Trioceros rudis
Silhouette: T. Michael Keesey (from a photograph by Frank Glaw, Jörn Köhler, Ted M. Townsend & Miguel Vences) · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
The coarse chameleon (Trioceros rudis), also known as the rudis chameleon, Ruwenzori side-striped chameleon or the Rwenzori bearded chameleon, is a chameleon from western Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and eastern DR Congo. Contrary to common belief, this species does not inhabit Mount Meru, Tanzania. Tanzania chameleons called T. rudis are in fact T. sternfeldi.
This chameleon is often found in open habitats, inhabiting low bushes and shrubs (often described as 'patchy open country") in the transitional zones between grasslands, reedbeds and montane heath. T. rudis is small (10 to 15 cm (3.9 to 5.9 in)) and lacks horns or occipital lobes. It has a long tail and a small crest.
Chamaeleo rudis at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database Chamaeleo Research Group [Japanese] Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Volcanoes National Park | 🇷🇼 Rwanda | |
| 2 | Virunga National Park | 🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo |
Likely
About 60% of wildlife watchers report a Coarse Chameleon sighting in Virunga National Park on a given day, based on 34 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
June–July and September
In those months about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Coarse Chameleon in Virunga National Park on a given day, against about 20% in November, the lowest month. April has too few records to rate.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Coarse Chameleon sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
2nd of 2
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Coarse Chameleon sightings, Virunga National Park ranks 2nd at about 60%. The best odds are in Volcanoes National Park (Rwanda, about 80%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Coarse Chameleon is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Virunga National Park (34 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.
