The Vomit Worth Millions?

ozmanjusri writes "ABC is reporting that a family in Australia recently found a large lump of ambergris, which they believe may be worth millions. It is a fascinating material, created by a sperm whale's intestine in response to irritation, probably caused by the undigested beaks of squid. The waxy mass is coughed out by the whale during a belch which is reported to be audible kilometers away, and is a putrid stinking mass. Floating in salt water and exposure to sunlight for ten years or more matures the waxy blob into a grey, sweet smelling solid which is used as a base for perfumes. Although the family may be able to sell the ambergris, it cannot be used in Australia or the US, since both countries are signatories to the Washington Treaty, which bans the trade of musk deer and whale products for perfume."

Comments

She certainly looks pleased

[Sockatume]

I always wondered what the "Woohoo, I'm rich" and "OMG, I'm sitting next to a big lump of vomit" expressions would look like combined.

Re:Unfortunately...

[kimba]

Yeah. Except for the fact Australia is generally one of the countries where police use their discretion to let common sense prevail, rather than haul people away for breaching the letter of the law.

Recording of a whale horking?

[CptNerd]

Man, it would be great to add a recording of whale hork to one of those insipid 80's "Songs of the Whale" collections...

"And now we will record the haunting sounds of these gentle***HOOOOOOOORRRRRKKKK***Splat*** Dear God in Heaven, what was *that*?"

Re:Can't be sold

[un.sined]

Dear Sir or Madam,
I am writing to you with a business opportunity. We have a large chunk of whale vomit that one of our deceased investors was keeping. As we've spent several months attempting to locate a next of kin... etc, etc, etc.

In other news...

[DrYak]

if you have a cheap, safe way to induce whale vomitting

Flash news, hard liquor sales go up. An interviewed buyer told our report : "It's for the whales".
In related news, police has received several complaints about loud drunken whales vomiting near harbors : "As if the drunken sailors weren't enough" complained a senior citizen...