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Tim Daniell Soil Ecologist

Photograph of Tim Daniell
Modern science is highly inter-disciplinary; embrace collaboration

Playing in the dirt all day might not sound like cutting edge research but the importance of soil cannot be underestimated according to soil ecologist Tim Daniell. He is a senior scientist at The James Hutton Institute.

Tim leads a group that conducts research into soil ecology attempting to link community structure with microbial groups in soil with a particular emphasis on the rhizosphere. The group has developed a range of molecular methods to gain an understanding of soil community structure.

These have been used to analyse soil communities at a range of group complexities from total bacteria through to specific functional groups such as denitrifiers and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.

This work led to the creation of the Institute's first spin out company EnPrint in 2009 which applies DNA fingerprinting technology to deliver accurate assessment of water quality.

Before joining The James Hutton Institute Tim worked as a Research Fellow at the Department of Biology, University of York; as a Senior Research Assistant in the Department of Biological Sciences, Lancaster University; and as Research Associate at the Department of Biological Sciences, University of Durham.

He gained his first degree, a BSc (2.i Hons) in Biological Sciences from the University of Nottingham in 1988 and was awarded his PhD in Plant Biology from the University of Warwick in 1991.

Tim’s top tips for getting ahead in science

  • Modern science is highly inter-disciplinary; embrace collaboration.
  • Take heed of feedback and use it to strengthen future work.
  • Take responsibility for your own career.

Printed from /staff/profiles/tim-daniell-soil-ecologist on 19/03/24 07:22:51 AM

The James Hutton Research Institute is the result of the merger in April 2011 of MLURI and SCRI. This merger formed a new powerhouse for research into food, land use, and climate change.