Others suggest that it is the remains of the regurgitated innards of amphibians such as frogs and toads and of their spawn.
At the Coach party, Mr. Wilkinson was wearing a blazer featuring gold buttons in the shape of toads in homage to Elsie de Wolfe.
Over the spawning season, which runs from the end of March to mid-April, hundreds of toads make the journey back to two breeding ponds in Edington.
BBC: Volunteers wanted to carry toads across Wiltshire roads
On a Saturday afternoon in mid-February, Ms. Morgan held a meeting at the Schuylkill Center to brief about 40 potential toad escorts and give them a crash course in the lives of toads.
WSJ: Why Do the Toads Cross the Road? It's Mating Season in Philadelphia
Albino individuals of adult frogs, toads and newts are considered to be very rare and cases of multiple albinistic individuals in a breeding population are even rarer.
Volunteers are being sought to save hundreds of amorous toads from being killed on a road in Hampshire.
"The problem is there's quite a big road round the lake and for a 300m section, the toads are tumbling out of the woods to try to get to the lake, " he said.
Dr Fisher and his Spanish colleagues uncovered an association between the emergence of the disease and global warming while studying changes in the number of midwife toads in Spain's Penalara Natural Park between 1976 and 2002.
BBC: NEWS | Science/Nature | Warming link to amphibian disease
In England, the Surrey Amphibian and Reptile Group deploys volunteers to about 35 different sites southwest of London to help toads cross the road each spring.
WSJ: Why Do the Toads Cross the Road? It's Mating Season in Philadelphia
Among their aims are the revival of stalled development sites such as Toads Hole Valley and Preston Barracks in Brighton and Hove and Shoreham Harbour and Newhaven port.
The chytrid fungus, or BD as it is sometimes called, infects the skins of amphibians such as frogs, toads, salamanders and newts and interferes with their ability to absorb water.
BBC: NEWS | Science/Nature | Warming link to amphibian disease
Common toads are believed to be declining across the UK because of habitat loss, according to amphibian and reptile conservation group Froglife.
Part of the reason for this decline is that many toads become homeless each year as wild ponds are lost due to road building, development, pollution, intensive farming and drought.
BBC: NEWS | UK | England | Cumbria | Rush hour threat to amorous toads
Male toads tend to linger on the road to get a better view of females emerging from the hedges.
WSJ: Why Do the Toads Cross the Road? It's Mating Season in Philadelphia
Since then, flora has sprung up along the embankments, ballast, bridges and walls, creating meadows, wasteland and wooded areas in which a vast range of animals live: there are 220 species of plants and animals, including bees, butterflies, toads, hedgehogs, French oaks and sycamores, and 21 bird species, including the endangered spotted fly catcher.
The famed investor, Warren Buffet, once said that many corporate acquirers think of themselves as beautiful princesses, sure that their kisses can turn toads into handsome princes.
FORBES: Toads and Acquisitions -- Where Does CEO "Hubris" Come From?
Common toads cross Gorley Road in Ringwood to spawn in nearby lakes, from early March until the end of April.
The dunes surrounding Talacre Beach are a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest(SSSI) and act as a haven for wildlife including Natterjack toads.
BBC: NEWS | UK | Wales | North East Wales | Beach faces tide and untidyness
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