Chamaeleo chamaeleon
Silhouette: Alex Slavenko · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
The common chameleon or Mediterranean chameleon (Chamaeleo chamaeleon) is a species of chameleon native to the Mediterranean Basin and parts surrounding the Red Sea. It is the only extant species of Chamaeleonidae with a range that naturally extends into Europe.
The colour of the common chameleon is variable, between yellow/brown through green to a dark brown. Whatever the background colour is, the common chameleon will have two light coloured lines along its side. It has a small beard of scales and some small hard scales on the top of its back. Many assume the color changes undergone by the chameleon are a result of its attempting to camouflage itself, when in reality the chameleon changes its color as a response to light and temperature stimuli and as an expression of its emotions (like chameleon body language). Often when... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Doñana National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Natura Artis Magistra | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | |
| 2 | Zoobotánico Jerez | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 3 | Soğanlı Zoo | 🇹🇷 Türkiye | |
| 4 | Ménagerie du Jardin des Plantes | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 5 | Tel Aviv University Zoo | 🇮🇱 Israel | |
| 6 | Bristol Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom |
No species of the same family or order lives in Doñana National Park, so these are its closest relatives here: other reptiles.
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Common Chameleon sighting in Doñana National Park on a given day, based on 15 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 8th most-seen of the 14 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
August
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Common Chameleon in Doñana National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March, July, October and December–January, the lowest months. That is one of Doñana National Park's driest months, with almost no rain against 90 mm in October.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Common Chameleon sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Doñana National Park, in our data
Doñana National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Common Chameleon sightings: about 20% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Common Chameleon is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Doñana National Park (15 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
