Do YOU know which type of animal this mystery claw belongs to?

Do YOU know which type of animal this mystery talon belongs to? Experts left ‘baffled’ by ‘dinosaur claw’ found in couple’s front garden

A couple has left animal experts seemingly baffled after finding a mystery claw in their front garden in Wales. 

Laura Moorcroft of Buckley, Flintshire, ‘instantly thought it was from a dinosaur’ when she and her husband discovered the remains.

She said: ‘Me and my husband had just come back from a walk and he noticed it on the grass. It looks prehistoric to us – a scaly lizard-like claw. 

‘We’re huge fans of Jurassic Park so instantly thought it was from a dinosaur, I mean it looks very lizard-like doesn’t it?’

Sharing her photo online, Laura had locals weighing in with their guesses. Some said it was from a bird or poultry, but others suspected something reptilian like an alligator, crocodile or tortoise.

A couple has left animal experts seemingly baffled after finding a mystery claw in their front garden in Wales

A couple has left animal experts seemingly baffled after finding a mystery claw in their front garden in Wales

Seeking a more informed opinion, Laura, 36, reached out to Chester Zoo and a nearby vet. They both said it came from a bird, but even they didn’t agree on what species.

‘One said it was like a pheasant and the other a turkey so we’re still none the wiser,’ said Laura.

She added: ‘We have CCTV but it was a bit too far down the garden to pick anything up, so it remains a mystery. I like our guess of a velociraptor (a small dinosaur) best; I love that people had the same thinking.

‘I saw someone had thought it was a Gremlin! We didn’t think something like this would grab everyone’s attention,’ she said about the online responses to her photo.

Laura Moorcroft (pictured) of Buckley, Flintshire, 'instantly thought it was from a dinosaur' when she and her husband discovered the remains

Laura Moorcroft (pictured) of Buckley, Flintshire, ‘instantly thought it was from a dinosaur’ when she and her husband discovered the remains

Modern birds are descended from theropods, a grouping that includes raptors and the Tyrannosaurus rex, according to Scientific American.

Arkhat Abzhanov, a biologist at Harvard University, told the magazine: ‘The first birds were almost identical to the late embryo from velociraptors.’

Unlike their movie counterpart, real velociraptors were also feathered and about the same size as turkeys.

source: dailymail.co.uk