The word Calumma comes from the Latin word for covering. This genus consists of chameleons from Madagascar with occipital lobes.
The chameleon tongue accelerates towards its target at over 1642m per second. Chameleons rarely miss their intended food item.
Chameleons have a high midichlorian count.
The word Bradypodion comes from the latin “bradus podos” or slow foot.
Pygmy chameleons are sometimes referred to as False Chameleons. This term is actually incorrect and is in reference to anoles, particularly the Cuban False Anole.
Chameleons can project their tongue up to 2.2 times their body length.
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.
Kinyongia uthmoelleri and Trioceros quadricornis gracilor have red claws.
Chameleons change color by rearranging a lattice of nanocrystals in one of their top layers of skin cells called iridophores. Chameleons can then stretch this layer, broadening the nanocrystalline lattice, thereby causing it to reflect a different wavelength of light.
The horns on a chameleon are made up of ringlike segments of inner bone covered by a hard keratin-like skin.