Chameleon

Chameleons are reptiles that are famous for their ability to disguise themselves.

Name

Chameleon comes from a Latin and Greek word that means ‘ground lion.’

Habitat

Chameleons live in warm climates from rainforests to deserts. They are mostly found in Africa (including Madagascar), Southern Europe, and South Asia. They have also been taken to Hawaii, Florida, and California by humans, where they are invasive species.

Most chameleons like to live in trees and bushes, but some just live on the ground. Those that live on the ground hide in long grass or leaf piles.

Features

Chameleons vary in size from under 2cm long to 70cm long.

They have horns and spikes down their spine.

Chameleons have full 360-degree vision and can see ultraviolet light. Their eyes move individually, slightly bulge outward and can pivot.

Chameleons do not have an outer ear, but can still hear.

What they are most known for is their camouflage ability. They can do this by moving their two outer layers of skin, each with their own pigments. They can control this remarkably well so that they can hide from predators.

Food

Insects make up most of a chameleon’s diet. They use their long tongues, a little bit like frogs do, to catch prey that is up to two body lengths away.

Human Relations

Lots of chameleons are kept as pets as they are quite easy to look after. So much so that they have been taken across the world and introduced to places like Florida. America has so many chameleons in the wild that they don’t need to import any from their natural habitat anymore.

There are lots of different species of chameleon, and some are critically endangered due to habitat loss.