Chameleons I have kept and chameleons I have seen in the wild

This Jackson's Chameleon was the second chameleon I
kept ca 1960

I was writing something on chameleons for another purpose when I wondered how many species I had kept and how many I had seen in the wild. That thought sent me into old records and trip reports. The first chameleon I kept was the small Two-lined Chameleon, now known as Trioceros bitaeniatus, from East Africa. In the 1950s it was stated that the ‘dwarf’ species lived longer than the larger ones. Quite by chance the way I kept it turned out to be in many ways ideal. Over two winters it lived on a wrought-iron framed mirror in the sitting room, eating flies from hatched fishing-bait maggots and mealworms held in forceps. In summer it was in a vivarium but on some days it was parked in an apple tree, with a piece of meat or fruit hanging by a thread to attract insects. At all times, the temperature fell at night—no central heating then. Later I had a single Jackson’s Chameleon (Trioceros jacksoni) and large number of Von Höhnel’s Chameleon, better known these days as the Helmeted or High-casqued Chameleon, Trioceros hoehnelii.

Natal Midland Dward Chameleon (Bradypodion thamnobates)
The late Bob Davies had a friend (whose name I cannot remember) who
started a colony of these chameleons in UK in the late 1980s.
I had some of the offspring which in turn bred.

Natal Midland Dwarf Chameleon - young
These chameleons bear live young

Natal Midland Dwarf Chameleon - a few days old

For decades attempts at keeping most species of chameleon in captivity for any length of time seemed doomed to failure. Indeed, they were one of the few groups of animals in which longevity was shorter in captivity than in the wild. However, that was only partly true since some species, for their size, do not live that long, some have very short lives, whereas others, the Veiled or Yemen Chameleon (C. calyptratus), for example, which proved to be easy to keep and breed will live for up to 5 (females) to 8 (males) years.

As with many reptiles, once captive-breeding was achieved with many species, subsequent breeding proved easier. The stress of capture, storage and transport was one reason for the lack of success. Better environmental conditions and nutrition also played a large part. I was astounded when I took some faecal samples from wild-caught chameleons in the 1980s. The parasite load was staggering: worms, protozoans and coccidial spores abounded. I could have sold seats by the microscope to those wanting to see a parasite zoo. It is not surprising that chameleons in general proved ‘difficult’ animals.

During the 1980s there was concern that since many species of chameleon survived so poorly in captivity that there would not exist reliable methods of ex-situ conservation should that prove necessary for some Madagascan species where habitat loss has been so dramatic. So many species have now been kept and bred successfully over a number of generations that such a concern has not been realised.

Carpet Chameleon (Furcifer lateralis)
This Madagascan species (sitting on the hand of the late Bob Davies)
is an egg-laying species. We both tried to breed this species but the
eggs were infertile. ca 1991

Flap-necked Chameleon (C. dilepis) ca 1991

Oustalet's Chameleon (Furcifer oustaleti)
Madagascar 2003

As much as I did learn about chameleons (and here I echo a former colleague who argued that if we learn how to keep and breed and animal in captivity then we know an awful lot—not everything but an awful lot—about how that animal works) there is nothing like seeing and observing animals in the wild. From Kenya in 1991, Madagascar (three weeks in 2003 and two days in 2006) and the Republic of Congo in 2014 we saw and watched chameleons in the wild. The fauna of Madagascar is of course amazing and for chameleon aficionado, who can see easily the radiation that has occurred there ranging from the tiny Brookesia to the huge Oustalet’s, one of the great wonders of the natural world.

Spectral Pygmy Chameleon (Rampholeon spectrum)
Republic of Congo 2014

And here are the lists I compiled, firstly of the ones I kept between 1959 and 1994:

Common Name	Scientific Name
Helmeted Chameleon	Trioceros hoehnelii
Two‑lined Chameleon	Trioceros bitaeniatus
Elliot's Chameleon	Trioceros ellioti
Jackson's Chameleon	Trioceros jacksoni
Johnston's Chameleon	Trioceros johnstoni
Flap-necked Chameleon	Chamaeleo dilepis
Senegal Chameleon	Chamaeleo senegalensis
Carpet Chameleon	Furcifer lateralis
Natal Midlands Dwarf Chameleon	Bradypodion thamnobates

...and secondly, chameleons I have seen in the wild from 1991 onwards:

Common Name	Scientific Name	Country
Stump-tailed Chameleon	Brookesia superciliaris	Madagascar
Spectral Pygmy Chameleon	Rampholeon spectrum	Republic of Congo
Short-horned Chameleon	Calumma brevicorne	Madagascar
Parson's Chameleon	Calumma parsoni	Madagascar
Nose-Horned Chameleon	Calumma nasutum	Madagascar
Malthe Chameleon	Calumma malthe	Madagascar
Oustalet's Chameleon	Furcifer oustaleti	Madagascar
Rhinoceros Chameleon	Furcifer rhinoceratus	Madagascar
Spiny Chameleon	Furcifer verrucosus	Madagascar
Jewel or Carpet Chameleon	Furcifer lateralis	Madagascar
Wills's or Canopy Chameleon	Furcifer willsii	Madagascar
Panther Chameleon	Furcifer pardalis	Madagascar
Helmeted Chameleon	Trioceros hoehnelii	Kenya
Flap-necked Chameleon	Chamaeleo dilepis	Kenya