Latest news with #KhishigjavTsogtbaatar
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Ginormous Claws Found in The Gobi Desert Belong to a Never-Before-Seen Species
A newly discovered species of feathered, bipedal dinosaur with "exceptionally preserved and atypical hands" had just two fingers, each one tipped with a gigantic, claw-like talon. A remarkable fossil specimen found in southeastern Mongolia gave researchers a clear idea of what the claws would have looked like in real life, with their keratin sheath still clearly visible, extending the bones into wicked talons. In their published study, a team led by paleontologist Yoshitsugu Kobayashi from Hokkaido University in Japan analyzed the fossils' appearance, similarities to relatives, and geological context to determine where to place this dinosaur in our records. They've named it Duonychus tsogtbaatari, with a genus that means 'two claws' in Greek, and a species name honoring Mongolian paleontologist Khishigjav Tsogtbaatar. The fossil was dug out of a Cretaceous sedimentary deposit in the Gobi Desert by a team of researchers from the Mongolian Academy of Sciences in 2012. Known as the Bayanshiree Formation, this area is a hotspot for dinosaur fossils, thanks to its arid conditions and layers of lithified mud, clay, and sand. It's turned up giant footprints, plane-sized pterosaurs, and the famous 'fighting dinosaurs'. Uranium-lead dating of the mineral layers adjacent to the find suggests this newly discovered fossil could be around 90 to 95 million years old. Most of the bones are from its upper limbs and torso: There are some vertebrae, a bit of pelvis and ribs, part of one shoulder blade, and a whole lot of arm and hand bones. And, of course, a set of nails that would make Cardi B jealous. Duonychus's claws measure almost 30 centimeters (12 inches) long. It joins the therizinosaurs, a group of feathered, bipedal dinosaurs found in Cretaceous-era fossil deposits across Asia and North America. Until now, this clade was defined by its members' three-fingered hands, also studded with massive claws. "The discovery of Duonychus tsogtbaatari is a big deal because it's the first known therizinosaur with only two fingers," Kobayashi told James Woodford of New Scientist. "Most theropods, including other therizinosaurs, kept three functional fingers, so finding one that lost a digit is pretty unexpected." Among theropods, of which Tyrannosaurus is the most notable, only five are known to have reduced or totally absent third fingers, all independently of each other, and seemingly for totally different reasons. We won't know why Duonychus settled with two fingers rather than three without extra specimens or analysis, but the researchers think it may be related to its method of feeding. The menacing curves and 90-degree range of motion suggest the dinosaur grasped onto vegetation, like a sloth or chameleon. This may have helped Duonychus pull leafy food towards its mouth, in true therizinosaur fashion. "As herbivorous or omnivorous theropods with long necks and small leaf-shaped teeth, the evolution of their unusual hands likely played an important role in the feeding ecology of this clade," the authors write in a paper describing the find. "Although claws usually have a dominant function, likely for hook-and-pull foraging in most derived therizinosaurs, these structures could also have been utilized for other purposes, such as territoriality, defense, courtship, play, etc." The researchers say these are the largest three-dimensional dinosaur claws preserved with the sheath and underlying finger bone intact. "Keratin usually doesn't fossilize. It decays long before bones do," Kobayashi told Woodford. "Most of the time, when we find dinosaur claws, we're only looking at the bony core. But in life, the actual claw would have been covered in a thick keratin sheath, making it longer and more curved." The research was published in iScience. IUCN Sounds Alarm as 411 Fungi Species Face Extinction Mysterious Giants May Be a Whole New Kind of Life That No Longer Exists Venus Flytrap Wasp: 99-Million-Year-Old Amber Reveals Bizarre New Species
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
'Exquisitely preserved' ginormous claws from Mongolia reveal strange evolution in dinosaurs
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. A new species of dinosaur with strange claws has been unearthed in Mongolia by paleontologists. This new genus and species is a therizinosaur, plant-eating, two-legged giants with long claws, and was discovered buried in the Gobi Desert, according to a new study published Tuesday (March 25) in the journal iScience. Unlike other therizinosaurs, which have three fingers on their hands equipped with long, sharp claws, this new species only has two fingers. This unique anatomy inspired its scientific name, named Duonychus tsogtbaatari, which is Greek for "two digits" and honors the Mongolian paleontologist Khishigjav Tsogtbaatar. "Many species of therizinosaurs have been discovered, and this group had pretty much been defined by their three-fingered hands sporting large claws," study co-author Darla Zelenitsky, a paleontologist at the University of Calgary in Canada, told Live Science in an email. "To find a specimen with only two fingers/claws was surprising as this was so out of the ordinary for this group of dinosaurs." Related: 166 million-year-old fossil found on Isle of Skye belongs to pony-size dinosaur from Jurassic Therizinosaurs are a group of dinosaurs that lived across what is now Asia and North America during the Late Cretaceous Period (100 million to 66 million years ago). Despite being part of the theropod group of dinosaurs — typically associated with carnivorous dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex — therizinosaurs were herbivorous. These dinosaurs are known for their enormous, sickle-shaped claws, with some species growing talons as long as 20 inches (50 centimeters). All other therizinosaurs that have previously been discovered, including Therizinosaurus and Beipiaosaurus, have three clawed fingers on their hands, making the discovery of two-clawed D. tsogtbaatari unusual. "Therizinosaurs are already some of the most unusual dinosaurs out there, but Duonychus tsogtbaatari takes it to another level," study lead author Yoshitsugu Kobayashi, a paleontologist at Hokkaido University in Japan, told Live Science in an email. "This newly discovered species from Mongolia breaks the mold with just two fingers instead of the typical three, offering a rare glimpse into how theropod hands evolved and adapted." "But what truly makes this discovery exciting is the incredibly well-preserved keratinous sheath on its claw — the first such case in a medium- to large-sized theropod dinosaur," Kobayashi added. Image 1 of 2 Claws of the newly discovered Duonychus tsogtbaatari fossil. This species is the first therizinosaur to have been found with only two clawed fingers. Image 2 of 2 Duonychus tsogtbaatari fossil claw during excavation. The new fossil was unearthed during the construction of a water pipeline in the Bayanshiree Formation in Ömnögovi Province, southern Mongolia. The specimen had excellently preserved hands, with a 3D sheath where the claw — made out of keratin, like our fingernails — would have been. Parts of the arms, spine and hips were also preserved. "The hands, a hallmark of therizinosaurs, are exquisitely preserved with all the finger and wrist bones intact in this specimen," Zelenitsky said. "Even the keratinous sheath of the claw is preserved revealing how big and sharp its claws really were." Other species of dinosaur, such as T. rex, had two fingers, but this marks the first time a therizinosaur has been found with fewer than three digits. This species likely evolved to lose one of the three fingers of its ancestors, the study authors suggested. The researchers think that D. tsogtbaatari may have evolved this unique hand in order to better grip vegetation, allowing for more efficient feeding. "The loss of the third finger in Duonychus tsogtbaatari might actually have made its remaining two fingers even better at what they were designed for — grasping," Kobayashi said. "Based on the shape of its well-preserved claw and how it curved, Duonychus was likely using its hands to grab onto branches and pull vegetation closer, kind of like how chameleons do today." "We think many therizinosaurs may have used their hands for foraging in a 'hook-and-pull' motion, but Duonychus takes this to another level with its extreme claw structure." RELATED STORIES —Australia's 'upside down' dinosaur age had two giant predators, 120 million-year-old fossils reveal —What if a giant asteroid had not wiped out the dinosaurs? —Secrets of 1st dinosaurs lie in the Sahara and Amazon rainforest, study suggests Additionally, Kobayashi suggested that the claws may have played other roles, such as in "defense, courtship, or even play." The researchers are thrilled by this discovery, as it not only reveals unexpected diversity within therizinosaurs, but also marks the fifth time that a theropod dinosaur group has evolved to lose their third finger. "While more fossils would help confirm this, all signs point to Duonychus representing a true evolutionary shift, not just a fluke," Kobayashi said. "It's a remarkable find that reshapes our understanding of therizinosaurs and theropod evolution as a whole."
