Casea broilii (Romer 1937) Kungarian, Early Permian ~275 mya, ~ 1.2 m in length, was an herbivorous reptile typically lumped in with pelycosaurs like Archaeothyris and Varanops. Recently Maddin, Sidor and Reisz (2008) also allied caseasaurids (includes Eothyris) and caseids with synapsids, as they have been traditionally allied (Romer and Price 1940). Here a larger dataset indicates a closer relationship with Oedaleops and Milleretta. The lateral temporal fenestra was a convergent trait.

Distinct from Eothyris, the skull of Casea had a larger naris and orbit. The skull was relatively wider and the bone was pitted. The teeth were still long, but blunt.

After a long string of skull-only taxa, Casea preserves post-crania. The cervicals were short, the dorsal ribs enclosed an enormous torso. The caudals were long and the tail tapered gradually.

The pectoral girdle was relatively robust, as were the short metacarpals and thick digits and digging claws.

The ilium was broad with an anterior process and the hind limb was relatively less robust. The digits wer much longer than the metatarsals.

Ennatosaurus tecton (Maddin, Sidor and Reisz 2008) was a much smaller, late surviving caseid from the late Middle Permian with more typical head/torso proportions. The premaxilla included only two teeth. The jugal had a substantial anterior (suborbital) process.

Cotylorhynhcus romeri (Stovall 1937) Kungurian, Middle Permian, ~265 mya, ~6 m in length, was the largest sister to Casea and Ennatosaurus. All prior reports nested Cotylorhynchus with the synapsids, but here it nests more parsimoniously with Milleretta, Bolosaurus and other plant-eaters in this new clade, many of which share a lateral temporal fenestra. It was the largest land animal of its time.

Romer AS 1937 New genera and species of pelycosaurian reptiles. Proceedings of the New England Zoological Club. 16: 89-96.

Romer AS and Price LI 1940. Review of the Pelycosauria. Geological Society of America Special Papers 28: 1-538.

Maddin HC, Sidor CA and Reisz RR 2008. Cranial anatomy of Ennatosaurus tecton (Synapsida: Caseidae) from the Middle Permian of Russia and the Evolutionary relationships of Caseidae. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 28(1):160-180. online pdf

Stovall JW 1937. Cotylorhynchus romeri, a new genus and species of pelycosaurian reptile from Oklahoma. Arnerican Journal of Science (5) 34: 308-313.

Stovall JW, Price LI and Romer AS 1966. The Postcranial Skeleton of the Giant Permian Pelycosaur Cotylorhynchus romeri. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 135 (1): 1-30. online pdf

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