Antsingy Leaf Chameleon - Exotic Reserve Peyrieras, Madagascar
26 July 2008 - Madagascar Exotic Reserve Peyrieras, Madagascar
Antsingy Leaf Chameleon / Antsingy-kortstaartkameleon (Brookesia perarmata).
(captive specimen)
These tiny armoured chameleons hold great beauty. A challenge and a feast to get up close with my macro lens. Although it was a grey, cloudy day with lots of rain - we were soaking wet - I managed to take some really great photos of this chameleon.
The photos were made in a reserve, so unfortunately not in the wild. Naturally these creatures only live in the Tsingy de Bemaraha National Park in the Bemaraha Massif in the mid-west of Madagascar, where our trip would not take us. As with most herpetofauna in Madagascar, the Antsingy Leaf Chameleon is threatened; currently Endangered on the IUCN Red List. And the trends are not good; populations are declining.
Click a link and you'll go to the page for that rank in the biological classification on Schaapmans' Wildlife Spotting.
Kingdom: Animalia; Animals / Dierenrijk
Phylum: Chordata; Vertebrates / Gewervelden
Class:Reptilia; Reptiles / Reptielen
Order: Squamata; Scaled Reptiles / Schubreptielen
Suborder: Iguania; Iguanas, Chameleons, Agamids, Lizards / Leguaanachtigen
Family: Chamaeleonidae; Chameleons / Kameleons
Genus: Brookesia; Leaf Chameleons / Kortstaartkameleons
Species: Brookesia perarmata
Antsingy Leaf Chameleon / Antsingy-kortstaartkameleon