Therizinosaurus fossil map
Where fossils of Therizinosaurus have been found, shown on the Earth as it looked about 66 million years ago and on today’s map.
Dots are fossil collections recorded in the Paleobiology Database. The “then” view moves today’s fossil sites back to their positions 66 million years ago (the time slice nearest the median age of the fossils) using the Merdith et al. (2021) plate model; positions are approximate. Open on the timeline map →
| Group | Theropods |
|---|---|
| Lived | 72.2–66 million years ago (Maastrichtian) |
| Periods | Cretaceous |
| Family | Therizinosauridae |
| Named by | Maleev 1954 |
| Fossil records | 2 occurrences at 2 locations (PBDB) |
| Found in | Mongolia |
| Rock formations | Nemegt |
About Therizinosaurus
Therizinosaurus (; meaning 'scythe lizard') is a genus of very large therizinosaurid dinosaurs that lived in the Maastrichtian age during the Late Cretaceous period in what is now Asia roughly 69-66 million years ago. It contains a single species, Therizinosaurus cheloniformis, known from the fossiliferous Nemegt Formation. The first remains of Therizinosaurus were found in 1948 by a Mongolian field expedition in the Gobi Desert and later described by Evgeny Maleev in 1954. The genus is only known from a few bones, including gigantic manual unguals (claw bones), from which it gets its name, and additional findings comprising fore and hindlimb elements that were discovered from the 1960s through the 1980s.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Therizinosaurus (revision 1380202211), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0; introduction excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Ages, family, authority and fossil records: Paleobiology Database, accessed 22 October 2026. Ages are those of the rock layers the fossils were found in.
