Chameleons

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Chameleons are reptiles that have been living on Earth for over 100 million years. Chameleon fossils date back to the Paleonzene period. Their fossils have been found in Africa, Europe and Asia. Over half of the species of the chameleons live in Madagascar (Raxworthy, 2004). Chameleons are in the Animal Kingdom and Chordata Phylum. They get their name from the Family they are grouped in called Chamaeleonidae. Chameleons are closely realted to iguanas and other lizards. Although they are similar, chameleons have unique features that distinguish them from other lizards. The most distinguishing feature of chameleons is their ability to change the color of their skin. Chameleons have special cells that allows it to change colors. These special cells are called chromatophores (Raxworthy, 2004). They contain layers of pigments that lie below their outer skin. Dispersion of the pigment granules in the chromatophores determines how deep the color is. When the pigment is equally distributed in a chromatophore, the whole cell is deeply colored. When the pigment is located only in...

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