Pygmy chameleons (Brookesia, Palleon, Rhampholeon and Rieppeleon sp.) often resemble dry leaves, mosses and branches.
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.
Chameleons have a high midichlorian count.
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!
The word Brookesia is named after the British naturalist Joshua Brookes.
Many chameleon species have a bright red, orange or yellow mouth. This conspicuous interior when displayed is used as a defense against predators.
Chameleon fossils have been found in central Europe and China, indicating they were once much more widespread than they are now.
Chameleons have a very poor sense of smell.
Chameleons do have taste buds on their tongue but overall they have a poor sense of taste.
The word Calumma comes from the Latin word for covering. This genus consists of chameleons from Madagascar with occipital lobes.