One of the most incredible experiences for a chameleon enthusiast is to trek to Madagascar and see chameleons in the wild. I just returned from exactly that experience!
My purpose was more than just to see how many species of chameleons I could rack up. I was going to feel the conditions and have my hands dig through the soil. There is nothing that can replace doing this in the land of chameleons.
Some significant observations:
1) I noted that the smaller Calumma (C. fallax, C. Tiajmontoi) where at low to high levels of the forest. Perhaps we shouldn't be so quick to keep smaller chameleons in smaller cages?
2) The rainy season does not mean rain all the time. Much of the day was clear and sunny. The rainy part meant that at any time a rain shower could swoop in for 15 minutes, 30 minutes, or whatever - and then disappear. If the rain came in we would just take cover and wait it out. And then we would get back out looking for chameleons.
3) If you are working with any forest chameleons then definitely pay attention to the naturalistic hydration methods that focus on the natural humidity levels (very high at night). There is a strange resistance to this in the community, but this is one of those things that will be the norm in the years to come. High humidity nights are something that takes us significantly closer to their natural condition.
4) Chameleons sleep at the ends of branches to be inaccessible to predators, but I haven't yet seen one leap off when disturbed. So, this is something I will have to remove from the things I say. Sigh...it is so inconvenient to challenge what you think you know. This personal growth thing can be quite annoying at times.
5) I observed a female panther chameleon digging a hole to lay eggs and then when she turned around to lay the eggs was disturbed by the presence of camera toting, tailess lemurs and abandoned the hole. two and a half hours later I checked back on her and found that she had returned to the hole she dug and was in the final stages of filling it back up. So, this is an observation of a female panther chameleon, in the wild, returning to her hole.
6) A panther chameleon egg laying hole in the wild was 3 inches deep.
7) I observed hatchling panther chameleons with sand still stuck to them and can confirm they do not bunch up or hang out in the same places as they do in captivity with fewer options.
Those are some of the major take-aways from this trip. The last one I would like to share is that it isn't as hard as it may seem. With the right guide it gets down right easy. So, if you are interested in going to Madagascar, go ahead and make it happen!
Below is an embedded player for the podcast episode where I talk about the things I learned in Madagascar in greater detail. I invite you to listen in here!
Podcast Episode Player and Show Notes
And, if you would like to join in the livestream where I talked about much of this (and whatever tangents came along) then you can view it here on the live stream.
Madagascar Live Stream
Thanks for joining me here! Currently the release schedule for content is every other Friday is a podcast episode and every other Friday is a Chameleon Hour video episode on Youtube. Every Saturday sees a live session on Youtube at 12 noon PST where we can talk about the podcast episode or video show from the day before. Additionally, I go live on the Chameleon_Academy Instagram account every Tuesday at 5PM PST. And, finally, you'll get a blog post here to summarized the week's activities. See you next time!
Bill Strand
My purpose was more than just to see how many species of chameleons I could rack up. I was going to feel the conditions and have my hands dig through the soil. There is nothing that can replace doing this in the land of chameleons.
Some significant observations:
1) I noted that the smaller Calumma (C. fallax, C. Tiajmontoi) where at low to high levels of the forest. Perhaps we shouldn't be so quick to keep smaller chameleons in smaller cages?
2) The rainy season does not mean rain all the time. Much of the day was clear and sunny. The rainy part meant that at any time a rain shower could swoop in for 15 minutes, 30 minutes, or whatever - and then disappear. If the rain came in we would just take cover and wait it out. And then we would get back out looking for chameleons.
3) If you are working with any forest chameleons then definitely pay attention to the naturalistic hydration methods that focus on the natural humidity levels (very high at night). There is a strange resistance to this in the community, but this is one of those things that will be the norm in the years to come. High humidity nights are something that takes us significantly closer to their natural condition.
4) Chameleons sleep at the ends of branches to be inaccessible to predators, but I haven't yet seen one leap off when disturbed. So, this is something I will have to remove from the things I say. Sigh...it is so inconvenient to challenge what you think you know. This personal growth thing can be quite annoying at times.
5) I observed a female panther chameleon digging a hole to lay eggs and then when she turned around to lay the eggs was disturbed by the presence of camera toting, tailess lemurs and abandoned the hole. two and a half hours later I checked back on her and found that she had returned to the hole she dug and was in the final stages of filling it back up. So, this is an observation of a female panther chameleon, in the wild, returning to her hole.
6) A panther chameleon egg laying hole in the wild was 3 inches deep.
7) I observed hatchling panther chameleons with sand still stuck to them and can confirm they do not bunch up or hang out in the same places as they do in captivity with fewer options.
Those are some of the major take-aways from this trip. The last one I would like to share is that it isn't as hard as it may seem. With the right guide it gets down right easy. So, if you are interested in going to Madagascar, go ahead and make it happen!
Below is an embedded player for the podcast episode where I talk about the things I learned in Madagascar in greater detail. I invite you to listen in here!
Podcast Episode Player and Show Notes
And, if you would like to join in the livestream where I talked about much of this (and whatever tangents came along) then you can view it here on the live stream.
Madagascar Live Stream
Thanks for joining me here! Currently the release schedule for content is every other Friday is a podcast episode and every other Friday is a Chameleon Hour video episode on Youtube. Every Saturday sees a live session on Youtube at 12 noon PST where we can talk about the podcast episode or video show from the day before. Additionally, I go live on the Chameleon_Academy Instagram account every Tuesday at 5PM PST. And, finally, you'll get a blog post here to summarized the week's activities. See you next time!
Bill Strand
