A significant part of the meat consumed by the indigenous people of Chukotka is gray whales.Since the late 90s
Scientists used gas chromatography-mass spectrometryfor analyzing samples of harvested meat. This method allows you to separate complex mixtures of substances into components and identify each molecule using a characteristic mass spectrum, like a fingerprint, chemists explain.
In whale meat samples, the researchers foundand identified about 700 different organic compounds. Among them, they chose those that have their own smell, and at the same time their concentration in smelling meat was much higher than in normal. As a result of the analysis, the scientists found that the source of the unpleasant odor is 2,6-dibromophenol.
The amount of this substance in stink whales in300-500 times higher than normal. This is 500 times the threshold of sensitivity for a person, that is, the smell should really be felt clearly. In addition, dibromophenol has a medical iodoform smell, which is also characteristic of whale meat.
Albert Lebedev, Doctor of Chemistry, Professor at Moscow State University and Head of Research
The researchers found that the causeof this substance in whale meat is related to diet. These animals mainly feed on polychaetes and anphipods, which live in different places. Polychaetes - annelids - prefer to live closer to the coast. They are the ones that generate 2,6-dibromophenol during growth, which is why bad-smelling whales are the ones that predominantly feed on polychaetes.
Whale trapping used to be carried out from large shipsfar from the coast, scientists explain. Whales live there, which mainly eat anphipods. A change in the principles of prey - catching whales near the coast - led to the appearance of meat with an unpleasant odor.
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