Daniel is interested in unravelling the mechanisms that drive the evolution of living organisms and shape their ecological niches and geographic distributions. In January 2024, he started working as a PhD researcher at the Department of Environmental Biology of CML, where he investigates evolutionary dynamics within hybrid zones between species of the genus Triturus, using genetic data obtained from environmental DNA (eDNA).

More information about Daniel Zumel Gete

Professional experience

Daniel received his bachelor diploma in Biology in 2018 from Complutense University of Madrid (Spain), specializing in environmental sciences. During this stage, he gained practical experience as a wild animal keeper at two zoos in Spain, and volunteered at animal rescue and release centers in both Peru and Costa Rica.

He then completed a Master’s degree in Tropical Biodiversity and Conservation at Menéndez Pelayo International University (Madrid, Spain; 2018-2020), with internships in several Natural Reserves of Costa Rica. His Master's thesis, conducted in collaboration with Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador (PUCE), resulted in the discovery of a new monophyletic group of species within the Pristimantis genus and the description of four new frog species. This collaboration with PUCE continues, focusing on addressing biodiversity shortfalls within this genus.

In 2021, Daniel joined the Royal Botanical Garden, part of the Spanish National Research Council, CSIC (Madrid, Spain) as a Predoctoral Researcher. There, his work shed light on stress response mechanisms in bryophytes, notably the increase in the endoreduplication level in mosses under drought conditions. His contributions from this stage also included the description of two new Grimmia species from California (USA).

Further advancing his skills, in 2022, he received a specialization diploma in Bioinformatic Analyses from Pablo de Olavide University (Sevilla, Spain), where he developed advanced skills in programming and genomic analysis.

In January 2024, he joined Leiden University's Department of Environmental Biology at the Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML) as a PhD researcher.

Research topic

Daniel’s PhD project focuses on investigating hybrid zones between Triturus species through the lens of molecular ecology, utilizing genetic data obtained from environmental DNA (eDNA). The primary objective is to gain a deeper understanding of the evolutionary dynamics within Triturus hybrid zones across Europe, ultimately facilitating more effective conservation strategies for these species.

For an overview of Daniel's publications, you can follow this link.