There were many strange things about therizinosaurs. But their claws might have been the strangest. They were all sharp. And some of them were as long as baseball bats!

These bulky dinosaurs likely used their claws as rakes. A hungry therizinosaur may have sat on the ground, then used its claws to pull leafy branches close. Chomp, chew—yummy salad!

But that’s not all those claws were good for. Many therizinosaurs were big and slow, so they couldn’t run away when an enemy came near. They probably used their claws to fight off attackers.

Record Breaking Claw

Therizinosaurus had long, straight claws that were almost three feet long. Those are the longest claws ever discovered for any animal!

Just think what I could do with claws like that.

I’d rather NOT think about it!

Nothronychus was the first therizinosaur found in North America. It was twice as tall as a human grown-up. Its hooked claws were as long as rulers.