Data used to assess differences in shedding of environmental DNA between living fish and carcasses

These data were generated from a five-day laboratory study that compared environmental DNA (eDNA) concentrations derived from live and dead rainbow trout (Oncorhychus mykiss) to investigate how eDNA shedding differs between live and dead fish. Live and dead fish were each housed in separate tanks and eDNA samples were collected from each tank after 1, 2, 3, and 5 days. Additionally, propidium monoazide (PMA) was used to differentiate eDNA contributions from intact versus disrupted cells from both live and dead fish. The metadata described include: data collected on each fish used in the experiment including length and weight; quantitative PCR (qPCR) cycle threshold (Ct) values; and eDNA copy number. The metadata also includes the Y-intercept, slope, and R-squared value for each qPCR assay performed.