''Rhampholeon'' is a
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 ...
of small
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 ...
s, commonly known as pygmy chameleons or African leaf chameleons, found in central
East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
(extending slightly into adjacent
DR Congo). They are found in
forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
s,
woodland
A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...
s,
thicket
A thicket is a very dense stand of trees or tall shrubs, often dominated by only one or a few species, to the exclusion of all others. They may be formed by species that shed large numbers of highly viable seeds that are able to germinate in t ...
s, and
savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
, and most
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 ...
are restricted to highlands. They are brown, grey, or green, and typically seen at low levels in bushes, or on the ground among
grass
Poaceae () or Gramineae () is a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants commonly known as grasses. It includes the cereal grasses, bamboos and the grasses of natural grassland and species cultivated in lawns an ...
es or
leaf litter
Plant litter (also leaf litter, tree litter, soil litter, litterfall or duff) is dead plant material (such as leaves, bark, needles, twigs, and cladodes) that have fallen to the ground. This detritus or dead organic material and its constituent ...
.
Species
The following 19 species are recognized as being valid.
["''Rhampholeon'' ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.]
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Rhampholeon acuminatus
''Rhampholeon acuminatus'', the Nguru pygmy chameleon, is a species of chameleons endemic to Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within t ...
'' – Nguru pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon beraduccii
''Rhampholeon beraduccii'', also known commonly as Beraducci's pygmy chameleon or the Mahenge pygmy chameleon, is a species of lizard in the family Chamaeleonidae. The species is endemic to Tanzania.
Etymology
The specific name, ''beraduccii' ...
'' – Beraducci’s pygmy chameleon, Mahenge pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon boulengeri
''Rhampholeon boulengeri'', also known commonly as Boulenger’s pygmy chameleon, is a species of lizard in the family Chamaeleonidae. The species is native to eastern Africa.
Etymology
The specific name, ''boulengeri'', is in honor of Belgia ...
'' –
Boulenger's pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon bruessoworum
''Rhampholeon bruessoworum'', the Mount Inago pygmy chameleon, is a small species of chameleon endemic to Mozambique. It was described in 2014. It has been found in small patches of wet forest at the base of the Mount Inago granitic inselberg. It ...
'' – Mount Inago pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon chapmanorum
''Rhampholeon chapmanorum'', also known commonly as Chapmans' pygmy chameleon, is a species of terrestrial pygmy chameleon, a lizard in the family Chamaeleonidae. The species is endemic to forest fragments in the Natundu Hills, Malawi. It was ...
'' – Chapmans's pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon gorongosae
''Rhampholeon gorongosae'', the Mount Gorongosa pygmy chameleon, is a species of chameleon endemic to Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), ...
'' – Mount Gorongosa pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon hattinghi
''Rhampholeon hattinghi'' is a species of chameleon endemic to the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa ...
''
*''
Rhampholeon marshalli
Marshall's pygmy chameleon (''Rhampholeon marshalli''), also called Marshall's leaf chameleon, Marshall's dwarf chameleon, or Marshall's stumptail chameleon, is a species of chameleon found in the forests of Zimbabwe and Mozambique in Africa. It ...
'' – Marshall's pygmy chameleon, Marshall's leaf chameleon, Marshall's dwarf chameleon, Marshall's stumptail chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon maspictus
''Rhampholeon maspictus'', the Mount Mabu pygmy chameleon, is a small native species of chameleon endemic to the tropical rainforests atop Mount Mabu in Zambezia, Mozambique. It is roughly long.
The specific epithet comes from the Latin "ma ...
'' – Mount Mabu pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon moyeri
''Rhampholeon moyeri'', Moyer's pygmy chameleon or Udzungwa pygmy chameleon, is a species of chameleon endemic to Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in ...
'' – Moyer’s pygmy chameleon, Udzungwa pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon nchisiensis'' – South African stumptail chameleon, Nchisi pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon nebulauctor
''Rhampholeon nebulauctor'', the Mount Chiperone pygmy chameleon, is a small species of chameleon endemic to Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzam ...
'' – Mount Chiperone pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon platyceps
''Rhampholeon platyceps'', the Mount Mulanje pygmy chameleon or Malawi stumptail chameleon, is a species of chameleon found in Malawi and Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambi ...
'' – Mount Mulanje pygmy chameleon, Malawi stumptail chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon spectrum'' – spectral pygmy chameleon, western pygmy chameleon, Cameroon stumptail chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon spinosus'' – rosette-nosed pygmy chameleon
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Rhampholeon temporalis
''Rhampholeon temporalis'', the Usambara stumptail chameleon or East Usambara pygmy chameleon, is a species of chameleon found in Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), ...
'' – Usambara stumptail chameleon, East Usambara pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon tilburyi'' – Mount Namuli pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon uluguruensis'' – Uluguru pygmy chameleon
*''
Rhampholeon viridis'' – green pygmy chameleon
''
Nota bene
(, or ; plural form ) is a Latin phrase meaning "note well".
It is often abbreviated as NB, n.b., or with the ligature
and first appeared in English writing . In Modern English, it is used, particularly in legal papers, to draw the atten ...
'': A
binomial authority
In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...
in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Rhampholeon''.
References
Further reading
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Boulenger GA (1887). ''Catalogue of the Lizards in the British Museum (Natural History). Second Edition. Volume III. ... Chamæleontidæ''. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 575 pp. + Plates I-XL. (Genus ''Rhampholeon'', p. 475).
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Branch WR (2004). ''Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa''. Third Revised edition, Second impression. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 399 pp. . (Genus ''Rhampholeon'', p. 228).
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*
Goin CJ, Goin OB,
Zug GR (1978). ''Introduction to Herpetology: Third Edition''. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman and Company. xi + 378 pp. . (Genus ''Rhampholeon'', p. 289).
*
Günther A (1874). "Descriptions of some new or imperfectly known Species of Reptiles from the Camaroon
icMountains". ''Proc. Zool. Soc. London'' 1874: 442-445. (''Rhampholeon'', new genus, p. 444).
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External links
Lizards of Africa
Lizard genera
Taxa named by Albert Günther
{{chameleon-stub