The word Brookesia is named after the British naturalist Joshua Brookes.
Furcifer labordi (Labord’s Chameleon) has the shortest lifespan of only 4-5 months. It also has the shortest lifespan of any tetrapod!
The chameleon tongue accelerates towards its target at over 1642m per second. Chameleons rarely miss their intended food item.
The word Calumma comes from the Latin word for covering. This genus consists of chameleons from Madagascar with occipital lobes.
The word Rhampholeon is taken from the Latinized Greek “rhamphos leon” meaning crawling lion.
The horns on a chameleon are made up of ringlike segments of inner bone covered by a hard keratin-like skin.
Chamaeleo namaquensis is found in the desert of Namibia. To cool off it will sometimes bury itself in the sand.
Kinyongia uthmoelleri and Trioceros quadricornis gracilor have red claws.
Furcifer oustaleti (Oustalet’s Chameleon) is the longest chameleon species reaching lengths of 27 inches (68cm).
Some chameleons play dead to avoid predation; this is called thanatosis.