In 2011, a remarkably preserved nodosaur (a type of armored dinosaur) was accidentally uncovered in Alberta, Canada. This 110-million-year-old fossil, now housed at the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology, offers an unprecedented look into the life—and last meal—of a Cretaceous-era herbivore.
🦕 Key Discoveries from the Fossil:
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The Dinosaur:
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A 7-meter-long, 1.3-ton nodosaur (Borealopelta markmitchelli), a heavily armored, tank-like herbivore.
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Preserved with skin, scales, and even stomach contents—one of the most complete dinosaur fossils ever found.
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The Last Meal:
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Analysis of its stomach revealed chewed ferns, leaves, stems, and charred wood fragments.
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Ferns made up 85% of its diet, suggesting selective feeding in a coastal floodplain environment.
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Charcoal in its gut hints it was grazing in a recently burned forest (wildfires were common then).
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Cause of Death:
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Likely drowned in a river and swept out to sea, where minerals rapidly preserved its body.
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🌿 Why This Matters:
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Rare Preservation: Stomach contents are almost never fossilized—this is a “snapsH๏τ” of dinosaur ecology.
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Diet Insights: Confirms nodosaurs were picky eaters, not indiscriminate grazers.
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Climate Clues: Burned plants suggest wildfires shaped Cretaceous ecosystems.
