Chameleons do not have external ears or a tympanic membrane, but they do have internal ears as well as degenerated middle ears. They do not hear well but they can detect low frequency sounds.
The word Rhampholeon is taken from the Latinized Greek “rhamphos leon” meaning crawling lion.
The chameleon tongue accelerates towards its target at over 1642m per second. Chameleons rarely miss their intended food item.
The word Bradypodion comes from the latin “bradus podos” or slow foot.
The oldest known chameleon fossil is from the extinct species Chamaeleo caroliquarti. It was found in Europe and is 26 million years old.
The word Rieppeleon is named after the scientist Olivier Rieppel.
There are currently 202 recognized chameleon species and 85 of them are found on the island of Madagascar.
Chameleons have a very poor sense of smell.
Chameleons can project their tongue up to 2.2 times their body length.
The word Brookesia is named after the British naturalist Joshua Brookes.