Emily Chan
History often has a way of revealing itself in the most unexpected places at the most unexpected times.
In 2011, a heavy equipment operator named Shawn Funk accidentally stumbled across a dinosaur fossil at the Millennium Mine in northern Alberta.
At first, the find seemed to be nothing more than an odd-colored rock, but upon closer inspection, he and his supervisor realized they had something special in their hands.
Six years after the discovery was made, researchers were able to reveal more about the fossil’s background.
The fossil was a piece of skin from a new species of nodosaur. It happened to be one of the most well-preserved nodosaur specimens that had ever been discovered.
The nodosaurus is a type of ankylosaur. It weighed 3,000 pounds and was 18 feet long. The creature was also covered in thick armored plates made out of keratin, the same material as our fingernails.
Due to its remarkable preservation, paleontologists have called the fossil “a dinosaur mummy.” The dinosaur was 110-million-years old, making it the oldest to have ever been found in Alberta.
It has also helped experts learn more about what the dinosaur looked like and how it protected itself from predators.
When researchers analyzed the fossil, they detected tiny bits of red pigment. It can be assumed that at least part of the creature was red in color, which was a trait that may have helped it attract mates.
Sign up for Chip Chick’s newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
