Whale, you’ll never consider what makes certain perfumes and colognes smell so good.
A rare, waxy material called ambergris — referred to as “floating gold,” it’s something of a treasure within the fragrance industry — can elevate the scents and notes of a perfume or cologne.
“It’s a particularly useful substance that’s known for its unique scent and fixative qualities,” November Nichols, perfumer and owner of Chémin, told POPSUGAR last week. “It enhances the longevity and depth of the fragrances that it’s added to.”
Ambergris is produced within the digestive system of sperm whales, the most important toothed predator — which have long been listed as “endangered” under the Endangered Species Act.
In other words, ambergris is whale vomit.
“Ambergris is produced to guard the whale’s gut from sharp objects and, over time, is expelled and will be found floating within the ocean or washed ashore,” Nichols explained.
The coveted material is credited with making a perfume’s scent last more, and its rarity makes it so expensive that it’s typically only present in higher-end, luxurious fragrances.
Harvesting ambergris is usually considered an ethical practice because it’s collected after it has naturally exited the whale’s body, with no contact or harm to the animal.
Nevertheless, resulting from the endangered status of the sperm whale, there are regulations across the trade of ambergris.
“In some countries, it is unlawful to trade or possess ambergris,” Nichols said.
In response to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, it is unlawful to kill sperm whales almost anywhere on the planet — and a few countries have made the possession and trade of ambergris illegal to scale back potential harm to the population.
The sperm whale became an endangered species after hunting it became popular, particularly within the 1800s, in accordance with the Ocean Conservancy.
Before the whaling industry took off, there have been about 1.1 million sperm whales. Now, there are nearly 300,000 left.
Scientists are still unsure of the precise origin of ambergris, but it surely is often believed that it’s formed when the whales eat irritants, corresponding to a beak, and produce a slippery substance to guard their digestive organs from the offending particles, in accordance with National Geographic.
It’s estimated that only one% of sperm whales are able to secreting ambergris.
Resulting from the scarcity of the whale vomit, a gram is value around $27 — and a pound might be value over $10,000.
While ambergris will be extremely hard to seek out, some people have struck floating gold.
A lump believed to be value over $250,000 was found inside a sperm whale after it became stranded on Nogales Beach in La Palma, Canary Islands, in May 2023.
The nearly 20-pound chunk of ambergris caused chronic obstructive inflammation within the animal’s colon, in accordance with experts on the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
A couple of months later, a fisherman’s dog discovered a “disgusting” blob on a beach in Scotland — which may need been a highly useful chunk of whale vomit.
