chamaeleonid

English

A chamaeleonid, Chamaeleo calyptratus

Noun

chamaeleonid (plural chamaeleonids)

1. (zoology) Any lizard of the family Chamaeleonidae; a chameleon.
   • 1993, S. Karger, Brain, Behavior and Evolution‎^[1], volume 41, page 133:

     Chamaeleonids have carried the trend further; nearly all species have lost or greatly reduced vomeronasal and olfactory systems [Parsons, 1970; Gabe and Saint Girons, 1976] and rely, instead, on vision.

   • 2007, Thomas T. Veblen, Kenneth R. Young, Antony R. Orme, editors, The Physical Geography of South America, page 119:

     Iguanids apparently were isolated in Africa by epicontinental seas and gave rise to chamaeleonids in the west and agamids in the east; the scincomorphs radiated in Laurussia, giving rise to the teiids in North America and lacertids in Europe.

   • 2009, François Le Berre, Richard D. Bartlett, The Chameleon Handbook, page 31:

     Chamaeleonids’ ears have simplified over time, and they are not visible externally, being covered with skin and scales. Unlike other lizards, chamaeleonids possess neither an exterior aperture nor a tympanic membrane, but they share some skeletal and fluid structure similarities with snakes.