Furcifer oustaleti (Oustalet’s Chameleon) is the longest chameleon species reaching lengths of 27 inches (68cm).
Chamaeleo namaquensis is found in the desert of Namibia. To cool off it will sometimes bury itself in the sand.
Chameleon fossils have been found in central Europe and China, indicating they were once much more widespread than they are now.
Some chameleons play dead to avoid predation; this is called thanatosis.
The largest chameleon species by weight is Calumma parsonii (Parson’s Chameleon).
The horns on a chameleon are made up of ringlike segments of inner bone covered by a hard keratin-like skin.
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 Kinyongia is from the Swahili word for chameleons: Kinyonga.
The word Furcifer is derived from the Latin word “furci” or forked.
Furcifer labordi (Labord’s Chameleon) has the shortest lifespan of only 4-5 months. It also has the shortest lifespan of any tetrapod!