Verkleurmannetjie

Literally translated to mean 'coloured little man' this is the wonderfully descriptive Afrikaans name for a Chameleon.

The journey begins

We have the tiny dwarf chameleons here, although sadly they are not as numerous as they should be, as the very thing that keeps them safe in their natural habitat, is their downfall! Their ability to blend in with their surroundings means that on the dust roads in our village, they become invisible to motorists. Unable to dodge out of the way, or dash across the road to safety, they add to the horrifically high death rate of wildlife on our roads. You would think that with their ability to look both ways at the same time, they would wait until the road was clear before setting out on their perilous journey.

Looking like a small stone

Rob has rescued several chameleons while we are out walking with Alfie, we take them home and put them safely in a shrub.

Turning to 'shrub hue'

The other amazing thing about chameleons is this; put one in a shrub, watch it change colour and blend into 'shrub hue', go and call someone to come and see it....... and then try to find it again!