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 Brookesia is named after the British naturalist Joshua Brookes.
The horns on a chameleon are made up of ringlike segments of inner bone covered by a hard keratin-like skin.
Chameleons have acrodont teeth meaning they are an extension of the jawbone. They are not set in sockets nor are they replaced.
Chameleons have a high midichlorian count.
Pygmy chameleons have bicuspid claws where each claw has two points like a crescent moon.
Chameleons can project their tongue up to 2.2 times their body length.
The word Bradypodion comes from the latin “bradus podos” or slow foot.
Kinyongia uthmoelleri and Trioceros quadricornis gracilor have red claws.
True chameleons include the following genera: Archaius, Bradypodion, Brookesia, Calumma, Chamaeleo, Furcifer, Kinyongia, Nadzikambia, Palleon, Rhampholeon, Rieppeleon and Trioceros.