In February 2021 came the news that scientists believe they may have discovered the smallest reptile on earth – a chameleon subspecies, the size of a seed. Two of the tiny lizards were discovered by a German-Madagascan expedition team in Madagascar. The male Brookesia nana, or nano-chameleon, has a body of just 13.5mm. This makes it the smallest of about 11,500 known species of reptiles, according to the Bavarian State collection of Zoology in Munich, Germany.
The female nano-chameleon is significantly larger, with an overall length of 29 mm, the research institute said, adding that the scientists were unable to find further specimens of the new subspecies “despite great effort”.
The species’ closest relative is the slightly larger Brookesia micra, whose discovery was announced in 2012.
Scientists assume that the lizard’s habitat is small, as is the case for similar subspecies.
“The nano-chameleon’s habitat has unfortunately been subject to deforestation, but the area was placed under protection recently, so the species will survive,” Oliver Hawlitschek, a scientist at the Center of Natural History in Hamburg, said in a statement.
Credit : World Economic Forum
Picture Credit : Google
