It's Not a Dinosaur!

by Stacy McAnulty

I look at Gram. “Do you think Peanut would be happier in the wild?”

  “No, Frank.” Gram smiles. “When Peanut is fully grown, he will be bigger than a barn. The world has changed a lot in sixty-five million years. He’s going to need us to take care of him and keep him safe.”

  Peanut digs a hole in the dirt. It’s hard to imagine him being bigger than me someday.

  “When can we go back to DECoW?” Sam asks.

  “In two more days,” Gram says. “The builders are marking the location of Peanut’s habitat. We want to show the public where he’ll be living.”

  “People are scared. They think we’re going to let a dinosaur run around and eat people,” Aaron says. “But he’s an herbivore. He eats broccoli, not humans.”

  Peanut won’t eat anyone, but he may accidentally stomp on someone if he gets as big as we think he will.

  Gram and Aaron help us move our camp farther away from the river. And Gram gives us the extra supplies she brought.

  “Aaron, do you want to stay?” Dad asks. “We can squeeze one more sleeping bag in the tent.”

  “No thanks,” Aaron says. “The junior fishing tournament starts at sunrise. I need to be ready.”

  “Sam, you should enter the tournament,” I say. “You caught a bunch of fish last night.”

  “I’m a really good fisherman. It wouldn’t be fair to the other kids,” Sam says. “But you could enter, Frank.”

  “Haha,” I say. I know when I’m being made fun of.

  For the rest of the day and that night, we don’t see Bart or the Nothosaurus. The next morning, I spend some time writing in my notebook. I don’t want to forget anything about the Notho.

  Species: Nothosaurus

  Size: as long as two of me

  Color: grayish-purple

  Features: thin snout, sharp teeth, black eyes, four webbed feet, long neck, and long, skinny tail with a fin

  Food: fish

  Name: ?

  Sam is reading over my shoulder. She taps the name spot.

  “Name her Goldie,” she says.

  “But she’s not gold,” I say.

  “I want to name her after my favorite pet,” Sam says.

  “You don’t have any pets,” I say.

  “I won a goldfish at the fair, and her name was Goldie. She was a good fish. She lived with us for almost a whole week.”

  I write down Goldie. I can always change it.

  We eat granola bars and bananas for breakfast. I share my banana with Peanut. He’s about to take a bite, but then stops. He lifts his head. I know he hears something.

  I stand up. It takes a second, but I hear it too. Someone is yelling.

  “Brian! Frank! Sam!”

  “Bart is coming this way,” I say. “Run!”

  “I’m not running,” Sam says. “It’s too hot.”

  It’s not too hot for Bart to run. He jogs across the field.

  “What’s wrong?” Dad asks Bart.

  Bart bends over and takes three big breaths.

  “The Nothosaurus,” he says. “It’s attacking the fishing tournament.”

  “What?” Sam yells. “Goldie wouldn’t attack anything or anyone.”

  “They’re trying to catch it,” Bart says.

  “Who?” Dad asks.

  “Everyone. The police, firefighters, ranchers. They might hurt her.” Bart looks at me and Sam. “Maybe you could help her. She likes you. She trusts you.”

  “Yeah, we can,” Sam says. “Let’s go.”

  I turn to grab Peanut, but he’s already crawled into my backpack.

  “Good dino,” I say.

  We run across the field toward the river. It’s easier without all the gear on our backs. Bart’s boat is tied up. We jump on board and put on our life jackets.

  “Hang on.” Bart revs the boat’s engine. We race down the river.

  “How far?” I scream my question because the motor is so loud. But Bart doesn’t need to answer. Just up ahead, I can see hundreds of people on the riverbanks.

  Bart ties the boat to a dock.

  “I’m going to find out what’s happening,” Dad says. He hops out of the boat and walks up to a fireman.

  “There’s Aaron.” I spot him standing in the river. The water only comes up to his knees. He’s waving his arms, trying to get everyone to calm down.

  “Come on!” Sam jumps out. I follow her with Peanut in the backpack. We splash our way to Aaron.

  “Have you seen the Nothosaurus?” I ask.

  “Yeah! It’s huge,” Aaron says. “I think we should call him Big Daddy.”

  “She’s already got a name,” Sam says. “It’s Goldie.”

  “Goldie?” Aaron asks.

  I grab both Aaron’s and Sam’s sleeves. “Not now! Aaron, tell us what happened.”

  “Well, I was winning the tournament. I had eight fish in the first hour. One was at least twenty inches. And—”

  Sam cuts in. “Tell us about the Nothosaurus.”

  “I was pulling in fish number nine when something bit it right off my line,” Aaron says. “I thought maybe I just lost the fish. But I never let ’em get away.”

  “Never?” Sam asks.

  “Hardly ever,” Aaron says. “So I was tying on a new lure when I heard kids screaming. The Nothosaurus is a fish thief. It took fish off the lines. It took fish off the shore. It took fish from a cooler.”

  “Well, you are kind of taking her fish,” I say. “She lives out here. She needs to eat.”

  “And we may have accidentally taught her that kids will feed her fish,” Sam says with a shrug.

  “Where is she now?” I look around the river. All I see is people. People walking in the water. People riding in boats.

  “They have her cornered in that cove,” Aaron says.

  “What are they going to do to her?” Sam asks.

  The grown-ups have nets and giant hooks and other tools that could hurt Goldie.

  “We’d better do something,” I say.

  “What?” Sam asks.

  “I’ve always wanted to ride a real live dinosaur,” Aaron says.

  “You’re not riding Goldie,” I say. “And she’s not a dinosaur. But you’ve given me an idea. We need to show them that the Nothosaurus is friendly. Do you have any more fish?”

  “Still got eight. The tournament hasn’t been canceled yet.” He points to his blue cooler on shore.

  “We need them,” I say.

  “Can I at least keep the big one?” he asks.

  Sam pulls him by the collar of his shirt. “Come on.”

  Aaron grabs his cooler of fish. Then we run to Bart’s boat. After we explain, he has us across the river in no time. Aaron, Sam, and I jump out.

  I know the Nothosaurus is friendly. But she still might attack the people trying to catch her.

  “Oh no, look,” Sam says. A news van is parked on the side of the road. No matter what happens, we will be on TV.

  We run toward the far end of the cove.

  “Stop!” a policeman yells. “There’s a dangerous animal in these waters.”

  “Pretend you don’t hear him,” Sam says.

  We get to the tip of the cove. Aaron puts down the cooler. I gently drop my backpack. Sam pulls out a dead fish.

  “Here, Goldie,” she calls in a sweet voice. “Come on, Goldie. We have fish for you.”

  Peanut jumps and growls inside the backpack. He almost rolls himself into the river.

  “Sorry, buddy. Just hang in there for a little while longer.” I pick up the bag and move it farther from the edge.

  Sam holds the fish over the water. There’s no sign of the Notho.

  “Throw it into the water,” Aaron says.

  Sam tosses the dead fish. It floats down the river like a raft. The Notho doesn’t take the bait.

  “We don’t want to hurt you.” Sam pulls another fish out of the cooler.

  “Hey, how many are you going to take?” Aaron asks.

  “As many as we need,” Sam snaps ba
ck.

  Sam throws a second fish into the water. And then a third. And then a fourth.

  “No more.” Aaron slams the cooler closed.

  “Yes more,” Sam says in his face.

  “We have to try something else,” I say.

  Peanut flips over in his backpack again. I unzip it just a little. I rub his horn.

  “Not much longer,” I tell him. “We are trying to rescue a not-a-dinosaur.”

  Peanut gives me his big, sad eyes. That’s when I realize that every time we’ve seen the Nothosaurus, it’s Peanut who has been waiting for her on the shore.

  “Goldie likes Peanut!” I shout.

  “You’re not going to throw Peanut in the river, are you?” Aaron asks.

  “No way,” I answer. “But Peanut can call Goldie. It’s like they have a special code.”

  I start to unzip the backpack.

  Sam puts her hand on my arm. “If you take him out, everyone will see. The secret won’t be a secret.”

  “It’ll be the opposite of a secret,” Aaron says.

  More boats join the hunt for the Notho-saurus. One has a big harpoon on board.

  “We have to save Goldie,” I say. “And I know Peanut wants to help too.”

  “Okay,” Sam says. “Do it.”

  I take Peanut out of the backpack. He’s so happy, he looks like he’s smiling. I put him down on the edge of the river.

  “Do your thing,” I say.

  Peanut looks at the water, and then he whines in his strange dinosaur voice and makes the clicking noise.

  People look in our direction. They point. Some scream.

  “I hope this works,” Sam says.

  “Just get another fish,” I say.

  Both Aaron and Sam hold a fish over the water. Peanut keeps calling for our new friend.

  “Please, Goldie,” I whisper. “We want to help you.”

  Out of the corner of my eye, I see two policemen coming our way.

  “Hey, what are you doing?” one yells.

  My legs shake because I want to grab Peanut and run. And I’m about to when Goldie jumps out of the water and onto the shore.

  Sam claps with excitment. Aaron falls back on his butt. Peanut runs over to the Notho-saurus. He puts his horn to her snout.

  “Goldie!” Sam yells. She throws a fish, and Goldie catches it in her mouth. She swallows it in one gulp.

  “Want another?” Aaron asks, and throws his fish.

  “Step back!” a policeman demands.

  People get closer and closer. I run in front of Goldie.

  “This is a Nothosaurus!” I yell to the crowd, including the TV camera. “She’s a prehistoric reptile.”

  Sam whips out her plastic microphone. “Yes, she’s a prehistoric reptile and not a dinosaur. Got it?”

  Aaron moves closer to the Nothosaurus on the other side. We’ve got her well protected from nets and hooks and anything else.

  “She eats fish. And she’s not going to hurt anyone. She’s been living in Wyoming for over twenty years.” I point at my dad, who is standing on the other side of the river. “My dad saw the Nothosaurus when he was a boy. She likes it here.”

  “Step away from the animal,” a man says. He’s carrying a hook with a big rope attached.

  “Just let her go back in the water,” I say. “She’s a good girl.”

  “Move away,” the man says again.

  “Never!” Aaron yells. Then, suddenly, he jumps on Goldie’s back like she’s a horse. “Giddyup.”

  Goldie dives back into the river. Aaron stays on her back. Well, for a little while, at least. Goldie goes under the water, and Aaron floats to the top. The boats move out of the way, and the Nothosaurus swims down the river.

  “That was awesome!” Aaron yells. “I rode a dinosaur. First human ever to ride a dinosaur.”

  “She’s not a dinosaur!” Sam says to Aaron. Then she turns to the news camera. “You got that. The Nothosaurus is not a dinosaur.”

  The news lady nods her head. “Got it. The animal in the river is not a dinosaur.” Then she points behind me at Peanut. “But that certainly is.”

  Two days later, we finally invite all the TV cameras to DECoW to officially meet Peanut and to hear about his new home. I’m nervous and excited. And I’m pretty sure I’m going to throw up.

  Dad didn’t let the reporter ask us any questions at the river. She sure tried.

  Where did the dinosaur come from?

  What type of dinosaur is it?

  What does it eat?

  Are there more?

  Everything is set up in the DECoW parking lot. Gram stands behind the microphones with PopPop, Sam, and Dad at her side. Aaron and his parents are in the front row. I wait inside DECoW. My job is to bring Peanut out at the end.

  Saurus stays with me and Peanut. She’s like our bodyguard or attack cat.

  Through the door, I can hear Gram giving the reporters all the details about Peanut. I read her speech last night to make sure she got it all right.

  Peanut’s new home still isn’t built. Gram and the Crabtrees put up a fence for now. But we will have to build a wall and maybe a moat to keep a full-size Peanut in and to keep visitors out.

  “It’s hard to imagine you so big,” I say to him. He puts his horn to my nose.

  Finally, PopPop opens the door. “Frank, it’s time.”

  Saurus leads the way. I walk out and stand next to Gram.

  “Ladies and gentlemen,” Gram says, “I give you Peanut, the world’s only living Wyomingasaurus.”

  My stomach flips, and my knees shake. But Peanut seems happy. I hold him high so that everyone can see him. Peanut lifts his head and smiles. Sort of.

  Gram answers questions from the crowd. She shows them a map and pictures of Peanut’s new home. The questions don’t end until Peanut starts squirming and tries to get away from me.

  “It’s okay, Peanut. We’re almost done,” I whisper in his ear.

  But Peanut keeps twisting and even nips at my fingers.

  The crowd gasps.

  “Peanut, stop.” I hug him tight to my chest.

  “What’s going on?” Sam asks. “Why is he upset?”

  “I don’t know.” Then, suddenly, I do. A warm liquid soaks my shirt.

  Aaron starts laughing. “Frank is covered in Peanut pee.”

  • • •

  That night, we order pizza for dinner, and PopPop makes us root beer floats. We turn off the TV and the computer. We know the whole world is talking about Peanut. But we are all Peanut experts here.

  “Mom says she’s coming next weekend,” Dad says. “She can’t wait to meet Peanut.”

  “And my mom will be here soon too,” Sam says.

  I give Sam a small smile. We have a plan to get our parents to move to Wyoming. It’s not really a plan, just a lot of begging. There’s no way Saurus and I are leaving Peanut. No one can take care of him like we can.

  DECoW will open again in the morning for the first time in four days. But to keep things under control, people need to buy tickets online. We don’t want a million visitors at once. Our restrooms aren’t big enough. Only two hundred tickets will be sold each day. And there is no guarantee that visitors will get to see Peanut. He’s not on display. Not yet anyway.

  Goldie has been spotted a bunch of times since the fishing tournament. She’s less shy now. The town has put signs along the river: Do Not Feed the Nothosaurus. Sam and I broke that rule before it was a rule.

  I munch on my pepperoni pizza. Peanut gets a slice of mushroom while Saurus purrs in my lap.

  “Do you think things will get back to normal around here?” I ask Gram.

  “Not at all!” She laughs. “It’s going to be a new normal.”

  I don’t like the sound of that.

  “It will be okay,” PopPop says. “Peanut is family. As long as we stick together, I’m not worried.” But PopPop never worries.

  I scoop Peanut up from the floor. He puts his horn to my nose.


  “You might not be my secret anymore, but you’ll always be my best friend.”

  At that, Saurus meows.

  “One of my best friends.” I squeeze them both tight. Having a dinosaur (and a fluffy cat) is still awesome. Even if the whole world knows about it.

  Glossary

  Here are some words and definitions, in case you aren’t a dinosaur expert like me.

  dinosaur: A type of prehistoric reptile that lived on land and did not fly. Meat-eaters walked on two legs. Plant-eaters walked on two or four legs. (Talk to your local paleontologist for more info.)

  extinct: Wiped out as a species. Plants and animals can go extinct. Like the Nothosaurus. Or is it?

  herbivore: An animal that eats only salad—I mean, plants.

  mammal: A class of animals that are warm-blooded and have fur (or hair). Most mammals are also born alive from a mom, not from an egg. You are a mammal. (Assuming you are a person and not a bearded dragon.)

  Nothosaurus: Not a dinosaur! (See dinosaur.) It is a prehistoric reptile that lived in water but could visit land.

  paleontologist: A scientist who studies fossils (like dinosaur fossils) to learn about life on Earth long ago.

  prehistoric: Before humans began writing things down. Dinosaurs came way before humans and way before writing.

  pterosaurs: Not dinosaurs! (See dinosaur.) They are flying prehistoric reptiles.

  reptile: In modern times, a group of animals that have scales and are cold-blooded, like alligators and snakes. But in prehistoric times, reptiles also had feathers and could have been warm-blooded. (Talk to your local biologist for more information.)

  terrestrial: Refers to animals that live on the ground and not in water or in trees or in the air. Dinos are terrestrial. Humans too!

  Velociraptor: A turkey-sized dinosaur that had feathers, ran fast, and ate meat. Velociraptor means “speedy thief.”

  Wyomingasaurus: A dinosaur! This is Peanut’s species. The name isn’t official yet.

  About the Author