To see a larger photograph click on the images below
Tenontosaurus (claw)
Age: Early Cretaceous
Discovered: N. American
Size: 2in/5cm
Cost: $75
(+ shipping)
Notes: This
was an early member of the plant-eating family of dinosaurs that
includes Iguanodon . It had a very long tail compared to other
members of its family. Instead of front teeth, it had a beak,
and it walked on all four feet most of the time. This dinosaur
was originally found as a partial skeleton in 1903. The genus
was not named, however, until the early 1960's. By that time
parts of more than 20 individuals had been discovered. It had at
least 59 caudal vertebrae in its long tail. One specimen was
found with Deinonychus teeth associated with it, leading to the
conclusion that Tenontosaurus was fed upon by this predator,
which probably hunted it in small packs.
Item#: dino-tenontosaurus-claw-cl19-va
Therizinosaurus
Age:
Cretaceous
Discovered:
Kazakhstan & Inner Mongolia
Note: This
strange looking dinosaur had claws that were 3 feet (1 m) long!
It is also the longest of its family, the therizinosaurs, yet
discovered. It is now thought that it may have had feathers, as
others in its family have been found to show the remains of
protofeathers in their fossils. Known from only partial remains,
the claws and huge arms of this dinosaur are astounding.
Therizinosaurus has been an intriguing puzzle for scientists
ever since several huge claws were first discovered in 1948. In
the late 1950s, a number of different bones were found,
including a tooth, another large claw and parts of the front and
rear limbs that also included a four-toed foot. These bones were
so bizarre that paleontologists didn't know what to make of them
except to classify them together because of the strange claws. A
series of finds in Mongolia in the late 1980?s showed that huge
arms that had been previously attributed to Deinocheirus,
actually belonged to the same group as the huge claws and
strange bones attributed to Therizinosaurus. Parts of the pelvis
and other bones were also found, which gave paleontologists a
better look at what was shaping up to be the strangest dinosaur
ever to walk the earth. While the claws were very long, they
were not sharply curved. In cross section, they were quite thin.
Some scientists think they were used to tear open termite
mounds. Therizinosaurs had a fairly long neck, small head, and
teeth that could have been used to eat plants. The family
previously known as segnosaurs is now named after this peculiar
dinosaur.
Theropod (claw)
Age: late Cretaceous
Discovered: S. Dakota
Size: 2.9 in / 7.3 cm
Cost: $75
(+ shipping)
Notes:
Theropods (meaning "beast-footed") were a suborder of
Saurischian dinosaurs. They were fast-moving, bipedal carnivores
(meat-eaters) with grasping hands and clawed digits. They ranged
in size from tiny (e.g., the chicken-sized Compsognathus) to
huge (Giganotosaurus was over 50 feet tall). Theropods lived
from the mid-Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous
period. Their fossils have been found world-wide.
Item#: dino-theropod-sp-claw-rf025-va
Thescelosaurus (claw)
Age: late Cretaceous
Discovered: S. Dakota
Size: 2.2 in./ 5.7 cm
Cost: $75
(+ shipping)
Notes: A
small, agile plant eater, Thescelosaurus was among the last of
the dinosaurs and was probably wiped out in the final extinction
65 million years ago. It was also one of those "basement
discoveries," dug up in 1891 and stored away for more than 20
years before it was re-discovered in its packing crate. In 1993
a very fine specimen was discovered in South Dakota by amateur
paleontologist Mike Hammer. This skeleton had a complete skull
that showed a very efficient set of at least three different
types of teeth, and contained evidence that this dinosaur had
cheeks that would have improved its food processing efficiency.
Bipedal, with a relatively long tail, its front legs were
sturdy, but not particularly long. It had fairly long front
claws, which may have been useful for digging. Its hind legs
were not built for the speed evidenced by other members of the
hypsilophodont family. One of the most unusual aspects of the
1993 specimen is that it seems to have a fossilized heart. This
was widely publicized, and following studies conducted by Dr.
Dale Russell, it was concluded that the heart's structure
suggests an intermediate form somewhere between crocodiles and
birds. Many scientists feel that this is evidence that some
dinosaurs had high metabolic rates, suggesting that they were
warm-blooded. One of the most spectacular fossil finds of all
time, the specimen is on display at the North Carolina Museum of
Natural Sciences.
Item#: thescelosaurus-claw-rf027a-va
Triceratops horridus (hoof)
Age: Late Cretaceous
Discovered: Hell Creek Formation, S Dakota.
Size: 4.4in/11cm
Cost: $75
(+ shipping)
Notes: Rear foot ungal digit III.
One of the top three on everyone's favorite dinosaur list,
Triceratops is a very common dinosaur which lived at the very
end of the Age of Dinosaurs. It had a huge frilled head with
horns over each eye that could reach over 4 feet long.
Triceratops had a third, smaller horn on its nose. These would
be fearsome weapons against a predator. Triceratops is one of
the most common dinosaur fossils found. More than 50 skulls have
been found. Within the genus, at least 7 species have been
identified. The ceratopsian family is one of the most successful
and varied of the Late Cretaceous. Triceratops is the largest
member of this family, reaching the size of a school bus.
Triceratops was a herd animal; it is believed that large groups
roamed North America. Their large, horny beaks and long rows of
teeth were well designed for chewing the tough, low growing
plants of the Late Cretaceous. It was likely the main predator
of these animals was T. rex. A number of skeletons show bite and
chew marks that match the teeth of T. rex. Horns and frills
seemed to vary among individuals within the species. Some frills
were very broad, others narrow. The nasal horn shows the most
variance among individual specimens, no two being the same. The
material that covered its horns in life would have added
significantly to the length of the fossilized bone.
Item#: dino-triceratops-hoof-rf002-va
Troodon (claw)
Note: Troodon
may have been the smartest of all the dinosaurs. It had a very
large brain when compared to its overall body size, which would
have given it huge hunting advantage. It also had large eyes,
long legs for speedy pursuit of prey, and sharp teeth. Troodon
is one of the most well known dinosaurs, with over 20 known
specimens, including an egg with a Troodon embryo inside. It was
actually one of the first North American dinosaurs to be named,
originally described in 1856. However, the fragmentary remains
were attributed to a number of dinosaurs before the original
genus became accepted. It wasn't until Dr. Dale Russell
described a fairly complete specimen that the pieces fell into
place. Troodon is also used as evidence in the bird/dinosaur
debate, as it shares a number of common characteristics with
birds.
Cost: $75
(+ shipping)
Item#: dino-troodon-claw-cl21-va
T-Rex
Age: Cretaceous
Discovered: South Dakota U.S.
Note: Probably the most
famous of all dinosaurs, T. rex was probably the fiercest meat
eater that ever lived. At more than 40 feet tall, it was huge
and had the most powerful head of any dinosaur. It also had the
biggest teeth of any dinosaur - teeth that were not only sharp
and cutting edged, but also thick and strong, capable of
crushing bones. After many millions of years of evolution,
nature arrived at T. rex, an almost perfect killing machine. It
was capable of running at great speed to catch other dinosaurs
(or anything it wanted to eat). It had large feet to help it
run quickly through the swampy environment in which it lived,
maybe as fast as 35 mph. Although it had very short arms, they
were very strong. But it didn't need its arms to be an
effective and efficient killer. It had enormous strength in its
jaws; it could bite right through the frill of a Triceratops or
into the back of a hadrosaur. In fact, the only thing that a T.
rex had to fear was another T. rex. Most of the scars and
wounds found on fossil bones of these great creatures seem to
come from others of its kind. T. rex is very well known, with
more than 30 individual specimens having been found. Less than
half of these had any significant amount of the fossil, but it
still gives us a very good picture of these creatures.
T-Rex (hand claw)
Size: 2 in / 5 cm
Cost: $75
(+ shipping)
Item#: dino-hand-claw-trex-rf024-va
T-Rex (toe claw)
Size: 9 in / 23 cm
Cost: $75
(+ shipping)
Item#: dino-toeclaw-trex-sh02-va
T-Rex (toe claw)
Size: 9 in / 23 cm
Cost: $75
(+ shipping)
Item#: dino-toeclaw-trex-rf001-va
Utah raptor(killing claw)
Age: Cretaceous
Discovered: Western U.S.
Size: 5in/12.7cm
Cost: $75
(+ shipping)
Description: When the movie "Jurassic Park" was released, dinosaur fans everywhere complained that director
Steven Spielberg had made his movie Velociraptors much larger
than they were in real life. In the midst of this controversy,
Dr. James Kirkland and paleontology student Rob Gaston
unearthed the real-life giant raptor that was shown in the
movie - only bigger! Utahraptor was huge, and with its big
killing claws, strong arms and hands, and sharp teeth, it was
one of the most ferocious killers on the planet. One of the
most unique aspects that Utahraptor shares with its more famous
cousin Velociraptor is that both had a lethal killing claw on
each foot. Each inside toe had a large (about 10 inches) hooked
claw that was controlled by a strong tendon. This claw was held
upward when the animal was walking or running. When it
attacked, however, the tendon snapped tight and the claw
clamped down with great speed and force, slicing deeply into
its victim. Not a very pretty picture, but an effective way to
inflict a serious wound. Utahraptor is the oldest known, and
largest, of the dromaeosaurids. This is interesting as it
points to a family that shrunk over time. Its hand claws were
proportionally larger than other family members and Dr.
Kirkland speculates that its hand claws were probably as
important a weapon as the killing claws on its feet. Utahraptor
is the subject of a best-selling book by Dr. Robert Bakker.
Entitled "Raptor Red," it is currently being developed into a
motion picture.
Item#: dino-claw-utahraptor-sh01-va
Velociraptor Mongoliensis(killing claw)
Age: Late Cretaceous
Discovered: Flaming Cliffs, Mongolia
Note: Since
the movie "Jurassic Park", Velociraptor has become the most
famous dinosaur, even more so than T. rex. What is interesting
is that it doesn't really look like the movie dinosaur.
Velociraptor is much smaller than in the film and it has a
longer, thinner snout. Still, pound for pound, Velociraptor was
a very effective killing machine! One of the most unique aspects
of Velociraptor is the "Killing Claw" it has on each foot. Each
inside toe has a large (about 5 inches) hooked claw that is
controlled by a strong tendon. This claw is held upward when the
animal is walking or running. However, when it attacks, the
tendon snaps tight and the claw snaps down with great speed and
force, slicing deeply into the victim. Not a very pretty
picture, but an effective way to inflict a serious wound.
Velociraptor was probably a pack hunter, which would have
allowed it to attack prey much larger than itself. It also had a
very large brain relative to its size - it was one of the
smartest dinosaurs. It was very light and very fast. Recent
thinking is that it was also very close to being birdlike, and
that it had feathers that it used both for display and
insulation. It had very strong arms and claws, which were
effective weapons by themselves. It had sharp, recurved teeth in
its long mouth. One of the most fascinating fossil discoveries
ever made is of a Velociraptor locked in mortal combat with a
Protoceratops. Both creatures probably died instantly in a
sandstorm and their bodies were buried with the claws of the
raptor in the body of the little ceratopsian, whose mouth was
firmly locked on the raptors leg.
