Mr Craig Liddicoat
School of Public Health
College of Health
Craig Liddicoat is an Adjunct Senior Fellow in the School of Public Health at the University of Adelaide. Craig's research interests include environmental microbiomes, spatial epidemiology, and developing knowledge of beneficial connections between human health and exposure to biodiverse vegetation-soil systems. In particular, the role that exposure to (and loss of) biodiverse green space may play in developing immune fitness, mental health and predisposition to both infectious and non-infectious diseases.
My research is exploring connections between environments, their microbial communities (microbiota), and the potential for human health benefits from nature-contact. The notion of a real biological (microbiota-mediated) connection between humans and their environments, and potential benefits for immune training and regulation from exposure to biodiversity (and associated microbial diversity), has originated from immunologists and medical researchers. However, this represents a large multidisciplinary field of research. My research has objectives to:
- help bridge the gap between environmental science, ecology and human health.
- investigate if there is support for possible health benefits from exposure to biodiversity in large existing environmental and public health datasets.
- build knowledge of biological (microbiota-based) connections between environments and exposed populations.
- help inform new cost-effective nature-based public health interventions.
| Date | Position | Institution name |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 - ongoing | Adjunct Senior Lecturer | Flinders University |
| 2020 - ongoing | Adjunct Senior Fellow | University of Adelaide |
| 2017 - ongoing | Senior NRM Scientist (Soil & Land) [Part-time] | Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources (SA) |
| 2011 - 2017 | Senior Natural Resource Management Scientist (Soil & Land) | Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources (SA) |
| 2002 - 2011 | Environmental Consultant | Rural Solutions SA |
| Date | Institution name | Country | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 - 2019 | University of Adelaide | Australia | PhD (Bioscience) |
| 1999 - 2001 | Flinders University, Adelaide | Australia | Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science (ecology major) |
| 1990 - 1993 | University of Adelaide, Adelaide | Australia | Bachelor of Engineering (Mechanical, 1st class hons.) |
| Date | Title | Institution name | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Certificate IV in Project Management | MBH Management Pty Ltd (RTO ID: 90884) | - |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2025 | Peddle, S. D., Hodgson, R. J., Borrett, R. J., Brachmann, S., Davies, T. C., Erickson, T. E., . . . Breed, M. F. (2025). Practical applications of soil microbiota to improve ecosystem restoration: current knowledge and future directions. Biological Reviews, 100(1), 1-18. Scopus21 WoS22 Europe PMC7 |
| 2025 | Hodgson, R. J., Cando-Dumancela, C., Liddicoat, C., Ramesh, S. A., Edwards, R. A., & Breed, M. F. (2025). Strong Host Modulation of Rhizosphere-to-Endosphere Microbial Colonisation in Natural Populations of the Pan-Palaeotropical Keystone Grass Species, Themeda triandra. Ecology and Evolution, 15(6), e71595-1-e71595-16. Scopus3 WoS3 Europe PMC2 |
| 2025 | Shabani, F., Ahmadi, M., Lorestani, N., Bibi, S., Esmaeili, A., Lane, T., . . . Ossola, A. (2025). Pedology and Plant Provenance Can Improve Species Distribution Predictions of Australian Native Flora: A Calibrated and Validated Modeling Exercise on 5033 Species. Ecology and Evolution, 15(6), 15 pages. |
| 2025 | Breed, M. F., Liddicoat, C., Sun, X., Ramesh, S., Hawken, S., Lee, K., . . . Robinson, J. M. (2025). Opportunities, challenges, and policy implications of the aerobiome paradigm shift.. mSphere, 10(8), e0020325. |
| 2025 | Hodgson, R. J., Cando-Dumancela, C., Davies, T., Drysdale, V., Fickling, N. W., Liddicoat, C., . . . Breed, M. F. (2025). Arid Soil Bacterial Legacies Improve Drought Resilience of the Keystone Grass, Themeda triandra. Molecular Ecology, 34(18), 15 pages. |
| 2025 | Robinson, J. M., Brame, J., Cando Dumancela, C., Deshmukh, S., Fickling, N. W., Hawken, S., . . . Breed, M. F. (2025). Mapping and cataloguing microbial and biochemical determinants of health: towards a 'database of Salutogenic potential'. Microbial Biotechnology, 10(e70243), 1-7. Europe PMC1 |
| 2025 | Hodgson, R. J., Cando-Dumancela, C., Davies, T., Dinsdale, E. A., Doane, M. P., Edwards, R. A., . . . Breed, M. F. (2025). Contrasting Microbial Taxonomic and Functional Colonisation Patterns in Wild Populations of the Pan-Palaeotropical C4 Grass, Themeda triandra. Plant, Cell and Environment, 49(1), 1-17. |
| 2024 | Davies, T., Cando-Dumancela, C., Liddicoat, C., Dresken, R., Damen, R. H., Edwards, R. A., . . . Breed, M. F. (2024). Ecological phage therapy: Can bacteriophages help rapidly restore the soil microbiome?. Ecology and Evolution, 14(8), 10 pages. Scopus5 WoS5 Europe PMC2 |
| 2024 | Robinson, J. M., Annells, A., Cavagnaro, T. R., Liddicoat, C., Rogers, H., Taylor, A., & Breed, M. F. (2024). Monitoring soil fauna with ecoacoustics. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 291(2030), 20241595-1-20241595-10. Scopus11 WoS9 |
| 2024 | Peddle, S. D., Cando-Dumancela, C., Krauss, S. L., Liddicoat, C., Sanders, A., & Breed, M. F. (2024). Agricultural land-use legacies affect soil bacterial communities following restoration in a global biodiversity hotspot. Biological Conservation, 290, 9 pages. Scopus3 WoS3 |
| 2024 | Fickling, N. W., Abbott, C. A., Brame, J. E., Cando-Dumancela, C., Liddicoat, C., Robinson, J. M., & Breed, M. F. (2024). Light-dark cycles may influence in situ soil bacterial networks and diurnally-sensitive taxa. Ecology and Evolution, 14(2), e11018-1-e11018-18. Scopus1 WoS1 Europe PMC2 |
| 2024 | Birnbaum, C., Dearnaley, J., Egidi, E., Frew, A., Hopkins, A., Powell, J., . . . Chiarenza, G. (2024). Integrating soil microbial communities into fundamental ecology, conservation, and restoration: examples from Australia. New Phytologist, 241(3), 974-981. Scopus3 WoS3 Europe PMC2 |
| 2024 | Brame, J. E., Warbrick, I., Heke, D., Liddicoat, C., & Breed, M. F. (2024). Short-term passive greenspace exposures have little effect on nasal microbiomes: A cross-over exposure study of a Māori cohort. Environmental Research, 252(Pt 1), 9 pages. |
| 2024 | Newman, N. S., Abbott, C. A., Brame, J. E., Cando-Dumancela, C., Fickling, N. W., Liddicoat, C., . . . Breed, M. F. (2024). Childcare centre soil microbiomes are influenced by substrate type and surrounding vegetation condition. Science of the Total Environment, 927, 11 pages. Scopus1 WoS1 Europe PMC1 |
| 2024 | Robinson, J. M., Liddicoat, C., Muñoz-Rojas, M., & Breed, M. F. (2024). Restoring soil biodiversity. Current Biology, 34(9), R393-R398. Scopus13 WoS12 Europe PMC10 |
| 2024 | Brame, J. E., Liddicoat, C., Abbott, C. A., Edwards, R. A., Robinson, J. M., Gauthier, N. E., & Breed, M. F. (2024). The macroecology of butyrate-producing bacteria via metagenomic assessment of butyrate production capacity. Ecology and Evolution, 14(5), e11239-1-e11239-14. Scopus3 WoS3 Europe PMC2 |
| 2024 | Liddicoat, C., Edwards, R. A., Roach, M., Robinson, J. M., Wallace, K. J., Barnes, A. D., . . . Breed, M. F. (2024). Bioenergetic mapping of ‘healthy microbiomes’ via compound processing potential imprinted in gut and soil metagenomes. Science of The Total Environment, 940, 173543. Scopus4 WoS4 Europe PMC7 |
| 2024 | Hodgson, R. J., Liddicoat, C., Cando-Dumancela, C., Fickling, N. W., Peddle, S. D., Ramesh, S., & Breed, M. F. (2024). Increasing aridity strengthens the core bacterial rhizosphere associations in the pan-palaeotropical C4 grass, Themeda triandra. Applied Soil Ecology, 201, 105514. Scopus5 WoS5 |
| 2024 | Robinson, J., Liddicoat, C., Sun, X., Whiley, H., Ramesh, S., Hawken, S., . . . Breed, B. (2024). The climate change-pollution-aerobiome nexus: a ‘systems thinking’ mini-review. Microbial Biotechnology, 17(10), e70018-1-e70018-10. Scopus1 WoS1 Europe PMC2 |
| 2024 | Brame, J. E., Liddicoat, C., Abbott, C. A., Cando-Dumancela, C., Fickling, N. W., Robinson, J. M., & Breed, M. F. (2024). Urban sports fields support higher levels of soil butyrate and butyrate-producing bacteria than urban nature parks. Ecology and Evolution, 14(7), 12 pages. Europe PMC1 |
| 2023 | Hodgson, R. J., Liddicoat, C., Cando‐Dumancela, C., Blyth, C., Watson, C. D., & Breed, M. F. (2023). Local and non‐local soil microbiota impede germination of the endangered Acacia whibleyana. Austral Ecology, 48(2), 339-358. Scopus1 WoS1 |
| 2023 | Sun, X., Liddicoat, C., Tiunov, A., Wang, B., Zhang, Y., Lu, C., . . . Zhu, Y. G. (2023). Harnessing soil biodiversity to promote human health in cities. Npj Urban Sustainability, 3(1), 8 pages. Scopus44 WoS42 |
| 2023 | Robinson, J. M., Hodgson, R., Krauss, S. L., Liddicoat, C., Malik, A. A., Martin, B. C., . . . Breed, M. F. (2023). Opportunities and challenges for microbiomics in ecosystem restoration. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 38(12), 1189-1202. Scopus30 WoS23 Europe PMC16 |
| 2023 | Cando-Dumancela, C., Davies, T., Hodgson, R. J., Liddicoat, C., Peddle, S. D., Watson, C. D., & Breed, M. F. (2023). A practical guide for restoration ecologists to manage microbial contamination risks before laboratory processes during microbiota restoration studies. Restoration Ecology, 31(1), 6 pages. Scopus8 WoS8 |
| 2023 | Peddle, S. D., Bissett, A., Borrett, R. J., Bullock, P., Gardner, M. G., Liddicoat, C., . . . Krauss, S. L. (2023). Soil DNA chronosequence analysis shows bacterial community re-assembly following post-mining forest rehabilitation. Restoration Ecology, 31(3), 13 pages. Scopus14 WoS11 |
| 2022 | Watson, C. D., Gardner, M. G., Hodgson, R. J., Liddicoat, C., Peddle, S. D., & Breed, M. F. (2022). Global meta-analysis shows progress towards recovery of soil microbiota following revegetation. Biological Conservation, 272, 109592-1-109592-8. Scopus20 WoS20 |
| 2022 | Robinson, J., Aronson, J., Daniels, C., Goodwin, N., Liddicoat, C., Orlando, L., . . . Breed, M. (2022). Ecosystem restoration is integral to humanity’s recovery from COVID-19. Lancet Planetary Health, 9(6), 769-773. Scopus22 WoS15 Europe PMC12 |
| 2022 | Young, J. M., Liddicoat, C., van Dijk, K. -J., Tabernero, P., Caillet, C., White, N. J., . . . Newton, P. N. (2022). Environmental DNA as an innovative technique to identify the origins of falsified antimalarial tablets—a pilot study of the pharmabiome. Scientific Reports, 12(1), 13 pages. Scopus7 WoS7 Europe PMC3 |
| 2022 | Taggart, P. L., Liddicoat, C., Tong, W. H., Breed, M. F., Weinstein, P., Wheeler, D., & Vyas, A. (2022). Gut microbiota composition does not associate with Toxoplasma infection in rats.. Mol Ecol, 31(14), 3963-3970. Scopus6 WoS7 Europe PMC7 |
| 2022 | Liddicoat, C., Krauss, S. L., Bissett, A., Borrett, R. J., Ducki, L. C., Peddle, S. D., . . . Breed, M. F. (2022). Next generation restoration metrics: Using soil eDNA bacterial community data to measure trajectories towards rehabilitation targets. Journal of Environmental Management, 310, 114748-1-114748-12. Scopus26 WoS23 Europe PMC12 |
| 2022 | Lem, A. J., Liddicoat, C., Bissett, A., Cando-Dumancela, C., Gardner, M. G., Peddle, S. D., . . . Breed, M. F. (2022). Does revegetation cause soil microbiota recovery? Evidence from revisiting a revegetation chronosequence 6 years after initial sampling. Restoration Ecology, 30(8), e13635-1-e13635-14. Scopus14 WoS12 |
| 2022 | Brame, J., Liddicoat, C., Abbott, C., Edwards, R., Robinson, J., Gauthier, N., & Breed, M. (2022). Towards the biogeography of butyrate-producing bacteria. |
| 2021 | Prescott, S. L., Wegienka, G., Kort, R., Nelson, D. H., Gabrysch, S., Hancock, T., . . . Berman, B. (2021). Project earthrise: Proceedings of the ninth annual conference of in vivo planetary health. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(20), 101 pages. Scopus8 WoS5 Europe PMC4 |
| 2021 | Searle, R., McBratney, A., Grundy, M., Kidd, D., Malone, B., Arrouays, D., . . . Andrews, K. (2021). Digital soil mapping and assessment for Australia and beyond: A propitious future. Geoderma Regional, 24, 13 pages. Scopus58 WoS45 |
| 2021 | Cando‐Dumancela, C., Liddicoat, C., McLeod, D., Young, J. M., & Breed, M. F. (2021). A guide to minimise contamination issues in microbiome restoration studies. Restoration Ecology, 29(4), 7 pages. Scopus12 WoS12 |
| 2021 | Stanhope, J., Liddicoat, C., & Weinstein, P. (2021). Outdoor artificial light at night: a forgotten factor in green space and health research. Environmental Research, 197, 5 pages. Scopus33 WoS31 Europe PMC21 |
| 2021 | Brame, J. E., Liddicoat, C., Abbott, C. A., & Breed, M. F. (2021). The potential of outdoor environments to supply beneficial butyrate-producing bacteria to humans. Science of the Total Environment, 777, 146063. Scopus36 WoS36 Europe PMC29 |
| 2021 | Robinson, J. M., Cando-Dumancela, C., Antwis, R. E., Cameron, R., Liddicoat, C., Poudel, R., . . . Breed, M. F. (2021). Exposure to airborne bacteria depends upon vertical stratification and vegetation complexity. Scientific Reports, 11(1), 9516-1-9516-16. Scopus47 WoS41 Europe PMC32 |
| 2021 | Robinson, J. M., Watkins, H., Man, I., Liddicoat, C., Cameron, R., Parker, B., . . . Meagher, L. (2021). Microbiome-Inspired Green Infrastructure: A bioscience roadmap for urban ecosystem health. Arq Architectural Research Quarterly, 25(4), 292-303. Scopus8 WoS8 |
| 2021 | Baruch, Z., Liddicoat, C., Cando-Dumancela, C., Laws, M., Morelli, H., Weinstein, P., . . . Breed, M. F. (2021). Increased plant species richness associates with greater soil bacterial diversity in urban green spaces. Environmental Research, 196, 12 pages. Scopus51 WoS42 Europe PMC20 |
| 2020 | Robinson, J., Cando-Dumancela, C., Antwis, R., Cameron, R., Liddicoat, C., Poudel, R., . . . Breed, M. (2020). Exposure to Airborne Bacteria Depends upon Vertical Stratification and Vegetation Complexity. |
| 2020 | Robinson, J. M., Cando-Dumancela, C., Liddicoat, C., Weinstein, P., Cameron, R., & Breed, M. F. (2020). Vertical Stratification in Urban Green Space Aerobiomes. Environmental Health Perspectives, 128(11), 117008. Scopus42 WoS41 Europe PMC23 |
| 2020 | Baruch, Z., Liddicoat, C., Laws, M., Kiri Marker, L., Morelli, H., Yan, D. F., . . . Breed, M. F. (2020). Characterising the soil fungal microbiome in metropolitan green spaces across a vegetation biodiversity gradient. Fungal Ecology, 47, 1-10. Scopus29 WoS27 |
| 2020 | Grundy, M. J., Searle, R., Meier, E. A., Ringrose-Voase, A. J., Kidd, D., Orton, T. G., . . . Bennett, J. M. L. (2020). Digital soil assessment delivers impact across scales in Australia and the Philippines. Geoderma Regional, 22, 15 pages. Scopus6 WoS6 |
| 2020 | Kidd, D., Searle, R., Grundy, M., McBratney, A., Robinson, N., O'Brien, L., . . . Triantafilis, J. (2020). Operationalising digital soil mapping – Lessons from Australia. Geoderma Regional, 23, 21 pages. Scopus41 WoS30 |
| 2020 | Liddicoat, C., Sydnor, H., Cando-Dumancela, C., Dresken, R., Liu, J., Gellie, N., . . . Breed, M. F. (2020). Naturally-diverse airborne environmental microbial exposures modulate the gut microbiome and may provide anxiolytic benefits in mice. Science of the Total Environment, 701, 1-11. Scopus122 WoS112 Europe PMC85 |
| 2019 | Bennett, J. M., McBratney, A., Field, D., Kidd, D., Stockmann, U., Liddicoat, C., & Grover, S. (2019). Soil Security for Australia. SUSTAINABILITY, 11(12), 15 pages. Scopus42 WoS27 |
| 2019 | Mills, J., Brookes, J., Gellie, N., Liddicoat, C., Lowe, A., Sydnor, H., . . . Breed, M. F. (2019). Relating urban biodiversity to human health with the ‘holobiont’ concept. Frontiers in Microbiology, 10(MAR), 8 pages. Scopus74 WoS63 Europe PMC41 |
| 2019 | Liddicoat, C., Weinstein, P., Bissett, A., Gellie, N., Mills, J., Waycott, M., & Breed, M. F. (2019). Can bacterial indicators of a grassy woodland restoration inform ecosystem assessment and microbiota-mediated human health?. Environment International, 129, 105-117. Scopus57 WoS53 Europe PMC26 |
| 2018 | Liddicoat, C., Bi, P., Waycott, M., Glover, J., Breed, M. F., & Weinstein, P. (2018). Ambient soil cation exchange capacity inversely associates with infectious and parasitic disease risk in regional Australia. Science of the Total Environment, 626, 117-125. Scopus34 WoS31 Europe PMC12 |
| 2018 | Liddicoat, C., Bi, P., Waycott, M., Glover, J., Lowe, A., & Weinstein, P. (2018). Landscape biodiversity correlates with respiratory health in Australia. Journal of Environmental Management, 206, 113-122. Scopus51 WoS46 Europe PMC30 |
| 2016 | Liddicoat, C., Waycott, M., & Weinstein, P. (2016). Environmental change and human health: Can environmental proxies inform the biodiversity hypothesis for protective microbial-human contact?. BioScience, 66(12), 1023-1034. Scopus25 WoS20 |
| 2015 | Liddicoat, C., Maschmedt, D., Clifford, D., Searle, R., Herrmann, T., Macdonald, L., & Baldock, J. (2015). Predictive mapping of soil organic carbon stocks in South Australia's agricultural zone. Soil Research, 53(8), 956-973. Scopus37 WoS39 |
| 2015 | Odgers, N. P., Holmes, K. W., Griffin, T., & Liddicoat, C. (2015). Derivation of soil-attribute estimations from legacy soil maps. Soil Research, 53(8), 881-894. Scopus17 WoS16 |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| - | Arrouays, D., McKenzie, N., Hempel, J., Richer de Forges, A., & McBratney, A. B. (Eds.) (2014). GlobalSoilMap. CRC Press. DOI |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2014 | Liddicoat, C., Maschmedt, D., Kidd, D. B., & Searle, R. (2014). Modelling soil carbon stocks using legacy site data, in the mid north region of South Australia. In D. Arrouays, N. McKenzie, J. Hempel, A. C. R. DeForges, & A. McBratney (Eds.), Globalsoilmap Basis of the Global Spatial Soil Information System Proceedings of the 1st Globalsoilmap Conference (pp. 253-259). Orleans, FRANCE: CRC PRESS-TAYLOR & FRANCIS GROUP. DOI Scopus3 WoS3 |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2021 | Stanhope, J., Liddicoat, C., & Weinstein, P. (2021). Is outdoor artificial light at night confounding studies on green space and health?. Poster session presented at the meeting of Environmental Health Perspectives. New York: The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). DOI |
| 2021 | Stanhope, J., Liddicoat, C., & Weinstein, P. (2021). Is outdoor artificial light at night confounding spatial epidemiological studies on greenspace and health?. Poster session presented at the meeting of International Journal of Epidemiology. Virtual: Oxford University Press (OUP). DOI |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| - | Liddicoat, C., Weinstein, P., Bissett, A., Gellie, N., Mills, J., Waycott, M., & Breed, M. (n.d.). Data Inputs - Can bacterial indicators of a grassy woodland restoration inform ecosystem assessment and microbiota-mediated human health?. DOI |
| - | Liddicoat, C., Sydnor, H., Cando-Dumancela, C., Dresken, R., Liu, J., Gellie, N., . . . Breed, M. (n.d.). Supporting Data - Naturally-diverse airborne environmental microbial exposures modulate the gut microbiome and may provide anxiolytic benefits in mice. DOI |
| - | Stanhope, J., Liddicoat, C., & Weinstein, P. (n.d.). Supporting data for article - Outdoor artificial light at night: a forgotten factor in green space and health research. DOI |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2023 | Liddicoat, C., Edwards, R., Roach, M., Robinson, J., Wallace, K. J., Barnes, A., . . . Breed, M. (2023). Bioenergetic mapping of ‘healthy microbiomes’ via compound processing potential imprinted in gut and soil metagenomes. DOI |
Connect With Me
External Profiles
