I must be crazy...

[Tara]

They are beautiful Jenna!

They are soooo CUTE!

The wiedersheimi is adorable. There is just something about them I love!

The veiled sunburst is sooo tiny! Is he scared of you right now?
Are they all adjusting well?
Just curious..what is the difference between a veiled and a sunburst veiled?
Tara

 

[Prism Chameleons]

Thank you Chris for correctly identifying the male as a Ch. (T.) wiedersheimi perreti. Prior to receiving him, I had printed out your article on the Ch. (T.) wiedersheimi and read it thoroughly, but had not seen your article on the sub-species. I have printed that article out and will give it careful review. I have sent you an email and I will send you some photos of the females. They are an extremely beautiful species and I wish to have undeniable success with them and would appreciate any advice you have and may have experienced with them yourself as a caretaker.

I have had great success with my panther chameleons, and hope to become just as successful with these beauties.

They truly are gorgeous.

 

[Prism Chameleons]

Update on Chameleo (T.) wiedershiemi perreti

Thought you all would like to know that what I posted above as Chameleo (T.) wiedershiemi's are actually Chameleo (T.) wiedershiemi perreti, thanks to Chris Anderson.

After conversation and exchange of photos, it has been determined that I have 1.2 Chameleo (T.) wiedershiemi perreti and I will post photos of the females below as well. One is a non-gravid female and the other is gravid and laying eggs at this very moment as I post this.

Non-Gravid Female Chameleo T. weidershiemi perreti:

View of top of head, Non-Gravid Female Chameleo T. weidershiemi perreti:

Gravid Female Chameleo T. weidershiemi perreti:

As you can see she is so full of eggs you can see them from her sides:

According to Chris, you can tell the differences between a Chameleo T. weidershiemi and Chameleo T. weidershiemi by a less angled and more blunt parietal crest (front nose area). You can see from the gravid female below she has a rounder area in this region:

So, I am now an owner and a new mom of 1.2+ Chameleo T. weidersheimi perreti chameleons .

Thank you Chris for your help in identifying my new beauties .

Update of number of eggs will be posted soon!

 

[Chamgirl]

Jenna, I love your male Fischer chameleon. I also think those weidersheimi chameleons are very beautiful. I have never seen one of those in the flesh before and I don't know of anyone in England owning any. A bit special aren't they?
BTW if your Fischer is half as friendly as my one was then you will have a wonderful pet there

 

[Prism Chameleons]

Thank you Lisa . Yes, they are special. And all of my new treasures are very gentle and sweet. How is Ollie?

 

[Chris Anderson]

According to Chris, you can tell the differences between a Chameleo T. weidershiemi and Chameleo T. weidershiemi by a less angled and more blunt parietal crest (front nose area).

Sorry, sounds like I confused you a little. When I was talking about the blunt and less angled scales, I was refering to the spines on the gular crest actually. Ch. (T.) w. wiedersheimi tends to have sharper gular spines while Ch. (T.) w. perreti tends to have blunter gular spines (see photo below). When I referenced the parietal crest, I intended to express that the parietal crest in Ch. (T.) w. perreti is present more toward the front of the head while in Ch. (T.) w. wiedersheimi it tends to be further back on the casque and generally coming into contact with the rear of the casque's lateral crest (the crest along the outside of the casque). The In the bottom photo, you'll see a slightly enlarged row of scales on the center of the top of the casque-this is the parietal crest (or for more help locating it: http://i1.tinypic.com/v45eg1.jpg ).

Female Ch. (T.) w. perreti on left and female Ch. (T.) w. wiedersheimi on right-gular crest comparison:

Ch. (T.) w. perreti on left and Ch. (T.) w. wiedersheimi on right. Note that the parietal crest in Ch. (T.) w. wiedersheimi extends back until it reaches the lateral crest at the back of the casque where it does not in Ch. (T.) w. perreti:

For larger image with more detail: http://www.chameleonnews.com/images/wierderid/big/Casque.jpg

Anyway, now that I've succeeded in confusing everyone, let me know if there is anything I can do to make it less confusing...isn't systematics fun?!?!?!

Chris

 

[Chamgirl]

Thank you Lisa . Yes, they are special. And all of my new treasures are very gentle and sweet. How is Ollie?

Jenna, I like to think my Ollie is in the clear of those awful filarial worms now. A week ago he had worm number three removed and a larger dose of Ivermectin injected. So far so good, I have been checking him daily and no sign of any more worms as yet. It makes me very wary of rescuing another wild caught Panther I must admit. Ollie has cost me approx £300 in vet fees Worth it of course as he is a total sweet heart and very beautiful indeed. Thank you for asking...

 

[Prism Chameleons]

Yes, I can see where you are referring to in those pictures. This is actually a very good and educational experience for those interested in weidersheimi species.

I think I was trying to make it simple, too simple . And you are correct, the gular crest is the area I should have made reference to. By the time I'm done observing and caring for these beautiful chameleons, along with learning the scientific and physical anomalies of this species and sub-species, I should become very knowledgeable in the Chameleo T. weidersheimi chameleons .

This is all very fascinating to me really, and only increases my interest in learning more. This is all part of the fun of getting something new and watching new behaviors of various species (such as the Rhampholeon nchisiensis, I have found love to forage and dig in the soil - very fascinating to watch). As well as learning the variations of physical differences of chameleon sub-species that are so extraordinarily subtle in their physcial differences that one must look very closely to see the variation. I almost wish I had one that wasn't a perreti to be able to see by the eye the differientiation between the two. All in good time.

Panther chameleons are so much easier to identify! Look at barring and color and it's very evident with the eye. Whereas the Chameleo T. weidersheimi & perreti species are so very subtle, one must look extremely closely to notice the difference.

The female layed 2 eggs last night, and it became so late and she was so tired she went to the plant in her enclosure to get some rest and sleep for the night. She still isn't finished laying her eggs. I am hoping the rest through the night is enough to not have given her too much exhaustion in order to complete laying her clutch.

By the time I'm done I might have to change my Prism Chameleon name from "specializing in panther chameleons" to adding the weidersheimi species as well . In all seriousness though, I know there is still much to learn, as these little guys are not readily found or captive bred. I look forward to working with them, observing them, and trying my best to make them a successful captive bred species as well.

Did you say to me Chris in an email that the perreti sub-species were fairly rare compared to the Chameleo T. weidersheimi?

 

[Prism Chameleons]

By the way, I should buy you a drink or something Chris lol. You were right about the basking light.

For those interested in this species, I have observed that when they first wake up, they will move up to the basking area I made for them towards the back of the cage, with a basking light I placed about 12 inches or so away from the vine. They will bask to warm in the morning, then head down into the foliage for the rest of the day. I have their cage next to a window and when they see the sun start to set, they will return to the basking light, warm for about 20 minutes or so, and then head back down into the foliage again to get into their sleeping positions.

This appears to be an early morning, late evening behavior with them from what I have noticed so far (for those who have chameleons inside the home).

 

[Chris Anderson]

Did you say to me Chris in an email that the perreti sub-species were fairly rare compared to the Chameleo T. weidersheimi?

The Ch. (T.) w. perreti appear to be less commonly imported (at least to the US) then Ch. (T.) w. wiedersheimi but both tend to come in on most shipments. Not being in FL to look directly at the shipments, this is just based on what I'm seeing in the animals I (and a few others) have ordered, what I've seen at various shows and what i've seen at shops in CA when I'm there.

Glad I was able to help! As I said on the phone, with most of the species I've kept, I've found that keeping them fairly similarly and providing them with an effective gradient allows the animals to decide for themselves how they like to be kept and that sure makes things easier then trying to control it yourself.

Chris