Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles exchanges and international cooperative efforts for study and publications. The society was founded as a regional organization, The Ohio Herpetological Society (OHS), by two young but serious-minded amateurs, Kraig Adler and David M. Dennis, then 16 and 17 years of age respectively. They decided in the fall of 1957 to formalize interactions amongst a small group of amateur herpetologists throughout Ohio and began publishing a combined journal and newsletter (called the "Trimonthly Report") in January 1958. The name of the society was changed to The Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles on January 1, 1967. The SSAR publishes
Evolution of reptiles pareiasaurs reached giant proportions in the late Permian, eventually disappearing at the close of the period. Late in the period, the diapsid reptiles split into two main lineages, the archosaurs (ancestors of crocodiles and dinosaurs) and the lepidosaurs (predecessors of modern tuataras, lizards, and snakes). Both groups remained lizard-like and relatively small and inconspicuous during the Permian. The close of the Permian saw the greatest mass extinction known (see the Permian–Triassic extinction event). Most of the earlier anapsid/synapsid megafauna disappeared, being replaced by the archosauromorph diapsids. The archosaurs were characterized by elongated hind legs and an erect pose, the early