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Hooray-an Oustalets! I do not hear about too many people with them. Is he really 4 months old? Mine is over 6 months old and half that size!
 
Julirs,
Funny you should mention the size of your oustalet...
We got one 3 years ago (a bit lighter in color than the one in the pictures).
We had another vendor walk up to our booth at a trade show and practically throw one at us. He said he couldn't sell it - nobody wanted a brown chameleon. Well, we paid him and took it home.

After a few weeks it calmed down (I think it was mistreated), and became the pussycat of our cham room. The dang thing is so gentle it almost isn't a chameleon! It even drinks water from a cup - or an eyedropper -whatever I offer. It takes food so gently that it almost can't be felt. We were told it was female, but every pic of a female we have seen has a distinct green tone. Ours just stays a light rosy brown color.

It grew some, but not nearly as much as we expected. We have veileds and male panthers that are much larger than this oustalet! It did manage to gain in the waist area though - it's a plump little dumpling... :)

~Morgana
 
Morgana-thanks so much for sharing your story! My little Oustalet thinks he is sooo much bigger than he is, but he is quite calm and handleable. Mine is also Rosy brown, and when he gets stressed, he gets light with gray stripes, but that is not very often. Oustalets are know to be calm, and that is why I wanted him. He is a captive bred little guy, and when I first got my "Giant Madagascar Chameleon" I was shocked at his tiny size at nearly 2 months of age! Mine eats out of my hand every morning. He waits by the door for me. I will definitely get another one in the future, they simply have perfect chamelon personalities!
 
From what I understand from limited information and info from contacts, there seems to be two groups of oustalets with slight distinction. One a larger form and the other nominate. I asked Bill love about this and if I recall his answer correctly, the smaller oustalets from the northen part and the larger from the southern part of the island.

Perhaps it has to do with the competition- and long term evolution where the smaller ones whom evolved in proximity to their cousins, panther chameleons, as in the north half of the island they share habitats. Wheras in the south there are no panthers and other chameleon species may not present the same competition as panthers do...

Some thoughts...
 
Out of curiosity........... Ambanja (Blue Diamond) is that his name or a special color variation of Ambanja in Europe? Cos i have been seeing blue diamond Ambanja at Europe forum. Kinda Curious!!
 
Will Hayward said:
I asked Bill love about this and if I recall his answer correctly, the smaller oustalets from the northen part and the larger from the southern part of the island.
QUOTE]


Correct. Philippe and Bill did a trip together and there is a Vivarium article documenting it, showing the different localities of oustaleti. I don't remember which of them was the author of the piece, but I think it was Philippe. Interestingly there is a picture in the article of what Philippe speculated (pers comm) was a oustaleti x pardalis hybrid.

Also, you can try to look up pictures of oustaleti from the west coast around Morondava if you want to see some true giants. They are much more heavy bodied as well as longer in length. I remember seeing a huge male at STF that they had imported. Still the biggest/heaviest chameleon I've ever seen in person.
Click to expand...
 
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