Howesia
Extinct genus of reptile
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Howesia is an extinct genus of basal rhynchosaur from early Middle Triassic (early Anisian stage) deposits of Eastern Cape, South Africa. It is known from the holotype. SAM-PK-5884 (a partial skeleton with palate and partial lower jaws), two paratypes (SAM-PK-5885 and SAM-PK-5886).[1] The known fossils were found in the Burgersdorp Formation of the middle deposits of the Beaufort Group (Karoo Basin) and referred to Subzone B of the Cynognathus Assemblage Zone.[2] The genus contains a single species, Howesia browni, named by Robert Broom in 1905, after Alfred Brown.[3] The contemporary Eohyosaurus wolvaardti (holotype SAM-PK-K10159) has been suggested to be a junior synonym of H. browni based on shared anatomical traits not recognized when the former was named in 2015.[4]
| Howesia Temporal range: Early–Middle Triassic, | |
|---|---|
| Photograph (top) and μCT rendering (bottom) of SAM-PK-K10180, a skull of H. browni | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | †Rhynchosauria |
| Genus: | †Howesia Broom, 1905 |
| Species | |
Classification

The placement of Howesia as a basal member of the Rhynchosauria is shown in the cladogram below, following the phylogenetic results of Spiekman et al. (2026).[4]
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