The word Bradypodion comes from the latin “bradus podos” or slow foot.
Some chameleons play dead to avoid predation; this is called thanatosis.
Chameleons can project their tongue up to 2.2 times their body length.
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!
Pygmy chameleons (Brookesia, Palleon, Rhampholeon and Rieppeleon sp.) often resemble dry leaves, mosses and branches.
Chameleons have a very poor sense of smell.
Chameleons have acrodont teeth meaning they are an extension of the jawbone. They are not set in sockets nor are they replaced.
The horns on a chameleon are made up of ringlike segments of inner bone covered by a hard keratin-like skin.
Chameleon fossils have been found in central Europe and China, indicating they were once much more widespread than they are now.
The word Kinyongia is from the Swahili word for chameleons: Kinyonga.