, so probably not worth planting outside of its native range.

    It is important to not plant things outside of their native range. However, plants and animals do not exist only for food. They exist so they should continue to and should be helped, not as something useful for creatures but because they should and because they help life no matter whether they are seemingly immediately useful for creatures or not.

    • Jim EastOPEnglish
      2•7 days ago

      Hello and thank you for your thoughtful comment. In general, I agree. I was not insinuating that Dipteryx oleifera trees (or plants in general) are only valuable as a source of food. They provide a myriad of ecosystem services, and all life in the forest is connected and interdependent. I simply meant that while some fruit-bearing plants are widely planted outside of their native range for food (durians, mangos, peaches, and probably most things that we both eat), this particular tree is probably not worth planting for its fruit alone (especially considering its size), and therefore it doesn’t make sense to grow it outside of its native range as one might do with some other fruit trees. Within its native range, it could be worth planting for the sake of restoring the forest, in which case eating the fruit would be a bonus.

      Of course, no animal is food.