The word Calumma comes from the Latin word for covering. This genus consists of chameleons from Madagascar with occipital lobes.
The horns on a chameleon are made up of ringlike segments of inner bone covered by a hard keratin-like skin.
Chameleons have laterally compressed bodies. This enables them to warm up quickly by presenting a larger surface area to the sun. It also helps some chameleon species blend in among the similarly shaped leaves in their environment.
The word Rieppeleon is named after the scientist Olivier Rieppel.
Trioceros goetzei (Goetze’s Chameleon) emits an audible, high pitched whistle when threatened.
The word Furcifer is derived from the Latin word “furci” or forked.
Pygmy chameleons are sometimes referred to as False Chameleons. This term is actually incorrect and is in reference to anoles, particularly the Cuban False Anole.
The smallest chameleon species is Brookesia micra with an adult length just over 1 inch (29mm). It hatches from an egg no bigger than a grain of rice!
Trioceros schubotzi can be found at elevations as high as 4500m.
Pygmy chameleons have bicuspid claws where each claw has two points like a crescent moon.