The smallest chameleon species is Brookesia micra with an adult length just over 1 inch (29mm). It hatches from an egg no bigger than a grain of rice!
Chameleons can project their tongue up to 2.2 times their body length.
Chameleons have a high midichlorian count.
Chameleon fossils have been found in central Europe and China, indicating they were once much more widespread than they are now.
The word Rieppeleon is named after the scientist Olivier Rieppel.
Chamaeleo namaquensis is found in the desert of Namibia. To cool off it will sometimes bury itself in the sand.
Chameleons do not have external ears or a tympanic membrane, but they do have internal ears as well as degenerated middle ears. They do not hear well but they can detect low frequency sounds.
The word Chamaeleo is derived via Latin from the Greek word khamaileon. It roughly translates to ground lion. Khamai means on the ground and leon means lion.
Chameleons have laterally compressed bodies. This enables them to warm up quickly by presenting a larger surface area to the sun. It also helps some chameleon species blend in among the similarly shaped leaves in their environment.
There are currently 202 recognized chameleon species and 85 of them are found on the island of Madagascar.