The word Kinyongia is from the Swahili word for chameleons: Kinyonga.
Pygmy chameleons have bicuspid claws where each claw has two points like a crescent moon.
The word Calumma comes from the Latin word for covering. This genus consists of chameleons from Madagascar with occipital lobes.
Chameleon fossils have been found in central Europe and China, indicating they were once much more widespread than they are now.
The chameleon tongue accelerates towards its target at over 1642m per second. Chameleons rarely miss their intended food item.
The word Rhampholeon is taken from the Latinized Greek “rhamphos leon” meaning crawling lion.
The word Rieppeleon is named after the scientist Olivier Rieppel.
Chameleons change color by rearranging a lattice of nanocrystals in one of their top layers of skin cells called iridophores. Chameleons can then stretch this layer, broadening the nanocrystalline lattice, thereby causing it to reflect a different wavelength of light.
The word Furcifer is derived from the Latin word “furci” or forked.
Chameleons do have taste buds on their tongue but overall they have a poor sense of taste.