Biosurveillance for invasive insect pest species using an environmental DNA metabarcoding approach and a high salt trap collection fluid

Amplification of environmental DNA from a saturated salt solution, trap fluid allows for the retention of trap specimens for downstream morphological identifications. In addition, a saturated salt solution to preserve specimens in traps addresses issues with the high evaporation rate of ethanol, and public safety concerns with other fluid preservation options in public settings. The current repository contains metabarcoding and associated data for a 407-nucleotide segment of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COI) animal barcode region. Fluid was collected from 12 Lindgren funnel traps in two Ontario regions in forested areas to survey for wood boring beetles of regulatory concern. Our results show how this protocol can be used as an efficient method for the surveillance of insects using a trap with a saturated salt solution and eDNA metabarcoding to detect species of regulatory concern.