Mazothairos (from Mazo, derived from its location of Mazon Creek and θαιρός, thairos, meaning 'hinge' in Greek)[1] is an extinct genus of very large insect that lived during the Carboniferous period.

Although it is only known from very fragmentary remains from a single fossil, it is estimated to have had a wingspan of around 56 centimeters (22 in), making it one of the largest-known insects, only being rivaled in size by the largest members of the order Meganisoptera, such as Meganeura and Meganeuropsis.

[1] It is the largest known member of the order Palaeodictyoptera, a group of insects characterized by their distinctive beak-like mouthparts, which possibly had a sucking pump-like organ that might have been used to pierce plant tissues and drink their liquids.

[3][4][5][6] The Holotype fossil of Mazothairos was found in the Mazon Creek fossil beds in modern-day Illinois, a lagerstätte formed approximately 309 million years ago during the Pennsylvanian epoch of the Carboniferous period, which is thought to have been a part of a river delta system and have had a tropical climate.

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