The perfect mummified fossil of a nodosaur, which was discovered in Canada in 2011 made its public debut. The fossil is perfectly mummified, showing a full feature of the dinosaur's body intact.
The mummy was found during the oil excavation at the Suncor Millennium Mine, 17 miles north of Forth McMurray in Alberta, Canada on March 21, 2011. During his normal day at work, a heavy equipment operator, named Shawn Funk, found his equipment hit a rock that is much harder than its surrounding. He further realized that the hard rock is a mummified fossil of a nodosaur according to National Geographic.
The mummified fossil of a nodosaur was later taken to the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology for reconstruction. After six years and 7,0000 hours of works, the mummified fossil of a nodosaur now made its public debut at the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology in Alberta, as reported by CBC News.
This fossil is the one of its kind. As it displays the 18 feet long dinosaur in its perfect shape. The mummified fossil of a nodosaur looks almost surreal, as the details of its tank-like armor are perfectly preserved. Scientists predicted the 2,500-pound dinosaur was swept away by a flooded river, carried out to the sea and sank. In the sea floor, the minerals cover its very thick armor and skin over millions of years and preserved its body.
"It's basically a dinosaur mummy. it really is exceptional," Don Brinkman, director of preservation and research at the Royal Tyrrell Museum said about the mummified fossil of a nodosaur. "These are specimens that would never be recovered otherwise. We get two or three significant specimens each year."
It is believed to be the oldest fossils found in Alberta, Canada, making the mummified fossil of a nodosaur one of the very valuable resources for the paleontology research. Watch the National Geographic report of the mummified fossil of a nodosaur below:
