Fishermen catch 280-pound chunk of whale vomit worth $1.5M
A fishing crew working off the coast of Yemen landed a rare, 280-pound chunk of whale vomit — a catch valued at around $1.5 million.
A 35-person fishing crew captured a sperm whale’s carcass while fishing in the Gulf of Aden. Due to the overpowering scent of fecal matter, they determined that the corpse likely contained what’s known as ambergris.
The pungent, waxy substance is produced in the intestines of sperm whales. Ironically, it’s historically been used in perfumes, as it contains an odorless alcohol that makes fragrances last longer. But ambergris is so rare, and therefore extremely valuable, that perfumers now usually use synthetic replicas of the naturally occurring alcohol.
When the crew cut into the belly of the whale, they uncovered a big chunk of the “floating gold.” The men sold the odorous glob off to someone in the United Arab Emirates for $1.5 million.