Nosy Be Panther Chameleon

ORDER: Squamata

FAMILY: Chamaeleontidae

GENUS: Furcifer

SPECIES: pardalis

DESCRIPTION:

Males grow to a length of 12 to 17 inches and females from 7 to 9 inches. Panther chameleons range in color from green to blue to red depending on the region of Madagascar where they are found. The Nosy Be male is blue-green, emerald green, turquoise with patches of red or yellow on the head and chest. Lips are bright yellow or white. A continuous white stripe runs the length of the body. Dark vertical bars may appear on the lateral surface of the body and tail when the animal is stressed. Females are dull in color, i.e. gray or brown. When they are receptive to breeding, they lighten or brighten in color, and when non-receptive or gravid, they become dark brown to black with contrasting color bars.

GEOGRAPHICAL RANGE AND HABITAT:

Trees of the tropical rainforests of the island of Nosy Be off the island of Madagascar.

DIET:

Roaches, crickets, worms, grasshoppers, flies and other small prey. Water is acquired by licking dew from leaves.

LIFE CYCLE/SOCIAL STRUCTURE:

Arboreal and diurnal. In general, chameleons stay strictly within a certain region and hold territories which they defend against animals of both their own and other species. Males often react violently to each other. They have fixed sleeping places, which they leave in the morning to sunbathe, then move to favorable posts where they wait for prey. Nosy Be Chameleons can breed all year. Females usually lay 2 to 3 clutches per year. As many as 30 or 40 parchment-shelled eggs are laid and buried in the ground or rotting vegetation. Eggs take 5 to 12 months (depending on temperature and moisture) to hatch since a 3-5 month diapause (dormant with no embryo development) is associated with this species. After hatching, the young begin to hunt insects and disperse over a wide area. They grow quickly and reach sexual maturity before the end of their first year. In captivity chameleons rarely live longer than 4-5 years.

SPECIAL ADAPTATIONS:

Chameleons have many distinct peculiarities. Each eye has a scaly lid in the form of a cone, with only a small round opening in the middle for the pupil. Eyes can move independently which gives a good range of view as well as the depth perception needed for aiming its extremely long tongue. The tongue has a thickened club-like tip that will grasp the prey by a combination of wet adhesion and muscular activity. An adaptation to arboreal life is the modification of the feet; toes are partially fused into two groups, two toes in one and three in the other, which can oppose one another. The tail also serves as a prehensile instrument; thus it cannot be shed and replaced like those of many other lizards.

INTERPRETIVE INFORMATION::

Color changes in chameleons may depend on mood, changes of light, temperature, health, etc., and not just the background.

OUR ANIMALS:

1 Male.

STATUS IN THE WILD:

Not listed as endangered, but probably suffering habitat loss.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

1. Cogger, Harold and Richard Zweifel. 1998. Encyclopedia of Reptiles and Amphibians. Academic Press, San Diego,CA. P.136-140.
2. Grzimek, Bernhard. 1984. Grzimek’s Animal Life Encyclopedia. Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. New York City, NY, p. 227-229.
3. Internet: CentralPets.com; AdCham.com