Therizinosaurus

Therizinosaurus is a genus of large therizinosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia, known especially for its enormous hand claws.

Therizinosaurus is a genus of large therizinosaurid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia, known especially for its enormous hand claws. It was a bipedal, likely herbivorous theropod and is represented by very incomplete fossil material. The single named species is Therizinosaurus cheloniformis.

Discovery and fossils

Therizinosaurus is known from incomplete remains, especially the distinctive hand claws, rather than from a complete skeleton. Its fossils come from the Nemegt Formation in Mongolia.

Classification

Therizinosaurus belongs to Therizinosauria, a group of theropod dinosaurs within Maniraptora. Although theropods are often carnivorous, therizinosaurs are widely understood to have been herbivorous.

Physical characteristics

Reconstructions depict Therizinosaurus as a large, bipedal dinosaur with a long neck, small head, and very long forelimbs. Its most notable feature was the huge claws on its three-fingered hands.

Palaeoecology

Therizinosaurus lived during the Late Cretaceous in what is now Mongolia. It shared its environment with other Nemegt Formation dinosaurs and is usually presented as a browsing plant-eater.