Therizinosaurus, Possibly the Weirdest Dinosaur to Ever Walk on Our Planet

Image of Therizinosaurus

Imagine you had a time machine, with the ability to travel back all the way to the Late Cretaceous Period, roughly 75 million years ago. Immediately, you are surrounded by lush, semi-tropical environments, characterized by hefty amounts of vegetation and small river networks. All of a sudden, you hear footsteps behind you, large ones. Slowly the ground started to shake as the entity behind you approached closer and closer. Too scared to turn back, you take a few steps closer to a small pond and look into the reflection. 

You see what appears to be an alien-like creature, giant 8-foot forelimbs equipped with deadly 70 cm claws, capable of ripping through flesh. Resting on an unusual four toes, the giant slowly leaned down to the river to get a sip of water. 

You let out a sigh of relief, luckily that gigantic, feathered monster was only here for a simple drink. Not taking any chances, you quickly hop back into your time machine and go back to the peaceful comfort of your home.

Therizinosaurus, the "scythe lizard", was an extremely large, surprisingly herbivorous theropod, that lived during the late Cretaceous, sometime 60-80 million years ago. This giant could grow to about 33 feet long and 16 feet tall, weighing up to a heavy 5.5 tons. 

Therizinosaurus was equipped with a small beak for chewing on vegetation and frighteningly large unguals, or claws. These digits were in fact so long that they are thought to be the longest claws of any organism ever recorded on Earth. Including the closely related seven-ton Deinocheirus, literally given the nickname "terrible hand". 

Image comparing sizes of a human and a Therizinosaurus, along with an ungual fossil

As mentioned before, Therizinosaurus is also a theropod, which is relatively weird since the large majority of theropods consists of carnivores. These include the infamous Tyrannosaurus Rex and the local Tarbosaurus. It is believed Therizinosaurus is an herbivore, since such long claws are really only used for breaking apart foliage to sustain a plant-eating lifestyle. For example, the modern-day armadillo which uses its sharp claws to dig up the roots of vegetation. 

During the year 1948, a fossil expedition conducted by the Soviet Union in Mongolia's Gobi Desert, unearthed the first ever discovered Therizinosaurus fossil. The excavation of these fossils went relatively well, and many remains were uncovered, such as the dinosaur's large claws. 

However, the Russian paleontologists were extremely puzzled by the remains, and struggled to piece together a physical skeleton and what the organism might be. One of the scientists, Yevgeny Maleev believed that the organism belonged to an ancient Mongolian group of sea turtles. 

To take his already bold claim even further, he decided to create a new family under the name Therizinosauridae, which housed his unique "Mongolian sea turtle" discovery. It took around another 25 years for Therizinosaurus to finally be recognized as a theropod dinosaur. Specifically, one belonging to a family of herbivorous long-armed creatures, called the Segnosaurus. 

Other than its bizarre features, the Therizinosaurus also lived in an equally bizarre landscape. The ancient Mongolian plains, known as the Nemegt Formation, were lush and full of tidal flats and forests. A much more humid climate than the present-day Gobi Desert, which now fills its gap. Home to the Segnosaurus, carnivorous theropods, hadrosaurs and even a few sauropods, this area was quite the haven for dinosaurs. 

Aquatic animals that still prevail today such as turtles, crocodiles and fish inhabited the small freshwater lakes and streams scattered across the plains. 

One thing that is completely certain about this extraordinary dinosaur is that it would for sure be a thrill to watch as it roamed across ancient Asia. 

Further information can be found from the sources 10 Facts About Therizinosaurus the Reaping Lizard and Therizinosaurus.