Therizinosaurus facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Therizinosaurus Temporal range: Upper Cretaceous
Conservation status
Fossil
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Sauropsida
Superorder:	Dinosauria
Order:	Saurischia
Suborder:	Theropoda
Infraorder:	Coelurosauria
Family:	Therizinosauridae
Genus:	Therizinosaurus
Species:	T. cheloniformis
Binomial name
Therizinosaurus cheloniformis Maleev, 1954

Therizinosaurus was a huge herbivorous theropod dinosaur from the end of the Cretaceous period.

New, well-preserved finds such as Alxasaurus in 1993 and Beipiaosaurus in 1996 provided details about the bird-like pelvis, feet and skulls of primitive members. This helped confirm they belonged to the same group of theropod dinosaurs as Therizinosaurus and that therizinosaurs were, more specifically, advanced, herbivorous maniraptoran theropods.

Their fossils were first found in the late 1940s in Asia. They were named in 1954 after more bones were found. It was a thought to be a carnivore and herbivore; it had very long claws - they were about 3 ft long.

Paleobiology

The feeding habits of Therizinosaurus are unknown, since no skull material has ever been found that could indicate its diet. However, like other therizinosaurs, it was probably primarily herbivorous.

There are multiple possible functions that could have been served by the claws of Therizinosaurus, such as defense against predators (e.g. the contemporary Tarbosaurus) and in intraspecific fighting, such as fighting for territory or for mating, or to pull leafy tree branches towards its mouth. The claws may have served all these functions.

Images for kids

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  Cretaceous fossil localities of Mongolia; Therizinosaurus fossils have been collected from the Altan Uul, Hermiin Tsav, and Nemegt localities at the area A (Nemegt Formation)

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  Holotype unguals PIN 551-483 at the Moscow Paleontological Museum; note left ungual cast

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  Arms of specimen MPC-D 100/15 with unguals 100/16 and 100/17 at CosmoCaixa Barcelona

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  Composite skeletal of the known remains of Therizinosaurus

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  Size of three specimens (holotype in green) compared to a 1.8 m tall human

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  Life restoration

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  Arms of specimen MPC-D 100/15 with unguals 100/16 and 100/17 at Experimentarium

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  Restored hand cast of MPC-D 100/15 at the Aathal Dinosaur Museum

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  Skeletal diagram featuring the known unguals of Therizinosaurus

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  Outdated quadrupedal, sauropodomorph-like restoration of Erlikosaurus

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  Mounted skeleton of Alxasaurus at the Royal Tyrrell Museum. Alxasaurus helped to resolve important aspects about the affinities of the long-enigmatic therizinosaurs

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  Feather impressions from the holotype of Beipiaosaurus

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  Skeletal reconstructions of various therizinosaurian genera (not to scale); Therizinosaurus in top left

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  Lateral view of the unguals in specimens MPC-D 100/15, 100/16 and 100/17. Therizinosaurus may have used its claws for grasping foliage

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  The Nemegt Formation had similar environments to those of the swampy Okavango Delta

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  Life restoration of a Therizinosaurus pair along with a small group of Tylocephale, and Adasaurus

See also

In Spanish: Therizinosaurus para niños