Oviraptorid Claw

3D Model

This is a hand claw of an oviraptorid dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous (70 million years ago) of Mongolia. The claw is from the first digit, which corresponds to our thumb (although it wasn’t opposable in dinosaurs). It would have been covered in keratin, like our fingernails, which would have made it even sharper. © Institute of Palaeontology and Geology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia; and © Gregory Funston gregfunston.com