574 



CHAMAELEONTES 



CHAP. XII 



It is impossible to say what is the colour of this Chameleon, 

 since the same specimen may within a few days appear in half-a- 

 dozen different garbs, not counting minor combinations of colour. 

 After it has been watched for several months, when all its 

 possibilities seem to be exhausted, it will probably surprise us 

 by a totally new combination. Not every specimen changes 

 alike : some keep the same appearance for a long time, others 

 change often ; some are partial to specks, others to large patches. 



Fig. 151. — Cliavutdeo7i vulgaris. x }. 



In the group of Chameleons shown in Fig. 152 several of 

 the more usual arrangements of colour have been indicated by 

 stippling and various kinds of cross-hatching. 



A represents the usual coloration at night. The whole 

 animal, which has just been stirred up from its sleep in the 

 dark, is cream-coloured, with irregular patches of yellow on the 

 head, the back, the sides of the body, the legs, and the tail. 



B has the usual coloration : grey-green, with innumerable small 

 darker specks, with two series of pale brown patches on the sides 

 of the body, and with one patch on the region of the ear. 



