Appearance
The Cape Dwarf Chameleon is known to grow over 15 centimeters in length, including the tail, with males and females reaching similar adult sizes. They are ovoviviparous, but examination in controlled captivity has shown that there is a very soft egg-like membrane around the young which is discarded immediately on birth. The young resemble miniature versions of the adults with muted colours, and typically reach no more than 2cm in length at birth. Adults can vary quite significantly in colour variety, saturation and pattern, some appearing much more vibrant than others. The tail is prehensile, and the feet are well evolved to grasping twigs, with minute claws on the end which improve their grip.Normally very slow moving, chameleons have a characteristic shake which may let them look more like leaves to prey and predators. When provoked, they can speed up to several centimetres a second. When further provoked, they will inflate themselves, hiss, change colour dramatically and bite. They do not have sharp teeth, so their bite rarely inflicts more than a slight pinch.
Status
The Cape Dwarf Chameleon is not an CITES-protected endangered species. however,living as they do in the area now dominated by the city of Cape Town, their natural habitat is being largely covered by urban expansion.
This chameleon readily adapts to living in town gardens, so the urbanisation itself is not necessarily a threat. However, the use of hedge trimmers and the introduction of domestic cats have seen the species vanishing from large areas of Cape Town.
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