Fischer's chameleon

Fischer's chameleon (Kinyongia fischeri ) is a species of chameleon, a lizard in the family Chamaeleonidae. The species is endemic to Tanzania.

Fischer's chameleon
Kinyongia matschiei. Tuen Mun Reptile House, Tuen Mun, Hong Kong.

Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Iguania
Family: Chamaeleonidae
Genus: Kinyongia
Species:
K. fischeri
Binomial name
Kinyongia fischeri
(Reichenow, 1887)
Synonyms[2]
  • Chamaeleon fischeri
    Reichenow, 1887
  • Bradypodion fischeri
    — Nečas, 1999
  • Kinyongia fischeri
    — Tilbury et al., 2006

Etymology

The specific name, fischeri, is in honor of German herpetologist Johann Gustav Fischer.[3]

Geographic range

K. fischeri is restricted to the Nguru and Nguu Mountains of Tanzania.[2][4] Chameleons found in other parts of the Eastern Arc Mountains as well as Kenya are now classified as separate species.[4][5]

Taxonomy

A number of other species (K. matschiei, K. multituberculata, K. tavetana, K. uluguruensis, and K. vosseleri ) have been mistakenly called by this species' name or classified as subspecies. In 2008, it was shown that they actually are their own, distinct species.[4][5] The true Fischer's chameleon is rare with a more restricted distribution than previously believed.[4][5] Although formerly considered common in captivity, virtually all "Fischer's chameleons" in the pet trade are now known to actually be the other species. Only three true Fischer's chameleon are known to have entered captivity.[1]

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References
  1. Tolley K, Menegon M (2014). "Kinyongia fischeri ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2014: e.T172565A1345554. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-3.RLTS.T172565A1345554.en.
  2. Kinyongia fischeri at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 2 July 2017.
  3. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Kinyongia fischeri, p. 90).
  4. Mariaux J, Lutzmann N, Stipala J (2008). "The two-horned chamaeleons of East Africa". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 152 (2): 367–391. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2007.00332.x.
  5. Lutzmann N (2008)."Some important changes in the systematics of Bradypodion FITZINGER, 1843". Chameleons! Online E-Zine. chameleonnews.com

Further reading
  • Reichenow A (1887). "Neue Wirbelthiere des Zoologischen Museums in Berlin ". Zoologischer Anzeiger 10: 369–372. (Chamaeleon fischeri, new species, pp. 371–372). (in German).


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