The word Brookesia is named after the British naturalist Joshua Brookes.
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 a high midichlorian count.
The largest chameleon species by weight is Calumma parsonii (Parson’s Chameleon).
Trioceros schubotzi can be found at elevations as high as 4500m.
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.
The word Rhampholeon is taken from the Latinized Greek “rhamphos leon” meaning crawling lion.
Chameleons have a very poor sense of smell.
Pygmy chameleons are sometimes referred to as False Chameleons. This term is actually incorrect and is in reference to anoles, particularly the Cuban False Anole.
Chameleon fossils have been found in central Europe and China, indicating they were once much more widespread than they are now.