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More than half a million euros worth of ambergris, commonly known as ‘floating gold’, was discovered in the intestines of an enormous dead sperm whale that washed up on the beach of Nogales, on the northeast coast of La Palma in the Canary Islands, on May 21.

 

The young cetacean measured almost 13 metres and scientists initially believed it may have died from injuries sustained from contact with a boat. However, a necropsy conducted by the University Institute of Animal Health revealed a large obstruction caused by an ambergris stone.

 

Ambergris, or grey amber, is a rare substance produced in the stomach of around one in every 100 sperm whales. It is formed when indigestible parts of the whale’s prey, like the beaks, move into the animal’s intestines and bind together over time, forming a solid mass of valuable ambergris.

 

The stone found in the Canary Island sperm whale weighed 9 kilos and was 60 centimetres long. It’s estimated that each kilo of ambergris is worth between 50,000 and 80,000 euros, so professor Antonio Fernández, who made the discovery, believes this amber rock could be worth upwards of half a million euros.

 

Only around 1% of these cetaceans produce this precious substance, so it really is an incredible find.

 

Ambergris is particularly valuable to the perfume industry but it’s hard to come across since the stones are usually defecated by the sperm whale and float away on the waves. And while manufacturers would surely pay dearly for such a sizeable chunk, professor Fernández is adamant that it should remain in La Palma, where it was found.

 

“Sperm whales are one of the jewels in the crown of marine fauna in the Canary Islands,” he said, pointing out that the waters surrounding the archipelago are home to 28 species of cetaceans.

 

 

Image: IUSA_ULPGC