Boy finds a bonanza in whale vomit

From NBC News:  Boy finds a bonanza in whale vomit


An 8-year-old boy in England could be up to $63,000 richer, thanks to a piece of solidified whale vomit he picked up on the beach. The chunk may look like a yellow-brownish rock, but it's actually a primo piece of ambergris, an expensive perfume ingredient that is, um, spewed out by whales.

Charlie Naysmith stumbled upon the loaf-sized lump at Hengistbury Head, on the southern coast of England, the Bournemouth Echo reported over the weekend.

 As far as Charlie was concerned, it was just a seaside curiosity. But after doing some research, he and his family determined that the curious lump could be worth somewhere between £10,000 and £40,000 ($15,850 to $63,350).

 "We have discovered it is quite rare and are waiting for some more information from marine biology experts," the boy's father, Alex, told the Echo.

Charlie is reportedly thinking about using the money to build a house for animals. But first, he and his parents might want to get that expert opinion. It turns out that the ambergris trade can get pretty sticky.

'Floating Gold'
Ambergris is a waxy, bile-like substance that builds up in the intestines of sperm whales, apparently to ease the passage of hard material such as squid beaks through a whale's digestive tract. It's often characterized as whale vomit, and although that's fine as a family-friendly description, the stuff is more widely thought to come out of the whale's back end rather than its front end.

Fresh ambergris smells like fresh whale poop, but after a long period of seasoning and hardening in the ocean, it takes on a more delicate odor. It's been variously compared to the aroma of tobacco, the scent of an old wooden church, the fragrance of seaweed, or the smell of rubbing alcohol without the pungency.

"The problem with trying to describe the smell of ambergris is that it really only smells like ambergris," Christopher Kemp, a biologist and neuroscientist who's written a book about the substance, told Bloomberg Businessweek's Eric Spitznagel.

The title of Kemp's book? "Floating Gold."

The scent of ambergris is what makes it so valuable. The substance has been used as an incense, fragrance, flavoring, remedy or aphrodisiac in many cultures, going back to ancient Egypt and China. Herman Melville devoted a whole chapter of "Moby Dick" (Chapter 92) to a discussion of ambergris and how highly prized it was in 19th-century society. "Who would think, then, that such fine ladies and gentlemen should regale themselves with an essence found in the inglorious bowels of a sick whale!" Melville wrote.

More recently, ambergris — or ambrein, a compound extracted from ambergris — has been used as a fixative or fragrance amplifier rather than the main ingredient in perfumes. Ambergris' selling price has been quoted at $10 to $50 per gram, depending on the quality of the specimen. (The Echo estimates that the lump found at Hengistbury Head weighs about 600 grams, which suggests that Charlie shouldn't count on building a $63,000 house for his animals.)

Underground trade
The bad news is that the trade in ambergris isn't what it used to be, in large part due to the endangered status of sperm whales. By some accounts, it's illegal to sell the stuff in many jurisdictions, including the United States. There are some traders who dispute that interpretation of anti-whaling laws, but the stigma has driven perfume companies to look for plant-based substitutes such as labdanum, or synthetic scents such as Ambrox. (University of British Columbia researchers reported earlier this year that a balsam-fir gene may provide a path to cheaper ambergris-like compounds.)

Maybe it's the whiff of illegality, or maybe it's just that the stuff is so expensive — but for whatever reason, there's a clandestine character to the modern-day ambergris market. One of the subjects Kemp interviewed for his book is a full-time dealer on New Zealand's North Island, named Adrienne Beuse. Last year, she was involved in a huge ambergris deal that probably saw hundreds of thousands of dollars change hands. "It was a lot of money — that's all I can say," one of the sellers said.

The way Beuse tells it, New Zealand's choicest hunting grounds for ambergris are ruled by a gang of aggressive collectors and traders — a gang that doesn't shy away from violence to defend their turf. "They're called the Beach Mafia up here," Kemp quotes Beuse as saying. "They claim a proprietary interest in the beach. They are defending, I guess in their minds, their territory. And it's worth a lot of money. If a piece worth $50,000 washes up, they don't want anyone else to find it."

It sounds as if Charlie is lucky to live in southern England rather than northern New Zealand. But he better watch his back.

Costa Concordia Salvage Delayed

From Discovery News:  Costa Concordia Salvage Delayed

The stricken Costa Concordia cruise liner, which lies partially submerged near the coast of Giglio, will spend another winter in the waters off the tiny Tuscan island.
The consortium hired to re-float and remove the 114,500-ton ship presented this month a new timeline to the Osservatorio, the entity supervising the wreck salvage operations.
Originally scheduled for completion by January 2013, the removal plan was delayed until next spring.
According to a Costa Cruises statement, Pompano Beach-based Titan Salvage and Italian marine firm Micoperi, the companies engaged in the salvage operation, "believe the new schedule is a realistic estimate."


The Concordia struck a rock and capsized on Jan. 13 near Giglio after captain Francesco Schettino allegedly drove the ship on an unauthorized route too close to shore, ripping a huge gash in the hull. Tumbled onto its side with more than 4,200 people aboard, the ship claimed 32 lives.

To complete what is considered the largest re-float in history, Titan will rely on underwater platforms on the seaward side of the ship. Watertight boxes, or caissons, will be then fixed to the side of the ship that is above water.

"Two cranes fixed to the platform will pull the ship upright, helped by the weight of the caissons, which will be filled with water," Titan said.
On the other side, cables attached to the land will ensure the ship does not slide off the platform.
"When the ship is upright, caissons will be fixed to the other side of the hull to stabilize it. Finally, the caissons on both sides will be emptied, after the water inside has been purified to protect the marine environment, and filled with air," the U.S. company said.
Sandwiched between the caissons, the Costa Concordia will be towed to an unnamed Italian port for dismantling.
Titan clarified that the new schedule for the salvage operation, which is set to cost more than $300 million, is "dependent in part upon subcontractor deliverables and schedules."


Despite the reassurances, the delay has raised concerns among environmental organizations, ship experts and Giglio residents.
"It's the shift that worries us. We are not talking of the time schedule, but of the ship," said Angelo Gentili of the environmental group Legambiente.
Sprawled on the rocks, the giant carcass of the Costa Concordia has been attracting thousand of tourists this summer. A number of outfits are advertising trips to get up close to the capsized ship.
"In a few months, it will be a different story. Spending another winter at the mercy of winds and waves certainly won't help," Carlo Barbini, a former captain on cruise liners who also worked as a ship inspection surveyor for the court of Livorno, told Discovery News.
The 950-foot-long, 116-foot-wide, 114,500-ton cruise liner has been suspended for the past eight months in a precarious position, with the bow and stern sitting on two rocks. In between is a sandy slope that drops at a 20 percent angle toward deep sea.
"I believe a structural collapse of the ship's beam and a plunge into deep waters is very likely," Capt. Barbini said.
Barbini, who wrote a detailed report and sent it to the mayor of Giglio, believes that the riskiest moment will be the rolling of the vessel and the subsequent refloating.
His worries are partly confirmed by a little-publicized report by Costa Cruises. Written last May, the 148-page report admits that the ship is progressively warping and that the bow has sunk by more than 35 inches.
According to the daily Il Tirreno, the report confirmed that the two pieces of rock on which the ship balances have worrisome cracks.
"Computer models have shown that 5-foot waves, which are likely to occur in winter, can produce a real risk of deep plunging," the report read.
The event would be catastrophic, with "polluting materials" spilling in the island's pristine waters.
Although more than 2,200 cubic meters of heavy fuel have been safely pumped out of the ship, the report revealed that some 243 cubic meters of fuel, declared unpumpable, remain in the Concordia's most inaccessible tanks.
"The entire wreck-removal operation is filled with risky moments. Refloating and towing away safely such a wreck sounds like a miracle to me. It's pretty much like Lazarus walking out of the grave," Barbini said.

 

The saga of Yamuna's coin divers caught on film

From Business Standard:  The saga of Yamuna's coin divers caught on film 


 Faith is an integral part of the Indian culture but did you know that a section of homeless people eke out their daily living from the modest coins dropped as offerings into the Yamuna river?

A nearly 22 minute-long documentary titled 'In Search of Destiny (Coin Divers)' by Aakash Arun attempts to throw light into the lives of coin divers numbering around 400-500 and living near the much polluted but equally, if not more, revered Yamuna that flows through here.

The film begins with a train chugging on a bridge and people 'offering' coins to the Yamuna and subsequently praying for their wishes.
It is followed by a shot where a child is seen hurling a dumbbell-shaped greasy object into the river and tugging the rope. The camera zooms into the dumbbell-shaped object and you see one shining coin stuck to it. Later on the scene focuses on two men who narrate how they receive sustenance from the Yamuna in the form of coins.

"The men are part of the marginalised section which is not only homeless and helpless but also are susceptible to the ills of addiction, says Arun.

Nearly 60 per cent of these coin drivers in the national capital are in the grip of some form of addiction. These people are not to difficult to find out. Most of them are present in a radius of 4-6 km of the bridge over Yamuna that can be reached from Kashmere Gate, according to the film's narration.

"Coin divers on an average find coins worth Rs 100 daily," says Arun adding that earning goes up on few occasions when luck smiles upon them in the form of trinkets, heavy metallic objects that fetch decent prices.

The documentary was shot entirely using a DSLR camera which, he said, could be brought out in the open only after he could gain confidence of the coin divers.

The fact that Yamuna plays a pivotal role in these people's lives can be easily grasped by viewers.

"Yamuna is all encompassing. She gives shelter to all who comes to her. We sleep under the sky and sustain ourselves from her largesse(read coins)," says an elderly man in the documentary.(MORE)PTI RAI ANS DBL 

Estimated 30,000 antiques to be salvaged from sunken ship

From XinhuaNet:  Estimated 30,000 antiques to be salvaged from sunken ship

GUANGZHOU, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- More than 30,000 pieces of antiques are expected to be salvaged from Nan'ao-1, an ancient merchant vessel that sank about 500 years ago off the coast of Guangdong Province.
Upon the conclusion of an underwater archaeological mission, about 10,000 pieces of newly salvaged antiques will be exhibited in the Nan'ao Museum in Shantou, said Huang Yingtao, director of the museum.
The salvage operation, which started in June, was suspended due to the effects of typhoon Kai-Tak, which made landfall in the coastal area of Guangdong at noon on Friday.
This round of underwater archaeological work on Nan'ao-1 will finish by the end of September, said Cui Yong, head of the team of archaeologists.
Archaeologists conducting the underwater work will measure the length of the wreck after the antiques are salvaged.
Archaeologists had previously recovered over 20,000 antiques, including porcelain and copper coins, and identified 25 cabins.
The ship sank in the Sandianjin waters off Nan'ao County, Shantou, during the mid- or late-Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).
The ship is believed to have been bound for the Philippines and Malaysia, said Cui.
Guangdong was a major center for sea trade in ancient China.
Local fishermen found the wrecked ship, estimated at 25 meters in length and seven meters in width, in May 2007. It was buried in silt 27 meters underwater and about 5.6 nautical miles from Shantou.
Experts said the antiques salvaged from the Nan'ao-1 provide evidence that the "Maritime Silk Road" once existed in the South China Sea.

 

NZ: Divers push for Rena wreck to remain

From New Zealand Herald:  Divers push for Rena wreck to remain

A diving group will tomorrow make a renewed call for the stricken cargo ship Rena to remain on Astrolabe Reef as an underwater tourist attraction.
Consultant Beca, contracted by the Rena's owners, has organised a conference with various Bay of Plenty groups as the next stage of the ship's salvage gets underway off Tauranga.
New Zealand Underwater Association president Tony Kuiumdjian said he would again raise the idea of keeping the wreck on the reef, which he believed could boost tourism in the Bay of Plenty.
"I don't think you can over-state the benefits for Tauranga, but I think a lot of people will come to dive the wreck from charter boats," he said. "We are pretty keen to see it remain."
The area is already home to the wreck of the vessel Taupo, a scenic dive site 12km north of Mt Maunganui.
Captain John Owen from the Swedish Club, the ship's insurers, told Newstalk ZB that developing the Rena as a dive destination was one option.
He had seen recent underwater images showing large fish habitats had already been established.

The revelation last week that leaving the ship on the reef was being considered - despite Maritime New Zealand's order for its full removal - has drawn mixedreactions.
Tauranga Moana Iwi Leaders' Group chair Awanui Black, surprised at the news, told the Bay of Plenty Times: "We want to ensure the information we have got is correct and if it is ... there will be intense discussions."
Meanwhile, salvors Resolve Salvage & Fire estimate stripping the wreck down to a metre below the mean waterline will take until early next year to complete.
Mr Owen said pre-cutting work on the internal structures began last week, while a helicopter and crane barge started removing pre-cut scrap metal this week.
The wreck's location made it "difficult and potentially dangerous" to conduct salvage operations.
Helicopters were expected to be used extensively as the front of the bow section is surrounded by shallow water, inhibiting use of a heavy lift barge.
The Rena's shell plating and ballast tanks will be left until the final phase of the project to act as a breakwater.

 

This Oblivious Shark Hunter Wants to Kill All the Sharks

From Gawker.com:  This Oblivious Shark Hunter Wants to Kill All the Sharks

"I wanna go out there and catch maybe the last one," said Mark "the Shark" Quartiano on How Jaws Changed the World, which Discovery premiered last night as part of its Shark Week lineup. By "last one" he means "the last shark." As in, "I would gladly have my hands be the ones responsible for finally collapsing our ecosystem."
He could be trolling. Quartiano is a somewhat notorious figure already; he's been accused of being an attention whore by people who actually know a thing or two about shark populations and care about how endangerment works. His crazy eyes make everything he says really convincing, though.
How Jaws Changed the World focused on the impact Steven Spielberg's 1975 landmark blockbuster had on actual sharks. It's well-known that the film's demonization of great whites took a chunk not only out of their population but the population of sharks in general (Peter Benchley, who wrote the book from which the film was adapted, spent the rest of his life repenting and attempting to convince people to stop killing sharks). But on the bright side, Jaws also ignited interest in marine biology, which means that there are now more people around to fret at the impending food-chain collapse.
The flagrancy of people like Quartiano, who runs a charter shark-fishing business in Miami, isn't to be scoffed at. He was profiled in Juliet Eilperin's excellent social survey of humans' relationship with sharks, Demon Fish: Travels Through the Hidden World of Sharks, wherein he lamented his current typical daylong wait to catch a shark ("20 years ago, forget it. 10 minutes.") while skirting responsibility, despite having claimed to Eilperin that he's killed 100,000 of them. He seems oblivious to logic.
You can read an excerpt of the Quartiano section of Demon Fish via The Week. Here's the most offensive part:

It is harder work now pleasing his customers than it was in the past, and he blames commercial fishermen who set long-lines. These fishing lines with baited hooks frequently end up snaring sharks, which then drown...
"Those long-liners do more damage in a night than we do in a year," he says. And Quartiano simply does not believe that species such as bigeye thresher sharks are endangered, because he still hauls them in on his rod and reel. "I've caught more than anyone else on the planet. There's no way they're endangered."
Data collected by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Fisheries Service tell a different story: Federal officials estimate that recreational landings of large coastal sharks outpaced commercial catches for 15 out of 21 years between 1981 and 2001, with U.S. recreational anglers catching 12 million sharks, skates, and rays in 2004 alone. At this point, NOAA estimates that recreational anglers in the U.S. catch roughly 200,000 sharks a year. Apparently, all those bachelor and bachelorette parties add up.

You can see in the clip above that Quartiano feigns ignorance on his total haul — since speaking with Eilperin, he has reduced the number to, "10, 20, 30 thousand? Some people say more, but I don't know how they come up with that figure." He also told Eilperin that he thinks sharks "are cool" and hopes "they'll be here after we're gone." In How Jaws Changed the World, he says that he'll gladly pull the last one out of the water. He's evolving in all kinds of ways.

 

Owners 'devastated' after blaze destroys $60m superyacht

From TVNZ:  Owners 'devastated' after blaze destroys $60m superyacht

The owners of a multi-million dollar superyacht say they are "shocked" after it was destroyed in a fire at an Auckland boat-yard.

Up to 90 firefighters battled the blaze, which occurred around 1.30am on Sunday at the McMullen and Wing yacht and boatbuilding business in Mt Wellington.

The luxury 50 metre, 24-berth vessel, Star Fish, was three-quarters complete and due to be delivered to its overseas owners next year.

Rob Chappelhow from Aquos Yachts in the UK said: "We're absolutely shocked and stunned. We're keen to get to the bottom of what's gone on.

"But it's devastating news for everyone involved."

The guide price on the Aquos Yachts website for the superyacht was $49.5 million ($60.9m NZD).

The luxury vessel - which included an infinity pool, bar and gym on board - is completely destroyed.
The Star Fish was due to be launched in March 2013.

Speaking anonymously, the managing director of the long-established boat-yard, said those who had spent countless hours working on building Star Fish were also devastated by the extent of the damage.

Some were in tears when they heard it had been gutted by the fire, he said.

The investigation into the blaze continues