A postcard from Madagascar: dwarf chameleons
Dwarf chameleons
Meet one of the smallest lizards in the world. These tiny creatures, about an inch long, are Brookesia Minima chameleons. According to Wikipedia they are the ‘third-smallest lizard ever described’. Our guide found them for us on a walk in the Montagne d’Ambre national park, by rifling through leaf litter at the base of a tree. Chris had an odd euro in his pocket which we used to show the scale. I found it amazing that such a tiny animal could be so perfect in all its details, down to the toes and claws!
59 Comments
Ju-Lyn
Oh.My.Goodness! Are they for real?!!!
Sarah Wilkie
Absolutely for real, I promise you!
SoyBend
They look unbelievably cute, Sarah. So tiny!
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, amazingly so – I never dreamt there could be a chameleon so small!
susurrus
How amazing – both the creature and the guide who knew where to find one.
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, he (the guide) kept trying at the foot of lots of trees till he found these 😀
Alison
Incredibly cute!
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, aren’t they just?!!
Amy
Thank you for sharing this smallest lizards in the world!
Sarah Wilkie
Glad you like them Amy!
equinoxio21
How nice. Withdraw my previous comment about touching animals. Some one can…
Sarah Wilkie
Ah yes, holding these isn’t an issue I reckon 🙂
Wind Kisses
Thank goodness for your guide. What a treat to find .
Sarah Wilkie
He was so determined to find some for us!
grandmisadventures
These are amazing! so little and cute and something I never knew existed 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
I wasn’t aware of them either!
Monkey's Tale
Wow, I’ve never even heard of them. Having them on someone’s hand really puts their size into perspective. Maggie
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, you do need that hand to give a sense of scale!
carabeinsplash
They’re so cute and trying to look fierce with the horns on their heads. Thanks for sharing these beautiful creatures with us.
Sarah Wilkie
I guess you’d have to be very tiny to find them fierce but size is relative so I doubt they look cute to an ant!
wanderwithfaith
Nice postcard….
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks 🙂
thehungrytravellers.blog
Amazing tiny little creatures. Nature never ceases to amaze!
Sarah Wilkie
Especially in Madagascar it seems!
margaret21
These are just astonishing.
Sarah Wilkie
I’m glad everyone is finding them as amazing as I did!
Rose
Wow! They are so amazing and tiny!
Sarah Wilkie
Wow is definitely the word for them!
Christie
Mother nature is incredible! It’s good you could spot them🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Incredible indeed! We would never have spotted them on our own – among the leaf litter they just looked like little twigs!
restlessjo
You would have to know what you were looking for to even find them. Amazing, Sarah!
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, we’d never have seen them without our guide!
the eternal traveller
Goodness. I wasn expecting small but not this small. Aren’t they cute!
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, very cute – and I couldn’t believe how small they were!
bushboy
So small. You were brave to hold such vicious chameleons Sarah 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
Haha 😆 But see my reply to Alli – I didn’t get to hold one!
Alli Templeton
Oh, bless its cotton socks – they’re adorable! 🙂 And that’s the THIRD smallest lizard? The smallest must have been microscopic! You’re right, of course, they are perfect in every way, and cuter than cute as well. It must have been amazing to hold one, I’d have felt positively honoured. Fantastic pictures, and what a memory to treasure. 🙂
Sarah Wilkie
I love that response Alli – bless it’s cotton socks indeed! We didn’t hold them however, that is our guide’s hand. To be honest it never occurred to me to ask!
Alli Templeton
I think I’d have been too scared that I might hurt it, so probably like you I’d have been happy admire it close up in the hand of someone who knows the lovely little lizards – cotton sock and all! 😊💜
Sue
How amazing!
Sarah Wilkie
Absolutely!
Sue
😊
Suzanne
Sarah, I’m another person who hasn’t seen them, though we do have small geckos here in NZ
Sarah Wilkie
Interesting – how small are your geckos?
Suzanne
Sarah, this link to our Department of Conservation will explain it better than me. Though now I think they are as small as the ones you captured. https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/reptiles-and-frogs/lizards/geckos/
Sarah Wilkie
Interesting, thank you. But the smallest I could see listed there are about 7 cms long while these are barely 2?
Suzanne
I wrote that incorrectly, I should’ve said they’re not as small. Caffeine hasn’t worked yet😁
Sarah Wilkie
🤣🤣☕
Brad M
So tiny, it’s almost macro photography.
Sarah Wilkie
Yes, absolutely!
Egídio
So beautiful, Sarah!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you 😊
Mike and Kellye Hefner
Oh, my goodness! Never have heard of or seen these cute little guys.
Sarah Wilkie
Amazing aren’t they? And yet there are apparently two species even smaller!
Yvonne Dumsday
Wow!
Sarah Wilkie
That’s exactly what I said!
satyam rastogi
Nice post 🖊️
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks 👍
satyam rastogi
Welcome 🙏 freinds