Intelligence in chameleons?

dectr6

New Member
Has anyone ever done any studies on the intellience in chameleons? I've had several reptiles before I started keeping chams and I've never had the attachment to those that I've had with my chameleons. They seem to have a real personality that is lacking in the other reptile's. They seem to really watch with curiosity what I'm doing, have very distinct likes and dislikes and have attitudes that change almost daily. Can't really put my finger on it.Do ya'll (I'm from the south remember) know what I'm talking about? Just a thought. What's your opinion? David
 
Well the triangulation required for shooting things with their tongue
would generally require some brain power than something that runs around
and laps stuff up.

They seem to be more "thinkers" planning things out before moving
but that could also be due in part to how they piece together their
environment from visual snapshots.
and Yes they all do have personalities, moods and the ability to "plan".
 
id say yes because my male veiled runs to the me when he sees a silkworm or hornworm. kind of all goofy across the leaves and vines not even looking where he is going. as far as crickets he picks them off here and there.
 
My cham still hasn't figured out that im there to feed him, not murder him. Even after watching me throw food in his cage every morning.
 
I said mine was interested in what I was doing, not that he liked me. He still hates my guts with ever fiber of his being! I still think they are smarter than other reps. David
 
I agree with Royden!

I have worked either personally (with my own collection) and/or professionally (in animal hospitals, rescues and zoos etc.) with reptiles for abewt 20 years now. Looking back and comparing what I done or learned, I've devoted the most attention or study to the chameleons. They've held the most fascination for me. They are the coolest things ever. That said, in my experience, chameleons are dumb as a bag of hammers compared to the crocodilians, most varanids and some snakes.
 
they are smart in certain ways..
took me just 2 weeks teaching him to go to the top of his feeding cup, instead of keep shooting at its side (i use semi opaque cup).
Because i can't put the feeder cup on the bottom (the misting system will drown my crix).
Opaque cup does not interest him at all.

now, he's accustomed to go over the top of the cup to eat.
hey, at least he learn something..
some animal wouldn't even bother :D
 
I've kept reptiles for over 30 years. Intelligence in reptiles can't be determined by how socialized they are or become. Some are easily socialized. Some aren't.

Chameleons are specialized at concealment...everything about them is concealment. The eye turets are so they don't have to move to see and break that concealment. The long tongue is for hunting from a concealed vantage point. It may be the reason it is difficult for us to see problem solving and learned results.

One thing all reptiles exhibit is the ability to figure out you are the food provider with time...and demonstrations of how they make that known can be a sign of levels of intelligence.

I've seen my chameleon sit and wait for a cricket to come back out of a hiding place to strike. I'm not sure if it has the ability to assume the insect's behavior pattern. I've also seen him configure his position for difficult tongue shots at various angles while in concealment. There are distances, rates of prey movement and direction of travel to figure out in order to make the shot.
Are these calculations in the chameleons brain or instinct? Are there sounds, vibrations or other senses at work we can't see?

All things to consider.
 
I've kept reptiles for over 30 years. Intelligence in reptiles can't be determined by how socialized they are or become. Some are easily socialized. Some aren't.

Chameleons are specialized at concealment...everything about them is concealment. The eye turets are so they don't have to move to see and break that concealment. The long tongue is for hunting from a concealed vantage point. It may be the reason it is difficult for us to see problem solving and learned results.

One thing all reptiles exhibit is the ability to figure out you are the food provider with time...and demonstrations of how they make that known can be a sign of levels of intelligence.

I've seen my chameleon sit and wait for a cricket to come back out of a hiding place to strike. I'm not sure if it has the ability to assume the insect's behavior pattern. I've also seen him configure his position for difficult tongue shots at various angles while in concealment. There are distances, rates of prey movement and direction of travel to figure out in order to make the shot.
Are these calculations in the chameleons brain or instinct? Are there sounds, vibrations or other senses at work we can't see?

All things to consider.

A few days ago, I saw one of my female panthers pull off a piece of strategy that would make any West Point Cadet proud. From the middle of her cage, if she were to try to pick a cricket off the wall, she might, or might not be able to reach it. The other day she was sitting at the base of a stalk that sits almost dead center in her cage. All of the sudden, a cricket started racing up the side of the cage. She stuck out her tongue like she was going to try to pick it off, but realized it was too far away since the its superior elevation increased her shot distance. Basically, her shot became the hypotenuse of a right triangle, and due to the differences in elevation, it was out of range. So she "ran" up the stalk to get ahead of the cricket, then waited for the cricket to get to the same elevation, horizontal with her, and pegged it. Its the longest shot I've ever seen her make, and if I were a betting man, I'd have bet she couldn't hit it. Only by ensuring that they were at the same elevation was there any chance of her getting it. My wife and I were kind of stunned to see that.

Steve
 
I have 2 jacksons outdoors. When the wind blows, and it blows alot, they both angle their bodies sideways and with the direction of the wind. Seems like they do it to get the least wind resistance.
 
My veilds do some pretty remarkable things too!! However sometimes they do some very stupid things. I figure that they must be somewhat intelligent if their little brains can sort out what they're seeing in two DIFFERENT directions. I have a hard enough time with both eyes in one direction!! LOL

Dyesub Dave. :D
 
my vieled would time his 'jailbreaks' perfectly. he will sit at the far end when i open his cage for cleaning, wait until i turn my back and walk away to make a run for the door. half the time i come back in and find him on top of his cage w/ that 'HAHA i'm bigger than you!' look to him. :)
 
A few days ago, I saw one of my female panthers pull off a piece of strategy that would make any West Point Cadet proud. From the middle of her cage, if she were to try to pick a cricket off the wall, she might, or might not be able to reach it. The other day she was sitting at the base of a stalk that sits almost dead center in her cage. All of the sudden, a cricket started racing up the side of the cage. She stuck out her tongue like she was going to try to pick it off, but realized it was too far away since the its superior elevation increased her shot distance. Basically, her shot became the hypotenuse of a right triangle, and due to the differences in elevation, it was out of range. So she "ran" up the stalk to get ahead of the cricket, then waited for the cricket to get to the same elevation, horizontal with her, and pegged it. Its the longest shot I've ever seen her make, and if I were a betting man, I'd have bet she couldn't hit it. Only by ensuring that they were at the same elevation was there any chance of her getting it. My wife and I were kind of stunned to see that.

Steve



There are so many forces at work in a shot like that. Tongue length...does she know how long it is and can judge distance from her mouth to the prey item...? Direction of travel, horizontal and vertical angles vs. distance, rate of speed, height and airspace....in the wild, the branch they are perched on may be moving due to their body weight or the wind...so you have many mathmatical problems there. All the while...they have 360 degree vision in two seperate dimensions and with a split second, can focus on one thing ...an instant trig problem figured out and solved.

How long did it take humans to learn the art of the sniper? Curvature of the earth, wind speed, temps, humitity, distance, bullet speed, angle of deflection.

We had the luxury of trial and error....chameleons don't.

I don't think chameleons are "as dumb as a bag of hammers compared to croc/gaters". Two totally different species...different environments, different prey, etc. It's on a smaller scale, but a larger dimension base and more variables.
 
mines dumb as a rock. he was walking on the ground one day and just fell over to his side. haha.

then occasionally he shoots his toungue out at nothing.
 
I don't mean to get all scientific on y'all, but I see a common misconception that if an animal can accomplish something a human cannot, it elevates it's intelligence. That's scientifically not true, although it's fascinating.

I don't intend to get into any kind of philisophical debate here, but it's the amazing feats that these chameleons perform that really nudge me towards intelligent design. These chams are literally built for two things, and two things only - eating insects with lightening reflexes - and hiding from enemies.

Beyond that - literally a bag a hammers for brains. The tension we feel in our observation as keepers is in seeing them peg off a cricket from across the cage with muscle physics that defy logic and calculations that would require high math skills, and then in the next instant the chameleon is walking around on top of the cage pushing his nose down against the screen, as if trying to remember how it was he climbed out in the first place.

I don't think it's any kind of disrespect to say they're not intelligent, it's just observation.
 
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as far as intelligence in hunting insects, i think chameleon has 'adapted' to such as a frail creature. Just as a baby impala immediately learns how to walk within an hour of his birth.

But, it really does not mean that chameleon is not without some intelligence.
Obvious one is the fact that they display a cognitive behavior.
the fact that they learn to know that you are their food supplier and the fact that every certain time, they will perch on the same spot for whatever reason.

any creatures that can do this proves that they are somewhat intelligent.

dumb as a hammer is a bit harsh :D
I say a snail is dumb as a hammer.

But to call a chameleon 'smart'.. i am not really sure that i can say so..

Define how much intelligence you need to see to label an animal as 'smart'...
In my opinion, a 'smart' animal is able to use tools to solve a problem.
certain birds and monkeys are the one that fall within this category (human too if you want to include us as part of animal kingdom).
 
I don't know if chameleons would rate very high on the intelligence scale. They are definitely very good at what they do, but that is not the same.
To use the example of their hunting method; the fact that they can acurately shoot a prey item from almost the moment they're hatched / born indicates that this is pure instinct. They don't have to learn it, they just know instinctively what to do. They don't think about the mathematical problems behind it. (I have noticed however that when they miss, they will usually make their second attempt from a shorter distance.)
And they are not the only ones in the animal kingdom that can do this; archerfish shoot drops of water to knock bugs off leaves and branches, squid and cuttlefish catch their prey by shooting out 2 long tentacles.

And just because it's not intelligence doesn't make it any less spectacular :D.

Things that are usually used to determine intelligence in animals are:
- problem solving skills
- memory / recognition of previously solved problems or learned behaviors
- play
- use of tools

Play is an interesting one, I think. The theory is that only animals with advanced cognitive abilities will do things out of pure enjoyment/ entertainment; things that don't have a direct connection with any of their basic needs. For instance; octopusses in captivity are known pick up floating objects and take them over to the bubbler to release them into the bubble stream and watch them float away. They will do this over and over for no apparent reason and without any known benefit.

So far I haven't tried to set up any experiments with my chameleons to tests their cognitive abilities. I have plenty of ideas though.

Suzanne
 
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