The horns on a chameleon are made up of ringlike segments of inner bone covered by a hard keratin-like skin.
Chameleons have a very poor sense of smell.
The process of shedding is called ecdysis.
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.
Pygmy chameleons (Brookesia, Palleon, Rhampholeon and Rieppeleon sp.) often resemble dry leaves, mosses and branches.
Chameleon fossils have been found in central Europe and China, indicating they were once much more widespread than they are now.
Furcifer oustaleti (Oustalet’s Chameleon) is the longest chameleon species reaching lengths of 27 inches (68cm).
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 Furcifer is derived from the Latin word “furci” or forked.
Chameleons can project their tongue up to 2.2 times their body length.