Massive Claw Belonging to a Bizarre Sloth-Like Dinosaur Found in Gobi Desert

A new dinosaur species, Duonychus, has been discovered in the Gobi Desert. It’s got a cool and likely deadly feature—11-inch-long claws that befit its sloth-like looks.

The creature dates back to the Cretaceous period and was only discovered thanks to the construction of a water pipeline. An associate professor at the University of Calgary, Dr. Darla Zelenitsky, was part of the team behind the discovery.

She describes Duonychus as having a long neck, a small head, and long arms with huge claws. And a round torso makes it look like a possum that swallowed a soccer ball. It’s considered part of a group called therizinosaurs, which are sometimes referred to as slothlike dinosaurs.

Paleontologists Discover Slothlike Dinosaur with Massive Badass Claws

Therizinosaurs generally had three toes with large claws, yet Duonychus evolved to have only two claws. One of these claws was found perfectly preserved, complete with a 12-centimetre-long fingernail. Finding a fingernail in such good condition is rare as fingernails usually decompose long before they can fossilize.

Zelenitsky and her colleagues theorized that the claws not only would’ve been excellent for digging but also suspect that “they would’ve made formidable weapons.” Duonychus is believed to have lived in both North America and Asia.

This is the only specimen of its kind discovered so far and it’s proven to be a rather big boy, weighing in around 550 pounds and standing at over nine feet tall. If it is considered the most slothlike of the dinosaurs, it was one big ass sloth.