A reappraisal ofUtegenia, a Permo-Carboniferous seymouriamorph (Tetrapoda: Batrachosauria) from Kazakhstan

Several specimens of the seymouriamorph Utegenia from the Upper Carboniferous or the Lower Permian of Southern Kazakhstan are described and illustrated for the first time. Utegenia is represented by several larval and post-metamorphic individuals, but a fully mature specimen has not been discovered. Comparisons to other seymouriamorphs indicate that Utegenia is a valid genus characterized by seven diagnostic characters: narrow postorbitalsupratemporal contact; narrow dorsal flange of the postparietal and tabular; absence of a maxilla-quadratojugal contact; presence of an extensive shagreen of denticles on the parasphenoid; broad cultriform process; high presacral count; and presence of gastralia. Other characters previously used to diagnose Utegenia may reflect the juvenile condition of the known specimens. The taxonomic position of Utegenia is problematic but preliminary evidence suggests that it may be the sister-group of most other known seymouriamorphs.