'Liquid gold' worth Rs 4.5 crore found in dead sperm whale in the Canary Islands

He said that during the research it was found that the giant mammal died of sepsis caused by ambergris that was stuck in the whale's colon region. “What I took out was a stone about 50–60 cm in diameter and weighing 9.5kg. The waves were flooding the whale. Everyone was watching when I returned to the beach, but they did not know that what I was holding in my hands was ambergris,” Fernandez was quoted as saying by the Guardian.

After taking out the valuable substance, the institute is now searching for buyers so that the money that will be raised in exchange can be donated to the victims of the 2021 volcanic eruption in Las Palmas.

According to international market rates, the lump Fernandez discovered could be worth nearly Rs 4.5 crore (€500,000), the report added.

Ambergris is often referred to as liquid gold, which is a solid, dark-coloured substance produced in the digestive system of sperm whales. It is produced by one in a hundred sperm whales. It is the collection of a large amount of squid and cuttlefish that does not get digested by the whale and is later vomited back. However, it sometimes binds up in the intestine and becomes ambergris. At times, they can grow out to be so big that they can burst the digestive tract and kill the whale.

This substance has a similar woody fragrance to sandalwood and is rich in ambrein (an odourless alcohol), which is used to make perfumes lasting for longer periods and it has been in high demand in the perfumes industry for decades. However, in countries like India, Australia, and the United States, the trade of ambergris is banned to avoid the hunting of whales.