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| The Veiled Chameleon, Chamaeleo calyptratus Dumeril and Bibron, 1851. Photographs of a captive animals. It ranges from the southwestern coastal regions of Saudi Arabia and western Yemen. Adult males can reach 620 mm in total length; females attain about 450 mm in total length. Habitats used include the river valleys and agricultural lands of this otherwise arid region. This species may have recently been introduced to the Hawaiian islands of Oahu and Maui, and it may pose a threat to some bird populations because of its large size. It has also been introduced into Fort Meyers, Florida. Veiled Chameleons are herbivorous and will feed on plant mater, unlike most of its relatives. Females are known to lay clutches of 30-80 eggs that require 6-8 months of incubation. |
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Fischer's Chameleon or Two Horned Chameleon, Bradypodion fischeri (Reinchenow, 1895). This is a medium sized chameleon with males reaching 400 mm and females somewhat smaller at 300 mm. It lives in forest-edge habitats between 800-1700 m above sea level. The species is polytypic. |
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| Panther Chameleon, Furcifer pardalis Cuiver, 1828. Photographs of captive bred animals. The Panther Chameleon is endemic to the warm and humid coastal lowlands and islands and coastal regions of northern Madagascar and it has also been introduced to the Indian Ocean islands of Reunion and Mauritius as well as neighboring islands, it is possible that these introductions did not involve humans, but natural dispersal events across the ocean. Reproduction occurs in the spring (October-March), with some populations probably breeding year round. Sexual maturity is reached in five months, females may lay 12-45 eggs, and as many as 4-6 clutches per year, but 2-3 is typical. Incubation is 6-12 months. |
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| Cameroon Sailfin Chameleon, Chamaeleo montium Buchholz, 1874. This species inhabits cloud forests between 500-1200 m ASL. These forests are humid, and have a rainy season. Males reach 250 mm, females are smaller at a maximum of 200 mm. And, females lack the rostral horns. |
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| Furcifer oustaleti (Mocquard, 1894) is a large species (possibly the largest) with males reaching at least 685 mm in total length (rumors of it reaching 800 mm persist). It is widespread in Madagascar and adapted to the xeric environments of southern Madagascar as well as mesic highlands and coastal regions. It is most likely a forest edge species since it is uncommon in rainforests and abundant in disturbed vegetation. Female's produce large clutches of eggs, up to 61 eggs are known. |
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African Leaf Chameleon, Rieppeleon sp. This specimen was in the pet trade and is probably R. brevicaudatus Matschie, 1892. Until recently this species was in the genus Rhampholeon. These tiny lizards are terrestrial and appear to have evolved from an ancestor in Madagascar that dispersed to Africa. R. brevicaudatus is from coastal Tanzanian where it lives in the leaf litter of evergreen rainforests. Like some other chameleons it appears to use vibrations to communicate threats. |
The true chameleons occur in Africa and Madagascar, with a few species extending into the Middle East, Asia, and Southern Europe, and populations occur on many islands. There are about 150 species in five genera with about half inhabiting Madagascar. These are highly derived lizards that have the ability to rotate their eyes, project their tongue to capture prey, change colors, grasp branches with opposable fused digits, and most have a prehensile tail. They range in size from the dwarf (30 mm) to the giant (600 mm) and all have laterally compressed bodies. Insect prey is ambushed by these cryptic and slow moving lizards. Walter Rose wrote about natural hazards faced by chameleons in his 1962 book The Reptiles and Amphibians of Southern Africa:
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