The Petter's chameleon (''Furcifer petteri'') is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

chameleon Chameleons or chamaeleons (family Chamaeleonidae) are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of Old World lizards with 202 species described as of June 2015. The members of this family are best known for their distinct range of colors, bein ...

, which is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to northern

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

. ''Furcifer petteri'' was initially described as the

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

''Chamaeleo willsii petteri'' by Édouard-Raoul Brygoo and

Charles Domergue Charles Antoine Domergue (5 January 1914 in Besançon, France – 31 December 2008 in Antananarivo) was a French naturalist, ornithologist, herpetologist, spelunker and geologist who spent much of his life in Madagascar. He also dealt with the e ...

in 1966, but later transferred to the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

''Furcifer'' and given full species status by Frank Glaw and

Miguel Vences Professor Miguel Vences (born 24 April 1969 in Cologne) is a German herpetologist and evolutionary biologist. Much of his research is focused on the reptiles and amphibians of Madagascar. Life The son of Galician philosopher Sergio Vences Fer ...

in 1994.

Etymology

Both the

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

, ''petteri'', and the common name, Petter's chameleon, are in honour of French primatologist

Jean-Jacques Petter Jean-Jacques Petter (1927-2002) was a French primatologist known for his studies of lemurs and his conservation work in Madagascar. Petter's observational research of a variety of lemur species at several sites around Madagascar in the late 195 ...

Geographic range

''Furcifer petteri'' is

to Madagascar. Its type locality is the eastern edge of the

Ankarana Reserve Ankarana Special Reserve in northern Madagascar was created in 1956. It is a small, partially vegetated plateau composed of 150-million-year-old middle Jurassic limestone. With an average annual rainfall of about , the underlying rocks have been e ...

, specifically the

Ankarana Ankarana Special Reserve in northern Madagascar was created in 1956. It is a small, partially vegetated plateau composed of 150-million-year-old middle Jurassic limestone. With an average annual rainfall of about , the underlying rocks have been e ...

massif (french: Bordure Est du massif de l'Ankarana, Madagascar).

Conservation status and habitat

''Furcifer petteri'' is listed as a

vulnerable species A vulnerable species is a species which has been Conservation status, categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as being threatened species, threatened with extinction unless the circumstances that are threatened species, ...

by the

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

(IUCN) because its geographic range only covers an area of in northern Madagascar, where the remaining forest is in decline. It lives between above mean

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...

, where it is threatened by mining,

logging Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks or skeleton cars. Logging is the beginning of a supply chain ...

for rosewood and

charcoal Charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by strongly heating wood (or other animal and plant materials) in minimal oxygen to remove all water and volatile constituents. In the traditional version of this pyrolysis process, cal ...

, and fires.

Description

Male specimens are roughly between in total length (including tail), and their main colour is deep green with lateral white stripes and white lips. The female specimens are slightly smaller than the males, and have similar colouration. When the females are excited, they change colours quickly, becoming yellow-lemon with two spots of light blue, and one of red. An average of both genders shows a total length of .

Taxonomy

''Furcifer petteri'' was initially described as ''Chamaeleo willsii petteri'' by Brygoo and Domergue in 1966. It is commonly known as Petter's chameleon. According to the

Integrated Taxonomic Information System The Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) is an American partnership of federal agencies designed to provide consistent and reliable information on the taxonomy of biological species. ITIS was originally formed in 1996 as an interagenc ...

, ''Furcifer petteri'' is the valid name for this species.

Etymology

Geographic range

Conservation status and habitat

Description

Taxonomy

References

Further reading