,'Chamaelibob',#BCsplash

A yellow crested Jackson's Chameleon  Trioceros jacksonii xantholophus  (bred in captivity) belonging to my son-in-law who will be using him in his ecology talks to demonstrate the folly of moving animals out of their natural homes.  His ancestors come from the rain forest mountains of Kenya but a pair were released,  in Hawaii (possibly from the pet trade) and they are now a pest there. The male can grow to 14 inches (36cm) but the females are a bit smaller.  The female gestation period is from 5-10 months depending on the species and she is ovoviviparous - meaning the eggs develop and hatch within the mother's body - and the 50 or so young are born alive.They move incredibly slowly and carefully  but can flick out their tongue (which is as long as their body) at incredible speed.  In the warm moist forests of Hawaii they are decimating the insects and caterpillars and other grubs.