From similarity and differences of morphological, biochemical, cellular characteristics, biologist have constructed 'phylogenetic (evolutionary) trees' (who is most closely related to who, analogous to a family tree)
In the United States, lightning routinely kills more people each year than tornadoes or hurricanes. Tornadoes, hail, and wind gusts get the most attention, but only lightning can strike outside the storm itself. Lightning is the first thunderstorm hazard to arrive and the last to leave.
It is estimated that Earth as a whole is struck by an average of more than a hundred lightning bolts every second. â¢ The odds of becoming a lightning victim in the U.S. in any one year is 1 in 700,000. The odds of being struck in your lifetime is 1 in 3,000. â¢ Lightning can kill people (3,696 deaths were recorded in the U.S. between 1959 and 2003) or cause cardiac arrest.