The genome sequence of the Esper’s Marbled White, Melanargia russiae Esper, 1783 (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae)

We present a genome assembly from a female specimen of Melanargia russiae (Esper’s Marbled White; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Nymphalidae). The assembly contains two haplotypes with total lengths of 628.79 megabases and 557.05 megabases. Most of haplotype 1 (98.55%) is scaffolded into 25 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the W and Z sex chromosomes. Haplotype 2 was assembled to scaffold level. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled, with a length of 15.42 kilobases. This work is part of Project Psyche, a collaborative programme generating genomes for European butterflies and moths.