The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-08-10
THE QUEER CHAM ELE0N.
Almost Fabulous characteristics OF
the Little Creature.
From the New York Post.

of our country are not chameleons, al
though they go by that name. The
real chameleons with one or TWO eA-
ceDtions. are confined to Africa, and
there are about fifty species.
Before we begin to examine one OF
these curious animals, let us again look
at his ame-"chameleon." the Greek
sound does not mislead usLllon Oh
the ground" or dwarf lion is lts
meaning. We shall find, however, that
flies and insects are the only prey
which dread this ''lion," and his roar
sounds to our ears like gentle MSS
a chameleon is a slow-moving de-
fenseless creature, with harmless teeth
and no venom. When we approach II
is interesting to see what ruse nature
has taught him to help him escape
from his enemies. AS soon as he sees
MS he congresses his numerous ribs
and becomes astonishingly thin, ana
then proceeds to stand on edge; tnat
is 70 turn the narrow line of his body
toward us. Not only this. but tne
crafty little fellow circles Slowly
around the twig to which ne is cllng-
ing until he is hidden on the opposite
side When he realizes that he is seen
and that further attempts to hide NM
are useless, he changes to opposite tac-
tics. presents his broadcast surface ana
blows himself up, swaying from sue
to side and Kissing with open noutn'
This power of initiating himself is mace
possible by several narrow bags or
sacs which continue the hollow cavity
of the lungs into all parts Oh the pouS'
The Color Changes.
The wonderful changes of color whlch
chameleons are able to display nave
always made these creatures famous
and the way in which it is brought
about is interesting. The outer layer
of the skin Is colorless, but beneath
this at varying distances from the sur
face are certain iridescent cells, then
some containing drops of oil, others
with crystal granules, and still others
with brownish and reddish pigment
When the crystal-filled cells are
brought near the surface, they refract
the light and make the creature very
uale-almost white; the oildrop cells
in turn. cause a yellow color; when
all the pigment is forced upward,
dark hue is impaired to the skin, and
when the light is diffracted through the
yellow oil and iridescent cells green
| tint results. These pigment cells are
under the control of the chameleon,
and thus he can copy his surroundings
| 50 perfectly and Immediately that
when one portion of his body is in
! shadow and the other in sunshine he
| is bi-colored, the dividing line cor
responding to the edge of light and
shade.
Now look at the feet of our chame-
leon. At first glance he seems to have
no toes 1t is as If the stumps of the
legs had been slit up, the sides or
| the slit closing around the branch,
serving as feet and toes. A closer in
spection shows that there are five
toes on each limb, but unlike most
| lizards these are not free, but bound
| together in two opposing bundles, pro-
| ducing a peculiar mittened effect. In
the front legs the thumb and two nm
fiers form the inner bundle, but in the
hind legs only two, the great toe and
the next one, are similarly tied to-
rether. This reminds us of the foot
of q parrot, and both are, of course,
adapted almost solely for clinging and
climbing.
If a chameleon ever falls accidental
ly, 1t is not because he is not abund-
antly provided with safety guards, for
besides his four pincer-like feet, he
has long tail, prehensile as that of
a spider monkey, and which is ever
coiling and uncoiling around each new
support which is encountered.
Queer Tongue and Eyes.
There are many more strange things
about a chameleon, but the tongue and
the eye seem beyond belief in a living
creature. The former is club-shaped
| at the tip and covered with a sticky
substance. Ordinarily when chame-
leon opens its mouth the tongue is not
especially conspicuous, but when six OF
seven inches from a fly this organ will
be shot forth so quickly that the eye
can scarcely follow it. and yet with
unerring aim the tip strikes and
snatches the fly down the chameleon
throat. The secret of this little bit OF
magic Is the elastic stem or base OF
the tongue. which telescopes upon it.
self when not in use. Remarkable in
deed is creature with a tongue which
can be thrust out distance equal tC
the length of the entire body of tbs
animal. Mythology itself can offer lit
tie that is more extraordinary.
The eyes of an animal usually take
prominent part in it's characteristic
appearance, and these organs in the
chameleon give a most weird effect
! Imagine, If you can, a person who
; while keeping one eye fixed steadily
upon you. glances with the other ovel
your whole person or the surrounding
/, landscape; or, again, think Of sittinl
near some one in a restaurant who 1:
reading a book with one eye and ex
: aiming the menu with the otherl Tn,
> uncanny feeling which would be thu.
: produced may be experienced when one
, examines a living chameleon. Boil
eyes work Independently. and though
this is the case with lizards and othe
, reptiles, in chameleons the fact is mad,
! more evident by the eyelids havinl
become fused, growing as one excep
for a tiny round opening in the cen
! ter. One eye may be fixed upon a fl!
! which the chameleon is stalking. VNhIl
the other pupil is watching for an,
hostile movement on your part. Tn
eyes are conical and protruding, an,
the general appearance has been aptl,
compared TO "a boiled pea with an ink
spot on it." The 'ink-spot" is the tin,
opening between the lids and, like tn
q telescope hole in an astronomical oh
: serVatory, it has to move towards tn
object looked at. So the sight of tn
two "ink-spots" moving independent
back and forth. up andN down. is mos
r iaughable. The hole in the lid is lik
a second pupil of the eye.
. The eggs of chameleons are placed Il
e the ground and take $50 days to hatch
T The baby chameleons are said to b
pure white and not able to change col
q or for the first fortnight.
G. William Beebe.
. TRAIN STALLED FoR