[2] Early, smaller forms possessed single rows of teeth, and were likely carnivorous or omnivorous, while the larger, more derived captorhinids belonging to the subfamily Moradisaurinae were herbivorous and developed multiple (up to 11) rows of teeth in the jaws alongside propalinal (back and forth) jaw motion, which created an effective apparatus for grinding and shredding plant matter.

This behaviour represented significant evolutionary benefit for the animals, allowing for escape and distracting predators, as well as minimizing blood loss at an injury site.

The Middle Permian reptile Eunotosaurus from South Africa was seen as the "missing link" between cotylosaurs and chelonians throughout much of the early 20th century.

[6] Paleothyris Thuringothyris Concordia Rhiodenticulatus Romeria Protocaptorhinus Saurorictus C. laticeps C. aguti C. magnus Captorhinikos Labidosaurus Labidosaurikos Moradisaurus Rothianiscus Gansurhinus Simões et al. (2022) recovered captorhinids as stem-amniotes instead, as the sister group to Protorothyris archeri, while the clade including captorhinids and P. archeri was recovered as the sister group to Araeoscelidia.

[18] Seymouria Limnoscelis paludis Diadectes Orobates pabsti Sauropsida Synapsida Araeoscelidia Protorothyris archeri Captorhinus aguti Labidosaurus hamatus Euconcordia cunninghami Protocaptorhinus pricei