The horns on a chameleon are made up of ringlike segments of inner bone covered by a hard keratin-like skin.
Chamaeleo namaquensis is found in the desert of Namibia. To cool off it will sometimes bury itself in the sand.
Many chameleon species have a bright red, orange or yellow mouth. This conspicuous interior when displayed is used as a defense against predators.
Trioceros schubotzi can be found at elevations as high as 4500m.
There are currently 202 recognized chameleon species and 85 of them are found on the island of Madagascar.
Kinyongia uthmoelleri and Trioceros quadricornis gracilor have red claws.
The oldest known chameleon fossil is from the extinct species Chamaeleo caroliquarti. It was found in Europe and is 26 million years old.
Pygmy chameleons have bicuspid claws where each claw has two points like a crescent moon.
Furcifer oustaleti (Oustalet’s Chameleon) is the longest chameleon species reaching lengths of 27 inches (68cm).
The word Rhampholeon is taken from the Latinized Greek “rhamphos leon” meaning crawling lion.