Since yesterday’s topic was a little more serious, and should have been since White Nose Syndrome is a serious topic, I figured we could all use a light-hearted post today. Normally, I would go find a cute or funny monkey to write about since everybody likes monkey’s. But, I wanted to be different today so I went to the deserts of Namibia to find the Namaqua Chameleon. Come on, look at the pictures of this Chameleon and tell me that they are not the perfect animal for a nice, light-hearted post?
Perhaps I don’t know as much about Chameleons as I thought I did because I am pretty sure they like to hang out in trees. If I am right about this then where in the world are they going to find a tree in the middle of a desert? For the record, the answer to this rhetorical question is they won’t find any trees. This is only one of several differences we will discuss about the Namaqua Chameleon.
As a result of living in a completely different habitat than other Chameleons the Namaqua has evolved a few different adaptations. For starters these guys are actually able to spread their toes apart. I know this may not seem like a big deal to us but most other Chameleons have their five toes fused into a set of three and set of two. Naturally, this helps our forested friends grip branches and do other things that tree dwelling animals like to do (such as throwing fruit at the people down below……..OK, so maybe I am thinking about monkey’s again). Obviously a Chameleon that lives in the desert doesn’t need to worry about gripping branches. As a result, their toes can spread apart which gives them the ability to run along the flat open ground.
This leads us into the next adaptation. Generally, we think of Chameleon’s of being a slow, care-free animal species. Not the case with the Namaqua….well, they may be care-free, I am not sure as I have never met one. This desert Chameleon needs to be able to run at high speeds to catch their fast moving prey (usually beetles). Let’s face it, food is scarce in the desert so you don’t want to miss out on dinner because you are too slow and lazy.
One last thing before we end today’s fact. The most famous trait about the Chameleon is their ability to change colour. Well, the Namaqua Chameleon is able to complete this formidable task as well. They don’t just using their colour changing super powers for threat displays, courtship and camouflage like their boring, tree dwelling cousins. Nope, they use this amazing gift to help regulate their temperature. They have the ability to turn a darker colour to absorb the sun and heat up or turn a lighter colour to reflect those powerful rays and cool down. This has to give them an advantage over the other animals in the desert.
So this post seemed to turn into another longer post. I guess I am just in a talkative (writeative?) mood this week. I hope you enjoyed our trip to the Namib Desert. Time to get the sand out of your shorts and relax for the rest of the day. See you tomorrow!
