Conservationists rediscovered the Voeltzkow’s chameleon during an expedition to the northwest of Madagascar. It was first described in 1893 and last seen in 1913, before World War I. Now that’s some good camouflage!
The mysterious Voeltzkow’s chameleon is the sixth of Global Wildlife Conservation‘s (GWCs) top 25 “most wanted” lost species to be rediscovered, followed by the adorably weird elephant-shrew (seen in the photo below). Although the expedition took place in 2018, the chameleon’s rediscovery was reported on Oct. 30, in the journal Salamandra.
Don Church, the president of GWC, said:
The Voeltzkow’s chameleon adds color and beauty to the planet and reminds us that even when all seems lost, a great adventure can rekindle hope even for species we haven’t seen since Woodrow Wilson was president.
Through genetic examination, scientists from Germany’s Bavarian Natural History Collections of Zoologische Staatssammlung München (ZSM) determined that the species is related to Labord’s chameleon.
Frank Glaw, the lead author and expedition leader from ZSM, recalled:
I thought we might have a good chance of rediscovering Voeltzkow’s chameleon, but I was surprised that it took so long and that it was so difficult.
The research team found several individual chameleons on the expedition, including around 15 females and three males. Glaw notes they discovered what appeared to be a healthy population for a short-lived species.
Conservationists believe that both males and females only live during the rainy season – they hatch from their eggs, grow fast, fight with the competition, mate, and then die during a few months. “These animals are basically the mayflies among vertebrates,” added Glaw. The reptiles’ short life spans and remote environment might have helped to keep them hidden for all these years.
The female of the Voeltzkow’s species, which had never been documented before, is like a living mood ring. She displays incredibly colorful patterns when stressed, encountering males, and during pregnancy.
There are some incredible chameleon species (seen in the photos below) that live in Madagascar and East Africa. These include the world’s tiniest chameleon – Brookesia Micra, Jackson’s three-horned chameleon, the incredible lance-nosed chameleon, and the big-nosed rhinoceros chameleon.
Unfortunately, the lance-nosed chameleon and Voeltzkow’s chameleon’s habitats are threatened by deforestation.
