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.
Pygmy chameleons have bicuspid claws where each claw has two points like a crescent moon.
The word Kinyongia is from the Swahili word for chameleons: Kinyonga.
The word Rieppeleon is named after the scientist Olivier Rieppel.
Furcifer labordi (Labord’s Chameleon) has the shortest lifespan of only 4-5 months. It also has the shortest lifespan of any tetrapod!
The word Calumma comes from the Latin word for covering. This genus consists of chameleons from Madagascar with occipital lobes.
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 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.
Chameleons can project their tongue up to 2.2 times their body length.
The word Rhampholeon is taken from the Latinized Greek “rhamphos leon” meaning crawling lion.