Raw sequence of: A comparative analysis of spider prey spectra analyzed through the next-generation sequencing of individual and mixed DNA samples

As one of the most abundant predators of insects in terrestrial ecosystems, spiders have long received much attention from agricultural scientists and ecologists. Do spiders have a certain controlling effect on the main insect pests of concern in farmland ecosystems? Answering this question requires us to fully understand the prey spectrum and prey preferences of spiders in the farmland ecosystem of concern. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) has been successfully employed to analyze spider prey spectra by sequencing prey DNA barcode regions and matching the sequence results to DNA barcodes from public databases. However, considering the high cost of this technology, we performed a comparative analysis of the prey spectra of Ovia alboannulata (Araneae, Lycosidae) (a dominant spider species on Chinese tea plantations) using NGS with individual and mixed DNA samples to demonstrate which treatment was better for determining the spider's prey spectrum in the field. We collected spider individuals from tea plantations. Two treatments were then used to analyze the spider's prey spectrum: (1) the DNA was extracted from the spiders individually and then sequenced separately and (2) the DNA was extracted from the spiders individually and then mixed and sequenced.