Data from: Rise of the machines – recommendations for ecologists when using next generation sequencing for microsatellite development.

Next generation sequencing (NGS) is revolutionizing molecular ecology by
simplifying the development of molecular genetic markers, including
microsatellites. Here we summarize the results of the large scale
development of microsatellites for 54 non-model species using NGS and show
there are clear differences amongst plants, invertebrates and vertebrates
for the number and proportion of motif types recovered that are able to be
utilised as markers. We highlight that the heterogeneity within each group
is very large. Despite this variation, we provide an indication of what
number of sequences and consequent proportion of a 454 run are required
for the development of 40 designable, unique microsatellite loci for a
typical molecular ecological study. Finally, to address the challenges of
choosing loci from the vast array of microsatellite loci typically
available from partial genome runs (average for this study, 2341 loci), we
provide a microsatellite development flowchart as a procedural guide for
application once the results of a partial genome run are obtained.