In the month of July Stegosaurus received an invitation from his friend Ankylosaurus.

"My friend Ankylosaurus invited me to Alberta, Canada because his Support Group for Partially Discovered Dinosaurs was holding a party to celebrate the discovery of a complete Nodosaurus mummy for the first time. It was to be held at Churchill Square in Edmonton, Alberta. I was delighted, and immediately accepted the invitation to the party. I was pleased to see my old friend Styracosaurus was there, and we enjoyed coffee plants together."

"Greetings and well met, friend Stegosaurus!" said Styracosaurus. "So nice to see you! And so glad to be here for Nodosaurus. It is an important day for him, and really for all dinosaurs."

"Yes," rejoined Stegosaurus. "Anytime any one of us has our history uncovered, any time a dinosaur which has suffered the indignity of being only partially discovered is finally fully discovered, it is a cause for great celebration."

"I have already spoken to Ankylosaurus on the good works he is doing for all the partially discovered dinosaurs of the world with his Support Group."

"As have I," said Stegosaurus. "I admire him a lot."

" .... and there he is now," observed Styracosaurus. "Hail, Ankylosaurus!" declared Styracosaurus.

"Styracosaurus! Stegosaurus! Thank you for coming!" said Ankylosaurus.


"We are very glad to be here," said Stegosaurus. "How big is this party? Who else did you invite?"

"Of course I could not restrict the guest list to only partially discovered dinosaurs as you have already noticed, I am sure," said Ankylosaurus. "The guest list ranges far and wide. I hope no one will be afraid that Tyrannosaurus Rex is invited. He really wanted to come and I felt sorry for him because since he's such an apex predator we rarely give him a chance in social situations."

"I have spikes on my tail for a reason," said Stegosaurus.

"And I a club on mine," rejoined Ankylosaurus. "We were discovered by the same paleontologist; I felt it was the right thing to do."

"When it comes right down to it old Rex is really just a big chicken," said Styracosaurus. "I fear him not, though I respect him. But enough of Rex. Where is the guest of honor?"

"Come with me, " said Ankylosaurus. He led both Stegosaurus and Styracosaurus to the far end of the Square.

Nodosaurus was found speaking with the sauropod Nigersaurus. When they saw the arrival of Stegosaurus, Styracosaurus and Ankylosaurus they were overjoyed.

"Thank you all for coming to my party," said Nodosaurus. "Welcome! Come join in our conversation. I was just explaining to Nigersaurus here my irritation with the mass media inaccurately reporting my complete discovery. I mean, I am certainly glad that they acknowledged it; it made this party possible but did any of you notice how they reported my discovery as a "new species"? I am not new! I appreciate the joy of being a newly discovered species for sure but I am also very proud of the fact that I was discovered and named by O.C. Marsh in 1889."

"You don't say!" exclaimed Stegosaurus. "What a surprise! I confess I didn't know! Perhaps I should have...."

"No offense taken, brother Stegosaurus. I see we have the same professor in common," said Nodosaurus. "I make the observation," he continued, finishing up his initial thought, "....that mammals have larger brains and therefore should use them to do some basic research before they print and publish a news story. They should at least get their facts straight, and you'd think they'd be that responsible."

"This is a common problem with all forms of mammal media," observed Nigersaurus. "It has become an unfortunate norm. If you will excuse me, I must return to the kitchen and help Brachiosaurus and Apatosaurus with the preparation of dinner."

"Very well, Nigersaurus; thanks for stomping by!" said Nodosaurus.

"Oh! Stegosaurus!" exclaimed Nigersaurus before he left, "Your cousin Kentrosaurus sends his regards and regrets that he was unable to attend; he has just built an ark, and was occupied with testing its seaworthiness. He asked me to tell you that he will visit with you before the end of the summer."

"Very well, thank you for delivering the message," said Stegosaurus. Then, Stegosaurus turned to Nodosaurus. "What else do we have in common, other than Professor Marsh?"

Then it was that Styracosaurus interrupted the festivities with alarm. "Beware everyone! Look!! Tyrannosaurus Rex is here!"

Every dinosaur present became apprehensive and went into a defense mindset immediately. All that is, except Ankylosaurus. "Fear not, friends," he said. "Recall that Tyrannosaurus Rex has been invited. I will speak with him at once and diffuse this situation. If he is hunting I will dis invite him to the festivities, and Stegosaurus and I will be forced to whack him with our tails."

"Agreed," said Stegosaurus.

After Tyrannosaurus Rex and Ankylosaurus held a brief conversation that the other dinosaurs could not hear, Tyrannosaurus Rex approached the nervous herbivores with Ankylosaurus close behind him.

"Fear not, for I have been invited on terms of my good behavior .... much like the times you have invited my acquaintance Spinosaurus to Christmas dinner I shall mind my manners here. No matter what happens here I promise not to eat a herbivore of any kind today. I wouldn't want to detract from Nodosaurus' special day. I hereby promise that if I find myself getting hungry I shall go out and instead of hunting one of you I shall hunt one of my own kind instead."

"Okay. Well if you put it that way then," said Nodosaurus. "Wait. What?"

"Have you not heard? Science now says that we Tyrannosaurs were rather cannibalistic on occasion. Don't worry I've eaten myself before. I taste kind of like chicken."

"No surprise there," said a rarely wide eyed Ankylosaurus.


"Oh and by the way, Rex," said Stegosaurus, "Congratulations on science confirming that your specific breed did not have feathers after all."

"Thank you Stegosaurus. It is a relief not to have to wear the speculative feathers I have been donning from time to time in the last few years for everything from our venerable scientific journals to memes."

"I still wish somebody would find me with feathers," confessed Stegosaurus.

"Maybe it will still happen," said Nodosaurus hopefully. "Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow but someday soon."

"We like you just the way you are," said Ankylosaurus.


After a while the natural apprehensiveness was reduced, and the jovial nature of the party resumed. At the conclusion of the evening Nodosaurus was called to give a speech. With gratitude he accepted.


"Thank you friends for coming, and especially to Ankylosaurus for organizing this party for me, and for his influential and important support group for partially discovered dinosaurs that helped me through so many dark times when for years I was partially discovered and headless. Now that I have a complete mummy with all my armor and even my guts intact, I have gone from being partially discovered to one of the most complete fossils ever found. I don't want my newly found head to get so big, so I want to thank Ankylosaurus for his help, and the help of all my brothers and sisters as yet still partially discovered in the group. I have been blessed to know you all. You are special and your day will come. Be patient and calm. Hold your head up high even if it isn't discovered yet. Keep the faith that the scientists and paleontologists are working on finding you, and your day will come. In the meantime be positive and true to the aid of your fellow creatures. Carry on with a cheerful step. Be nice to mammals; though I have expressed my irritation with their media it is their tireless efforts to dig us out of the earth and learn about us that enables us to live again, even if that living is only in a museum. This mindset can help you through until that glorious day when you are found whole again. Thank you all so very much."


Dinosaur ‘Mummy’ Unveiled With Skin And Guts Intact