Data from: The quantity of deposited environmental DNA in plant-insect interactions depends on taxon, abundance, and interaction time

eDNA metabarcoding holds great promise as a simple and efficient tool to
detect plant-insect interactions. However, the influence of both abiotic
and biotic factors on eDNA deposition in plant-insect interactions is not
well understood. It especially remains to be tested how much eDNA
abundances reflect the frequency or intensity of interactions of insects
and plants. We experimentally analyzed the quantitative deposition of eDNA
from three insect species (the southern green stink bug Nezara viridula,
the mustard beetle Phaedon cochleariae and the fall armyworm Spodoptera
frugiperda) on leaves of two host plants of varying attractiveness: savoy
cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. sabauda, preferred host) and tomato
(Solanum lycopersicum, less preferred host). We tested for the effects of
insect taxonomy, host plant, and exposure time and abundances of
interacting insects on the plant material. Our data shows a clear
quantitative ecological signal in eDNA deposition. Insect abundance and
interaction time is reflected in the amount of deposited eDNA. Moreover,
significantly more eDNA was deposited on cabbage, the preferred host
plant. Besides these ecological drivers, a very strong taxonomic eDNA
deposition bias between different insect taxa was observed.  eDNA
detection is strongly influenced by the ecological interactions of the
targeted taxa, highlighting the utility of the tool to specifically detect
trophic interactions between plants and arthropods. However, taxonomic
biases in eDNA deposition preclude comparative analyses of interactions at
the community level.