What is a toucher, and how is it marked?

From laws 14 to 16 of the Laws of the Sport of Bowls (Crystal Mark 4th edition):

• A toucher is a bowl that touches the jack in its original course. It stays live even if it then goes into the ditch within the rink boundaries.
• A bowl also becomes a toucher if, after stopping, it falls and touches the jack before the next bowl is delivered (or within the 30 seconds allowed after the last bowl of an end).
• A bowl does not become a toucher by hitting the jack while the jack is in the ditch.

Marking: a member of the delivering team, or the marker, must mark it with chalk as soon as it stops. If marking it would likely move it or disturb the head, it is nominated as a toucher instead. If it is neither marked nor nominated before the next bowl stops, it is no longer a toucher.

Remove chalk from your bowl before delivering it. If you forget and it doesn't touch, the opponent or marker removes the mark.

A toucher in the ditch is marked with a brightly coloured indicator (no more than 50 mm wide and 100 mm high) against or on top of the bank in line with it.