How do chameleons survive during winter?

[joesteg]

I live in Alabama. We have a species of chameleons that, in the warm season, has a light green upper-body color. The lower-body color is probably white or a lighter green.

My question is: how does this species of chameleons survive the low temperatures of the winter months? I know that these chameleons live in ground foliage (in our case, the monkey grass that lines the borders of our flower beds).

 

[herpluv]

You have chameleons in Alabama, the state right?

 

[LunaC]

Alambama (and the other southern states) have anoles, not true Old World chameleons. They're everywhere where I live, including in my house at times! LOL

 

[cam198]

what your probably thinking of somthing else

 

[cam198]

if thats true then could you post a picture of it tha kind of sounds cool

 

[herpluv]

ahhh, anoles

Ok, you are talking about the little green lizards that run all over the siding of my house, the ones i used to catch when I was a wee little one. During the winter months, they are less active and actually can't get warm. They are, however, much more hardy than chameleons. Its amazing how they can survive in cold temps with no way to thermoregulate, instead they just go with the flow. Some turtles and even some tree frogs of the southern states can actually be frozen almost solid, and then come "back to life." They may be the key to cryotechnology of the future. Yep, you heard right, with some species of turtles, you can pop em in your freezer over the winter, and then take em out in the spring(but make sure you write the use by date on em ) Hope that helped to answer your question....and I thought I would never be able to use the info I learned in my Vertebrate Natural History course that I took at UT.

 

[LunaC]

Here's an anole...

 

[Tara]

Ohhhhh, so that is what that lizard thingy was!

At a big family get together at my house last summer, someone found this itty bitty lizard and gave it to my daughter. It was so tiny! Only about as long as my pinky finger. She was in LOVE, until it managed to get loose and run under the porch. Oh well. Funny though...when I was young I loved to catch every creature I could find...but I had never seen on of these before.
Are they plentiful everywhere or just in some places? If I were to look for them...where would I find them outside?
The most we see around here are HUGE snapping turtles, soft shell turtles, ducks....
I caught one of the snapping turtles once, just to take a good look at him. This was a SCARY fellow! He was determined not to get caught! Hissing and biting the end of a stick. This was my way of showing my daughter...why she shouldn't try to touch one...if she valued her fingers.
The soft shelled turtles CRACK ME UP!! LOL We live right beside this stream and a tiny short bridge. The stream is actually what separates our yard from the neighbors property. EVERY summer a few times every year...I will pull in the driveway and see something odd in the road. So I go for a closer look. The first time..I had no idea what it was...and it SCARED the crap out of me when this thing, that looked like a brown plate, jumped up and started running for it's life! LOL! Hey would nose dive off the bridge into the water (ouch!) How long do these things live? It has to be the same one...always in the same spot in the road. I can never decide if it just lost it's way again and again or if it is there on purpose. So I usually help it back to the water.
(I'm the mom that stops and gets the turtle in the road to bring home to my little one for a day before we release him into the yard)
Ok...a question...there is this very large bird that lives around the stream that runs down my road. It's VERY jumpy! I manganed to get a pic finally out my window...boy I need a zoom lens for my cam! I'm going to post some pics...What is this thing...a stork? I have lived here for 7 years and it's been here the whole time. Tara

 

[Heika]

It looks like a great blue heron to me.

Heika

 

[Chamomile T]

I agree! I think they are amazing birds to watch. Their wingspan can get up to 6 feet! Enjoy!

 

[Tara]

good to finally know

It's wingspan DOES look huge when it flies away. He sure does have great hearing too. Cars don't bother him, but I try to sneak out a door and get a closer look and he knows. Thanks for the help guys! T