A look at chameleons

Many travellers exploring South Africa often come across chameleons. They are distributed almost everywhere and South Africa has no less than 25 species.

Chameleons occur in suburban Cape Town and Johannesburg, the Kruger National Park, the Drakensberg Mountains, the Knysna Forests and around Durban – all hotspots for tourists and eco-adventurers.

Chameleons are completely harmless despite many South African cultures having a great fear of them. They are famous for their swivelling eyes which can simultaneously look forward and backward. Their feet are adapted to grasp thin branches and they have a long elastic tongue which can shoot out to a fair distance to catch their prey of grasshoppers, flies, beetles and other insects. The Namaqua chameleon from the Northern Cape and Namibia even eats other reptiles, including snakes.

Leafy green
The flap-necked chameleon (Chamaeleodilepis) is probably South Africa’s most familiar species. It grows to 35cm and is largely arboreal, living in trees and shrubs. Unfortunately, they often come to ground and cross over busy roads where many are run over. This chameleon occurs in the eastern and northern parts of South Africa, ranging from the Eastern Cape, through KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and the Limpopo bushveld (as well as the Kruger National Park) and also in Gauteng and North West Province. Flap-necked chameleons lay between 25-50 eggs in late summer. The female digs a nest chamber in soil where she deposits her eggs. These eggs incubate underground for a few months, usually hatching with the onset of the first summer rains. Flap-necked chameleons are usually some shade of green, but can turn brown, spotted or almost black when threatened.

The desert dweller
The Namaqua chameleon (Chamaeleonamaquensis) is a large, prehistoric-looking reptile which is found in the arid desert regions of southern Africa, from the Karoo into the Northern Cape and Namibia. They are one of the few terrestrial chameleons which forage between sandy dunes and rocky outcrops feeding mostly on beetles, but also taking other insects as well as small reptiles. Blending into its desert environment, this Namaqua chameleon comes in various shades of sandy brown and has a row of raised bumpy ridges down its spine. Like the flap-necked chameleon above, Namaqua chameleon females also lay eggs.

The dwarfs

Transvaal Dwarf Chameleon

South Africa has a surprising diversity of dwarf chameleons (Bradypodion sp.). These chameleons are generally smaller than the flap-necked and Namaqua chameleons and females give birth to live young rather than lay eggs. The Cape dwarf chameleon is fairly common along watercourses in and around Cape Town while the attractive Knysna dwarf chameleon often climbs between shrubs and into trees scattered between the Knysnawaterfront. The KwaZulu dwarf chameleon is often seen in suburban gardens in and around Durban, but also prefers reedbeds around streams and dams. The Drakensberg mountains also have some beautiful dwarfs including the emerald dwarf chameleon and the Drakensberg dwarf chameleon. The emerald dwarf chameleon is an attractive emerald green and lemon yellow chameleon occurring in the southern Drakensberg. The Wolkberg dwarf chameleon is yet another dwarf found along the Mpumalanga and Limpopo escarpment.

KwaZulu Dwarf Chameleon

Many people are tempted to take a chameleon home when they find one, but they should be left where they are and appreciated in their natural environment. Chameleons are protected throughout South Africa, so it is also illegal to catch and remove them from the wild.

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