1.6" Hadrosaur Ungual (Foot Claw) - Hell Creek, Montana

This is a 1.6" wide ungual (foot claw) from a Gryposaurus, a type of Hadrosaur or "Duck-billed Dinosaur". It was collected from the Hell Creek Formation in Carter County, Montana. Given the small size of this ungal, it is assumed that it may have come from a juvenile dinosaur. This claw has excellent preservation with almost no erosion and minimal crack repairs.



Gryposaurus (meaning "hooked-nosed lizard") was a genus of duckbilled dinosaur that lived about 83 to 74 million years ago during the Middle Cretaceous. It is most easily distinguished from other Hadrosaurs by its narrow arching nasal hump, resembling a hooked nose for which it is named. Gryposaurus was a hadrosaurid of typical size and shape, reaching lengths of around 25-30 feet long.

A Gryposaurus skull at the American Natural History Museum.  Photo by Steve Lew
A Gryposaurus skull at the American Natural History Museum. Photo by Steve Lew

Because of its age and sedimentary composition, the Hell Creek Formation has become one of the most paleontologically studied areas in the world. 158 genera of animals and 64 genera of plants are known from the formation and new discoveries are made frequently. In addition to Tyrannosaurs, Ceratopsids, and Hadrosaurs, the formation has yielded remains of amphibians, reptiles, lizards, snakes and turtles, fish and sharks, avian and non-avian dinosaurs, and mammals. The Hell Creek Formation gives the most complete understanding of the environment just before the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction.
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DETAILS
SPECIES
Gryposaurus sp.
LOCATION
Carter County, Montana
FORMATION
Hell Creek Formation
SIZE
1.6" wide, 1.5" long
CATEGORY
SUB CATEGORY
ITEM
#198669
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