Jackson’s chameleon need sub species identification!!

[laurynholly]

Hey cham fam! I went to a reptile show this past weekend and in the excitement of it all found myself under ownership of a young jacksons chameleon. Shortly after the excitement of my purchase I then realized I know nothing about this animal and started to panic. I was hoping some Jackson’s lovers could take a look at him and possibly identify his sub species. Not sure if they need to mature more to tell but I figured it couldn’t hurt to reach out to the community. Also any advice for their care is welcomed as I have no experience with Jackson’s and am just going off my research and watching a lot of chameleon academy thanks bill! Here are some photos of a little guy. He also needs a name!

 

[MissSkittles]

Beautiful guy! @JacksJill can help with his subspecies and any tips or tricks with care. I was going to guide you to Chameleon Academy, but you already found it. The species profile should go over quite a bit for you. https://chameleonacademy.com/the-jacksons-chameleon-trioceros-jacksonii/

 

[laurynholly]

Beautiful guy! @JacksJill can help with his subspecies and any tips or tricks with care. I was going to guide you to Chameleon Academy, but you already found it. The species profile should go over quite a bit for you. https://chameleonacademy.com/the-jacksons-chameleon-trioceros-jacksonii/

Thank you!

 

[BleuSaphir]

I wonder if he is just Trioceros jacksonii xantholophus?

 

[laurynholly]

I wonder if he is just Trioceros jacksonii xantholophus?

I know those are the most common in the pet trade so definitely what I’m wondering as well!

 

[kinyonga]

I assume you saw this…but just in case, I’ll post it…
https://chameleonacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/GuideToTheFormsofTJacksoniiA.pdf

Another site that might or might not help…
http://www.chameleonnews.com/10JulManchen.html

 

[JacksJill]

Well first off he is a she of the jacksonii jacksonii species.

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

I wonder if he is just Trioceros jacksonii xantholophus?

X2. I think that is a young male Trioceros jacksonii xantholophus.

Best Regards
Jeremy A. Rich

 

[JacksJill]

the spines are not spaced together close enough to be a Xanth.

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

the spines are not spaced together close enough to be a Xanth.

The Horns and Patterning are very Trioceros jacksonii xantholophus.

Young specimen possibly non/young developed spines.

Best Regards
Jeremy A. Rich

 

[elizaann2]

I don't know if you have a xanth or a jacksonii jacksonii, either way your baby is DARLING!!!! Some tips I have for Jacksons that I'd love to share with you:
- They are very passive communicators, many other chameleons will get big and gape at you if you are stressing them too much. Jackson's don't tend to do this, the stress for them is still there but they tend to just hunker down and wait for you to eat them. Pay very close attention to very subtle body language. For my boy, if I'm messing in his enclosure too much and he is getting stressed he will squint his eyes. When I see him do this, I back of. Because Jackson's are passive in their communication, people often think the Jackson's is ok with handling and hold them often, DON'T DO IT. I only handle my guy when I have to adjust something in his enclosure, when he is going to the vet, for a physical check and weight, or when I'm taking him outside for supervised outside time.
- Jackson's are a montane species and do not tolerate high temps well. I have govee sensors set up in my boys enclosure. I like these because they allow you to set up your phone for an alarm to go off if a temp goes above what you set it for. I have mine set to alert me if the top gets to 77 degrees F., then I know to start cooling down the enclosure immediately. I also have a dimmer purchased for his basking light, this helps me keep his basking temp at 80 degrees and no higher, I also have a govee sensor set up on his basking light to ensure the dimmer is not malfunctioning.
- In the summer time when temps get warmer I set up computer fans on the bottom of his enclosure to push in cooler air to keep his temps at an appropriate level
- Jackson's seem to enjoy higher UVB, I have my boy's enclosure set up so get can get a range of a UV reading from 7 all the way down to 0 and see him hang out in an area where he is getting 6 or 7 UV reading.
- Make sure you have a night temp drop of 65 degrees F or colder. IF you can get down to the 50s that is PERFECT! Most of us Jacksons' keepers have AC units we have purchased for the room our Jackson is in to help us achieve this. This is super super important, Jacksons cant get a good night sleep if the temps are too high and it will make them sick quickly and shorten their lifespan.

IF you have any questions let us know! I'm so excited for you!!!

 

[Action Jackson]

Well first off he is a she of the jacksonii jacksonii species.

I agree.

 

[laurynholly]

Well first off he is a she of the jacksonii jacksonii species.

Woah! Can you tell me more about how you can tell that’s it’s a female of this subspecies?

 

[JacksJill]

I see how the coloring could lead you to think xanth. To illustrate my point about the spines I have two images.

First is a xanth. Note the close spacing and the double or triple points on the spines. Sorry it's a little blurry.

Second is a jacksonii. Note the distance between spines and the single smoother spine.

Woah! Can you tell me more about how you can tell that’s it’s a female of this subspecies?

I'm saying female because jacksonii jacksonii females can have 1-3 horns that are in general more delicate than the males. The OP chameleon doesn't have a penal bulge near the underside of the tail base that I would expect to see in an animal with that much horn development.

On another note these females from uncertain origin are frequently pregnant.

 

[laurynholly]

I see how the coloring could lead you to think xanth. To illustrate my point about the spines I have two images.

First is a xanth. Note the close spacing and the double or triple points on the spines. Sorry it's a little blurry.
View attachment 362579

Second is a jacksonii. Note the distance between spines and the single smoother spine.
View attachment 362580



I'm saying female because jacksonii jacksonii females can have 1-3 horns that are in general more delicate than the males. The OP chameleon doesn't have a penal bulge near the underside of the tail base that I would expect to see in an animal with that much horn development.

On another note these females from uncertain origin are frequently pregnant.

Right. I’ve heard that often times people will end up with surprise babies. Thanks for clarifying how you identified her. Very interesting.

 

[laurynholly]

I don't know if you have a xanth or a jacksonii jacksonii, either way your baby is DARLING!!!! Some tips I have for Jacksons that I'd love to share with you:
- They are very passive communicators, many other chameleons will get big and gape at you if you are stressing them too much. Jackson's don't tend to do this, the stress for them is still there but they tend to just hunker down and wait for you to eat them. Pay very close attention to very subtle body language. For my boy, if I'm messing in his enclosure too much and he is getting stressed he will squint his eyes. When I see him do this, I back of. Because Jackson's are passive in their communication, people often think the Jackson's is ok with handling and hold them often, DON'T DO IT. I only handle my guy when I have to adjust something in his enclosure, when he is going to the vet, for a physical check and weight, or when I'm taking him outside for supervised outside time.
- Jackson's are a montane species and do not tolerate high temps well. I have govee sensors set up in my boys enclosure. I like these because they allow you to set up your phone for an alarm to go off if a temp goes above what you set it for. I have mine set to alert me if the top gets to 77 degrees F., then I know to start cooling down the enclosure immediately. I also have a dimmer purchased for his basking light, this helps me keep his basking temp at 80 degrees and no higher, I also have a govee sensor set up on his basking light to ensure the dimmer is not malfunctioning.
- In the summer time when temps get warmer I set up computer fans on the bottom of his enclosure to push in cooler air to keep his temps at an appropriate level
- Jackson's seem to enjoy higher UVB, I have my boy's enclosure set up so get can get a range of a UV reading from 7 all the way down to 0 and see him hang out in an area where he is getting 6 or 7 UV reading.
- Make sure you have a night temp drop of 65 degrees F or colder. IF you can get down to the 50s that is PERFECT! Most of us Jacksons' keepers have AC units we have purchased for the room our Jackson is in to help us achieve this. This is super super important, Jacksons cant get a good night sleep if the temps are too high and it will make them sick quickly and shorten their lifespan.
IF you have any questions let us know! I'm so excited for you!!!

Thank you so much! My veiled and panther i dont handle much i plan on treating this girl the same. Funny because i was at the expo saying i wanted a cuddly reptile and left with this guy knowing that there would in fact be no cuddling lol. i have a 6.0 high output linear uvb on his enclosure and a 75 watt arcadia floodlight for basking which keeps his basking temp a smidge below 80 degrees. my house is 68 degrees, maybe a little cooler in the winter in the basement where i have her. My concern is getting it cool enough especially in the summer. What dimmer do you use for your heat lamp? and the computer fans is a great idea maybe ill look into that for the summertime

 

[elizaann2]

I use this AC for lower night temps in the summer:

https://www.amazon.com/BLACK-DECKER...words=room+ac+unit&qid=1741119009&sr=8-3&th=1

This is the dimmer I use, just be sure to have some kind of other temp gage there too in case it malfunctions, its so cheap I don't fully trust it.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BGS517F...mp=&crid=31Y6LT08SWVC&amp=&sprefix=reptile+di

These are the computer fans I use:

https://www.amazon.com/AC-Infinity-...-2-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

I see how the coloring could lead you to think xanth. To illustrate my point about the spines I have two images.

First is a xanth. Note the close spacing and the double or triple points on the spines. Sorry it's a little blurry.
View attachment 362579

Second is a jacksonii. Note the distance between spines and the single smoother spine.
View attachment 362580



I'm saying female because jacksonii jacksonii females can have 1-3 horns that are in general more delicate than the males. The OP chameleon doesn't have a penal bulge near the underside of the tail base that I would expect to see in an animal with that much horn development.

On another note these females from uncertain origin are frequently pregnant.

Thanks for the comparison. The pictures you posted make the chameleon posted above spines look to be Trioceros jacksonii jacksonii "ish". However the colors and horns are saying Trioceros jacksonii xantholophus for the young chameleon. I think the spines are of a young chameleon and possibly have got to mature more. I have got a young male Trioceros jacksonii xantholophus in my reptile room.

Best Regards
Jeremy A. Rich

 

[Action Jackson]

I’m surprised there is a dispute about what species of Jackson’s this is. It seem quite obvious and the differences in Jackson’s has been talked about on this forum for many years.

Here are the things that stand out that help identify this Jackson’s as a female Jacksonii Jacksonii.

#1 The horns along the dorsal crest are distinctive j jacksonii in their shape.

#2 The nose horn on J jacksonii tend to be wider at the base. With females this seems to be more predominant and also this horn tends to be shorter than with males.

#3 Scalation. j jacksonii tend to have a more rough looking skin texture. You can clearly see, even on this juvenile how the scales on the forelimbs are larger and more separated.

#4 On this specimen you can clearly see to lack of a hemipenial buldge, indicating that it is a most likely a female.

It’s hard to use coloration at this young age but in my experience female j jacksonii have a similar color pattern as female xantholophus.

Excuse my lack of proper scientific descriptions
I do have a little experience with Jackson’s chameleons having kept them for 25 year and also kept all three type of Jackson’s.
I included a couple pictures of CBB J xantholophus for reference.

 

[laurynholly]

I’m surprised there is a dispute about what species of Jackson’s this is. It seem quite obvious and the differences in Jackson’s has been talked about on this forum for many years.

Here are the things that stand out that help identify this Jackson’s as a female Jacksonii Jacksonii.

#1 The horns along the dorsal crest are distinctive j jacksonii in their shape.

#2 The nose horn on J jacksonii tend to be wider at the base. With females this seems to be more predominant and also this horn tends to be shorter than with males.

#3 Scalation. j jacksonii tend to have a more rough looking skin texture. You can clearly see, even on this juvenile how the scales on the forelimbs are larger and more separated.

#4 On this specimen you can clearly see to lack of a hemipenial buldge, indicating that it is a most likely a female.

It’s hard to use coloration at this young age but in my experience female j jacksonii have a similar color pattern as female xantholophus.

Excuse my lack of proper scientific descriptions
I do have a little experience with Jackson’s chameleons having kept them for 25 year and also kept all three type of Jackson’s.
I included a couple pictures of CBB J xantholophus for reference.
View attachment 362598View attachment 362599View attachment 362600

Wow wow wow thank you so much for this confirmation! I’m actually really happy to know I have a female and so excited to see how this differs from owning males. anything I should know about their care please share! Thank you again!