Are Panther Chameleons different species?

[Klyde O'Scope]

The dog breeder you mentioned would breed purebreds through 3 lines for intelligence, retrieving, etc

Can you give me a little more than that? You made the observation (paraphrasing) that mixed-breeds are healthier in general than "pure-bred"s, and I agree that that can be true, but isn't always. (I come to this after many beer-soaked evening discussions with veterinarians, who explained to me why mixed breeds can be unhealthy too. It's a Con-Sub even among vets) As with any pairings, it ultimately comes down to the genetic material of both parents, dominant vs. recessive genes, and a roll of the dice—and I don't even understand most of this stuff!

My point was that while dog breeding used to emphasize confirmation above all, in recent years and understanding of genetics, many breeders (the good ones) are realizing the errors & folly of the past, and working to improve their breeds (i.e the breed in general), and strive for health over confirmation and other traits.

Perhaps I got muddled in the heat of my post...

What kind of beneficial traits are you thinking about in chameleons? I think most would say that animals with genetic diseases (or predispositions) shouldn't be bred, and that goes for dogs and other domestic animals as well. I think the dog breeders' aim is to breed these diseases & propensities out so that they're no longer a concern (except for random mutation, which AFAIK cannot be predicted).

 

[saradoggy10]

I understand genetics can be difficult to understand. In a lot of cases different genetics but same species encourage health because there is a much lower chance of inbreeding.
And by "better traits" I mean not as easily stressed or possibly a little less fragile.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

The most complete locale list I have seen is 34.

https://www.madcham.de/en/category/...ten/lokalformen-von-furcifer-pardalis/page/4/

The 11, and maybe your 20, tend to come from Locales in the hobby. Ones that are exported and kept/bred, but there is alot that are in protected forests ect.

It took me a few days to check out this resource, but thank you; I like it better than the other one I found (pictures, for one thing). Good point about those actually available—I'm in the process of going through them now (may take me a while) and trying to decide on one to a few locale varieties I'd like to look for (it's a bit overwhelming )!

 

[cyberlocc]

It took me a few days to check out this resource, but thank you; I like it better than the other one I found (pictures, for one thing). Good point about those actually available—I'm in the process of going through them now (may take me a while) and trying to decide on one to a few locale varieties I'd like to look for (it's a bit overwhelming )!

Well Madcham is good about telling you right at the start what species are not avaible.

Once your on that species article.

Some of the species that should not be avaible are, this is either because they were poached and bred in captivity, or are being sold under the wrong locale (accidentally or otherwise) usually if you see an insane price tag on a species that isn't supposed to be had, its a good bet its either not what they say, or illegally obtained.