C A M E L E O N. 



C81 



eyes, and the organs of respiration ttiemselves, are, 

 however, the only parts of the system in which there 

 can be much waste, for the action of all the other 

 parts is remarkably slow ; and indeed, as the cameleon, 

 from the mode in which it captures its prey, can be 

 more successful by lying in wait in those places where 

 insects pass on the wing, than in pursuit after them, 

 rapid motion of the limbs would be ol little use to it. 

 But though the cameleons catch insects with great 

 dexterity, those insects are generally of very small 

 dimensions, so that rmuiy of them are necessary to 

 make a full meal even for the " thin cameleon." 



Cameleons may be regarded as almost exclusively 

 tree aniaials, of very delicate nature, seldom on the 

 ground, and perfectly innocuous, excepting to those 

 small insects which they lime by means of the gluti- 

 nous matter on the tongue. They are animals of 

 warm climates only, and they are confined to the 

 eastern continent, but in the hotter parts of that they 

 arc very generally distributed, being found in Africa, 

 in India, and in the south of Spain. The structure 

 of the feet, which bears some resemblance to that of 

 zygodactylic bird-;, renders these animals but ill 

 qualified for moving on the ground. Indeed, they 

 are usually found on the branches of trees, with the 

 body in a state of perfect repose ; and they might 

 be considered as dead, were it not for the rapid 

 motion of the eye?, and the frequent darting out of 

 the tongue ; for, unless they are alarmed, or otherwise 

 excited, they do not inflate the body by full respira- 

 tions of air. In this state of repose, in which they 

 can exist a considerable time without food, cameleons 

 become a prey to the smaller species of the cat tribe ; 

 and in Spain, especially about the bay of Cadiz, where 

 they are very plentiful, they are sought after by 

 domestic eats with as much assiduity as small birds 

 are by the same animals in Britain. 



When they are at rest in the trees, their colour is 

 white, with a trace of yellow ; but when the skin is 

 distended, and rendered thin and transparent by the 

 inflation of the body, the colour of the blood, which 

 is violet blue, appears through the whitish yellow of 

 the skin, and gives the animal a green of various 

 shades and intensities, according to the degree of 

 excitement. The colour varies between white and 

 blue, but never becomes exactly the one or the 

 other ; but there are some of the variations that 

 appear almost black, and others in which it is 

 brownish. There is not much iridescence in the 

 colour of the cameleon, nor does it appear to change 

 with age. 



There are several species, of which, as they very 

 much resemble each other in their manners, and do not 

 differ much in other respects, very brief notices will 

 suffice. 



THE LITTLE CAMELEON (Chamaeleo pumilus), 

 Smaller than the common cameleon. The colour 

 light blue in a state of repose, but subject to variation 

 from the same causes as in the other ones. It is 

 found in southern Africa, Mauritius, and the adjacent 

 islands. The occiputal crest is flattened backwards ; 

 the flanks, the tail, and the membranes of the toes, 

 are thinly scattered with warty tubercles ; on the 

 throat there are numerous laminae, finely denticulated 

 in their margins, the number of which varies in 

 different individuals, and the back is furnished with 

 an acute slender crc.-st. 



THE COMMON CAMELEON (Chanueleo vu/gam). 

 Tiie general colour of this species, when in a tranquil 



state, is brownish grey, but the shade is said to vary 

 in different countries. It has a spiny crest on the 

 back and throat. The occiput rises in a four-sided 

 pyramid, and there are prominent tubercles under 

 the skin of the back. The scaly granulations on the 

 skin are of equal size, and very closely set. The 

 common cameleon rarely measures so much as two 

 feet in length, and half of that is occupied by the tail. 

 It is very plentiful in all the north of Africa, the 

 south of Spain, and many parts of Europe. Some 

 notion of its general form may be obtained from the 

 figure. 



THE SENEGAL CAMELEON (Cliam&lco Senegateiisis), 

 is, as the name implies, found in western Africa, 

 between the Senegal and Gambia. The general 

 colour in a state of repose is pale yellowish ash, 

 tinged with blackish toward the back ; the crest is 

 triangular ; there is an acute crest on the back, and u 

 serrated one on the belly. 



THE STRIPED CAMELEON (Chamcelco Zebra) is 

 rather larger than the common species, the crest on 

 the occiput is more produced, and there is an elevated 

 crest along the head ; the throat has a row of 

 tubercles along the middle ; and the scaly granula- 

 tions on the body are larger and more wide apart 

 from each other than in most of the other species. 

 The general colour, in a state of repose, is yellowish, 

 but marked with black bars on the back, which 

 descend toward the flanks, and are the occasion of 

 the trivial name. It is a native of India, more 

 especially of the lower and warmer parts of the valley 

 of the Ganges. 



THE SPOTTED CAMHLEON (Chamaeleo pardalu) is 

 found in the Isle of France. The crest on the back 

 of the head is flattened like that on the Senegal 

 species, but there is a small border on the muzzle 

 which projects beyond the opening of the mouth. 

 The granulations are large and wide apart from 

 each other, and the body is all over irregularly 

 marked with round black spots, having white margins. 



THE FORKED CAMELEON (Chameeleo bifurcus). This 

 species is a native of the Molucca islands. It has 

 the muzzle divided into two parts, which are com- 

 pressed laterally, and project equally. It is larger 

 than most of the other species ; the occiput is 

 without a crest, or has only a small one ; the granula- 

 tions are uniform all over the body ; the skin is 

 marked with closely set blue spots ; and on the 

 lower part of each flank there is a double row of 

 white ones. 



Some other species are mentioned, and, as is the 

 case with almost all the families of the Sauna, there 

 are many undescribed specimens in cabinets. As 

 the whole family are inhabitants of the woods, and as 

 the woods of most foreign countries have been very 



