Dataset from: A curated DNA barcode reference library for parasitoids of northern European cyclically outbreaking geometrid moths

Large areas of forests are annually damaged or destroyed by outbreaking
insect pests. Understanding the factors that trigger and terminate such
population eruptions has become crucially important, as plants,
plant-feeding insects, and their natural enemies may respond
differentially to the ongoing changes in the global climate. In
northernmost Europe, climate-driven range expansions of the geometrid
moths Epirrita autumnata and Operophtera
brumata have resulted in overlapping and increasingly severe
outbreaks. Delayed density-dependent responses of parasitoids are a
plausible explanation for the ten-year population cycles of these moth
species, but the impact of parasitoids on geometrid outbreak dynamics is
unclear due to a lack of knowledge on the host ranges and prevalences of
parasitoids attacking the moths in nature. To overcome these problems, we
reviewed the literature on parasitism in the focal geometrid species in
their outbreak range, and then constructed a DNA barcode reference library
for all relevant parasitoid species based on reared specimens and
sequences obtained from public databases. The combined parasitoid
community of E. autumnata and O.
brumata consists of 32 hymenopteran species, all of which can be
reliably identified based on their barcode sequences. The curated barcode
library presented here opens up new opportunities for estimating the
abundance and community composition of parasitoids across populations and
ecosystems based on mass barcoding and metabarcoding approaches. Such
information can be used for elucidating the role of parasitoids in moth
population control, possibly also for devising methods for reducing the
extent, intensity, and duration of outbreaks.