This small, stub-tailed chameleon only occurs in the Malawi rainforest and was even considered extinct. Now researchers have discovered a few remains in the forest islands that have been decimated by clearing
The Chapman dwarf chameleon (Rhampholeon chapmanorum) belongs to a group of chameleons that are particularly small, inconspicuous and with short tails. They are less than six centimeters long and occur only in the rainforest of the hill country in southern Malawi. “Unlike most normal chameleons, the Chapman chameleon does not have a prehensile tail – perhaps because they are not exclusively tree-dwellers, but mostly run around on the forest floor,” explains Krystal Tolley from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa. Only at night do the dwarf chameleons crawl on low bushes to sleep.
The existence of the Chapman dwarf chameleons was only discovered in 1992 – and even then they were considered to be critically endangered. Since then, the rainforest in southern Malawi has been cleared further. Tolley and her team estimate that around 80 percent of these forests have been destroyed since the 1980s. In the meantime, the dwarf chameleon was therefore also considered to be extinct.
But recent research shows that the species has survived – for now. The scientists have found representatives of these rare reptiles in several remaining forest islands. “The first thing we discovered was in the transition zone at the edge of the forest,” reports Tolley. “We were so excited that we got goose bumps and jumped around.”
However, closer analysis revealed that there is actually little reason to be happy: The few remaining populations of this dwarf chameleon are highly fragmented and genetically isolated from one another. This threatens to genetically impoverish the populations, which makes this species, which is already on the verge of extinction, even more vulnerable.
“The loss of forest requires immediate action before this species is irretrievably lost,” says Tolley. The destruction of the forest in this area must be stopped and the chameleons’ habitat restored. “I get sad when I think about what we’re doing to these animals and their habitat. They are helpless victims, ”said Tolley.