Ritwik Roy
Matt Perkins from London Zoo take samples from the carcass of a Sperm
whale on the beach in Hunstanton, Britain February 5, 2016. A sixth
sperm whale died on a British beach on Thursday, the latest of two dozen
of the bus-length mammals to wash ashore and perish in shallow waters
on the coastline of Europe's North Sea.
Reuters/Alan Walter
The Middleton Sands of Lancashire turned out to be a
goldmine for Gary and Angela Williams on Sunday. They were strolling,
enjoying the beach and sand near Morecambe Bay when the smell of rotting
fish entered their nostrils. Unlike some, they decided to follow the
stench and came across a smelly rubbery rock on the beach.
Now, the couple are celebrating their find as the smell was
from ambergris, whale vomit, worth $100,000. They had once seen how
whale vomit looks like in a newspaper and hence decided not to look the
other way. Ironically, whale vomit is used in the manufacture of
perfumes and is a precious substance.
“It was a bit of a shock. It was down a section of the beach where no
one really walks. It smells too bad though. It’s a very distinctive
smell, like a cross between squid and farmyard manure. It feels like a
rock hard rubber ball. Its texture is like wax, like a candle. When you
touch it you get wax sticking to your fingers,” Gary told the Mirror.
The couple from Overton took the piece of whale vomit to
their home after wrapping the lump in a scarf. In 2013, another whale
vomit lump was found near Morecambe which was valued at $220,000.
However, this lump was weighed at 1.57kg when Gary weighed it on his
fishing scale.
The lump is a bit smaller than a rugby ball and the Williams
are in talks with potential buyers. They have put it in safe storage
and have already consulted two experts, one from New Zealand and one
from France. The Williams often hit the beach for unusual items. Gary is
looking to buy his dream static caravan with the money he receives by
selling the vomit off.
Whale vomit is known as “floating gold” because it is rare
and is of high value to perfume makers. Ambergris takes years to form
and is the hardened intestinal slurry of a sperm whale, writes News.com.au. It is believed that ambergris protects the whale from sharp and hard objects it swallows.
Interestingly, whale vomit floats in the ocean for years
before transforming into a smooth and grey lump from exposure to salt
and water.
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