Friends of the Fal

30/09/2026

🍄 Ever spotted these tiny orange “ping-pong bats” in the woodland?
These brilliant little fungi are Orange Ping-Pong Bats, also known as Orange Pore Fungus (Favolaschia calocera).
They are tiny, often only around 1–3 cm across, but their intense orange colour makes them stand out dramatically against mossy logs and dark, decaying wood. Turn one over and you’ll see where the “pore” part of the name comes from: instead of gills, the underside has large, rounded pores, giving it an almost honeycomb appearance.
What makes this find especially interesting is that this is not originally a British fungus. It is regarded as an introduced species here and has spread through several parts of the world. The first confirmed UK record was made in west Cornwall in 2012, and since then, sightings have gradually spread through Cornwall and into other parts of south-west Britain.
It grows on dead and decaying wood, where it acts as a ‘saprotroph’ breaking timber down and recycling nutrients. In the UK, it has been recorded on several different woody species, including maple, beech, blackthorn and elder.

Whatever its origins, you certainly can’t miss it down at Friends of the Fal 🧡🌿

21/09/2026

A great time with Westcountry Rivers Trust providing CSI water quality testing on the 15th of September. This is the first of many training sessions being setup across the River Fal catchment. Also was the vision set out by Diatom CSI for additional CSI opportunities so watch this space!

14/09/2026

All rolled into one!
Left - European Garden Spider aka Orb Cross Weaver
Right - Hazel leaf Roller Weevil

14/09/2026

⚠️ ALERTS ARE A REMINDER: BE READY BEFORE YOU NEED TO BE
The Government issued an alert, with extreme weather reminding us just how quickly conditions can change and how many different impacts we can face.
🌧️ Flooding
🔥 Extreme heat
💨 Strong winds
⚡ Power cuts
🚗 Travel disruption
🏠 Damage to homes and property
🐕 Looking after pets, children and vulnerable family members
🌳 Disruption to our communities and local services
We can’t always prevent extreme weather - but we can be better prepared for it.
One simple thing you can do is put together a Grab Bag: the essential things you might need if you had to leave home quickly, lost power, or were unable to access your usual supplies.
🎁 And Climate Vision is making it a little more fun…
WIN A FREE LUNCH! 🥪☕️
Find out how to build your own Grab Bag and enter the competition here:
👉 https://climatevision.co.uk/alerts-win-a-free-lunch.../
It only takes a few minutes to think through “What would I need if things suddenly changed?”
It’s about confidence, resilience and looking after ourselves and the people around us. 💚
Please share this with friends, family and neighbours - because preparedness works best when we do it together – plus the food in Zafiros is amazing!
Thanks to the judges Gitty Ankers from Cornwall Community Flood Forum, Mary Lindsay from the Cornwall Federation of Women's Institutes - CFWI and Matthew Facey plus many thanks to fantastic demonstrators Jolyon from Cornwall Council and Amy from CCFF.

14/09/2026

The first of many exciting opportunities to see how you can make a difference to water quality in your area!
Links to the Fal CSI training and the Diatom introductions with Westcountry Rivers Trust and Exeter University- hope to see you there! 💙💦🌊🩵💧

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/csi-training-session-tickets-1999110586579

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/diatom-projec

🌊 Fed up with pollution in our rivers, streams and seas? Come and learn how you can do something through Citizen Science. No qualifications needed, just a willingness to get involved and make a difference.
Friends of the Fal is working with Westcountry Rivers Trust, Fal Rivers to Reef and the University of Exeter to build a River Fal monitoring network from source to sea.
Learn how to:
test water quality
monitor river conditions
spot changes and potential pollution issues
contribute data that helps build a bigger picture of river health.
📅 Tuesday 15 September
📍 St Stephen Community Hall
🔬 17:00–18:00 Diatom Project introduction
💧 18:00–20:00 CSI water-quality training
This is for people from communities across the River Fal catchment and its tributaries, not just St Stephen.

13/09/2026

🍄 Another woodland fungi find…
This delicate little fungus is the Skullcap Dapperling (Leucocoprinus brebissonii), found here at Friends of the Fal.
Its name comes from the distinctive dark brown centre of the cap, which contrasts beautifully with the pale, finely textured surface around it. As it opens out, the cap becomes almost parasol-like, while the slender white stem carries a small ring beneath.

Skullcap Dapperlings are typically found in leaf litter, rich woodland soil and among decaying organic matter, where they help break material down and recycle nutrients back into the woodland ecosystem.
They may look dainty, but this is definitely one to look at rather than eat — dapperlings can be difficult to identify confidently and some related species are toxic.☠️
One of the joys of woodland at this time of year is just how much starts appearing at ground level once you really begin to look. 🌿🍄🍄‍🟫

Small, delicate and very easy to walk straight past.

12/09/2026

Links to the Fal CSI training and the Diatom introductions with Westcountry Rivers Trust and Exeter University- hope to see you there! 💙💦🌊🩵💧

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/csi-training-session-tickets-1999110586579

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/diatom-project-introduction-session-tickets-1999108696927?aff=erelpanelorg

12/09/2026

Go to Eventbrite for locations where you can make a difference to the River Fal catchment

🌊 Fed up with pollution in our rivers, streams and seas? Come and learn how you can do something through Citizen Science. No qualifications needed, just a willingness to get involved and make a difference.
Friends of the Fal is working with Westcountry Rivers Trust, Fal Rivers to Reef and the University of Exeter to build a River Fal monitoring network from source to sea.
Learn how to:
test water quality
monitor river conditions
spot changes and potential pollution issues
contribute data that helps build a bigger picture of river health.
📅 Tuesday 15 September
📍 St Stephen Community Hall
🔬 17:00–18:00 Diatom Project introduction
💧 18:00–20:00 CSI water-quality training
This is for people from communities across the River Fal catchment and its tributaries, not just St Stephen.

09/09/2026

🌊 Fed up with pollution in our rivers, streams and seas? Come and learn how you can do something through Citizen Science. No qualifications needed, just a willingness to get involved and make a difference.
Friends of the Fal is working with Westcountry Rivers Trust, Fal Rivers to Reef and the University of Exeter to build a River Fal monitoring network from source to sea.
Learn how to:
test water quality
monitor river conditions
spot changes and potential pollution issues
contribute data that helps build a bigger picture of river health.
📅 Tuesday 15 September
📍 St Stephen Community Hall
🔬 17:00–18:00 Diatom Project introduction
💧 18:00–20:00 CSI water-quality training
This is for people from communities across the River Fal catchment and its tributaries, not just St Stephen.

07/09/2026

Wee beasties in the Fal woodland!