With the veiled cham I have now I have realized that they have a number of different defense strategies.
The last one I have never seen before with my other two chams.
All these things happen when I try to take him out.
1: Hiding. Behind leaves or branches etc.
2: Freezing. Standing absolutely still is effective against predators that are good at detecting movement. But not against me.
3: Puffing up/displaying the side of the body. A prey that's bigger than expected can scare off an attacker.
4: Hissing. Warning to another chameleon or an attacker that you are not to play with.
5: Biting/snapping. I have been bitten a couple of times, it's more of a surprise than pain.
6: Running/jumping. Not jumping like a kangaroo, but he really tries to leave the bransch he is sitting on.
7: Trying to be as small as possible. This is the newest trick I have seen.
When I hold him in my hands he tries to be as thin as possible,
and he is almost black, trying to show me only his back.
His eyes is nailed upon mine, and if I try to see him from another angle, he instantly leans in that direction,
showing only his back. After a while, if I don't stare at him, he will try to escape.
He is a little bit calmer now than he was a couple of weeks ago, but he's not even near to being called tame.
I guess that's a good thing.
The last one I have never seen before with my other two chams.
All these things happen when I try to take him out.
1: Hiding. Behind leaves or branches etc.
2: Freezing. Standing absolutely still is effective against predators that are good at detecting movement. But not against me.
3: Puffing up/displaying the side of the body. A prey that's bigger than expected can scare off an attacker.
4: Hissing. Warning to another chameleon or an attacker that you are not to play with.
5: Biting/snapping. I have been bitten a couple of times, it's more of a surprise than pain.
6: Running/jumping. Not jumping like a kangaroo, but he really tries to leave the bransch he is sitting on.
7: Trying to be as small as possible. This is the newest trick I have seen.
When I hold him in my hands he tries to be as thin as possible,
and he is almost black, trying to show me only his back.
His eyes is nailed upon mine, and if I try to see him from another angle, he instantly leans in that direction,
showing only his back. After a while, if I don't stare at him, he will try to escape.
He is a little bit calmer now than he was a couple of weeks ago, but he's not even near to being called tame.
I guess that's a good thing.
