Description:
Scientific name: Chamaeleo gracilis
Life span: Up to 10 years
The sub-Saharan African region is home to the graceful chameleon (Chamaeleo gracilis), a species of chameleon. C. gracilis frequently has a green stripe on its side and is green, yellow, or brown in color. Although its entire length, including the tail, is typically one foot (30.5 cm), it can reach a maximum of 15 inches (38 cm).
Native Region/Habitat
Much of sub-Saharan Africa is home to the graceful chameleon, from Senegal in the west to Angola in the south and Ethiopia in the east. Although it tolerates bushy environments next to crops and savanna, it prefers forests.
Behavior:
The elegant chameleon is a diurnal creature that spends the hottest portion of the day resting in the shade while hunting for prey in the morning and evening. Males are fiercely territorial and frequently make visual threats to one another.
Care As a pet/In captivity:
Housing:
Since these chameleons spent most of their time in conditions like forests in the wild, closely replicating that habitat is the simplest method to preserve them.
The smallest tank that is advised for these chameleons is a thirty-gallon tank. Because they require greater height, a 55 to 75 gallon tank would be ideal. They are taller than a breeding tank for reptiles that holds 40 gallons of water. Give a healthy substrate; a blend of sand and peat or bedding made of coconut fibres works well.
Temperature, humidity, and Lighting requirements:
The Graceful Chameleons are somewhat sensitive to temperature and humidity, like all chameleons. Interestingly, the daytime temperature range for the Graceful chameleon is only 64–73°F. Most of the time, if your home’s temperature falls within these limits, you won’t need much heat to keep these creatures comfortable, though a simple 50 watt daytime basking lamp could be utilized. Full-spectrum fluorescent lighting can expose people to UVA and UVB rays.
The ideal humidity range for these chameleons is between 90% and 100%, according to the hygrometer. It is essential to mist the tank with dechlorinated water every day to maintain a high level of moisture. This misting will also supply them with water to drink, accumulated on the leaves, as most chameleons won’t drink from a dish.
Food and Feeding:
Elegant chameleons will consume a wide variety of small insects, including crickets, fruit flies, mealworms, the rare wax worm, and many others. Be cautious while gathering prey items from the wild because they might have come into contact with insecticides, fertilizers, or parasites that are bad for the health of your chameleon.
To improve the nutritional content of prey items, a vitamin supplement might be applied. Excellent dietary supplements include RepCal and Herptivite. In order to help supply more nutrients, crickets should also be gut loaded. Your crickets’ nutritional value will rise if you feed them any of the commercially available gut load diets as well as fresh fruit, vegetables, fish flakes, and insects. Dechlorinated water should be misted on this chameleon twice daily. Spray the leaves thoroughly since that is how the chameleon will drink. Repti-safe, a good dechlorinator also supplies calcium and electrolytes.
Table
