Bright sadness: the bright death of a female chameleon (3 photos + 1 video)
Chameleons are known for their ability to change body color depending on danger. However, not many people know how the natural camouflage of some chameleon species manifests itself when the lizard dies. Watch as the female chameleon's skin flares with bright colors in the last moments of her life.
A female of the rare Laborde's chameleon (Furcifer voeltzkowi) was photographed in the Kirindy forest in western Madagascar. Chameleon cubs of this species hatch from eggs with the first rains in November. They reach the size of an adult by January and actively reproduce. At the end of February or early March, before the dry season, females lay eggs, from which cubs emerge after 8 months.
However, the cubs do not have time to see their parents. All adult individuals live only 4-5 months and die before the birth of their offspring.
Females spend all their energy “producing” eggs and, exhausted, die soon after laying them.