Geographical Region

Native to the Island of Madagascar, as well as small parts of Uganda

Habitat

Rainforest regions where it spends its time hiding in the tree canopy hunting food

Colour

Ranging in colour, reds, oranges, blues and greens with terrific patterning of colouration depending on season, mood and time of day

Size

Males usually measure up to 17-inches in length, can grow up to 22-inches

Females rarely grow over 12-inches

Captive Environment

36 x 24 x 36-inches is required for an adult male. Plenty of branching and corkbark platforms to allow the chameleon to move around. Lots of plastic planting should be included to allow the chameleon to hide and act naturally. Daily misting of the environment is essential as they drink water droplets from the leaves, very rarely do they come down to the floor to drink. A relative humidity of between 65 – 85% is necessary.

Heating

Never hotter than 90°F basking temperatures with an overall ambient between 75 - 85°F. Night time temperatures should be allowed to drop by 10°F but no lower than 75°F. Best to heat with a light bulb or ceramic heater wired into a thermostat from outside the environment as this allows for photoperiod as well as basking heat. The chameleon has heat sensors on its back, so all heating should come from above otherwise the chameleon can badly injure itself.

Lighting

Ultraviolet light is essential for this species, as it is needed to help metabolise calcium from its diet. Without this the lizard will develop metabolic bone disease and will die. A compact Repti-Glo 5% bulb used in conjunction with a Repti-Glo sunglow reflector bulb (40 – 60w depending on environment size) will do this lizard perfectly.

Photoperiod

Autumn/winter – 12 hours light – 12 hours darkness

Spring/summer – 13 hours light – 11 hours darkness

Feeding

Mainly insectivorous eating a variety including crickets, locusts, mealworms, waxworms, cockroaches and waxmoths. Mustard or collard greens can also be fed. It is essential to use a good vitamin and mineral supplement such as Repton 2 – 3 times weekly.

Sexing

These lizards are sexually dimorphic, the male are generally bigger in overall size, they should also have a small swelling at the bas of the tail to indicate hemipenes.