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Chameleons and Tenrics

Blog by MBP Volunteer, Annie

 

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The potential for remarkable chance encounters with wildlife is not limited to the lemurs, though at times it can be hard to focus on other species when the more important considerations are about which vine is not covered in spikes and whether the lemurs will stop leaping from tree to tree and take a breather. But even speedy scrambling can lead to surprising sightings, like the time when I nearly slammed my face into a tiny chameleon as I was rock climbing up a ledge. The lizard was only about an inch long, white, and completely unfazed that it had nearly been forcibly transported to my nose. In fact I have had several encounters with chameleons, and most were unaware they encountered me. On the eventful taxi brousse ride back from Fianar the first time I went there for internet, we swerved slightly to avoid a giant chameleon that was casually strutting across the road. The scientific name for these chameleons, so I have heard, contains the phrase “supercilious,” and that is exactly how this one appeared. I could almost picture its nose stuck in the air, though I believe that title is more to do with their haughty eyebrow-like spikes.

Chameleons are naturally subtle and difficult to see, unless they’re making the rounds of the neighborhood, but some other creatures are surprisingly obvious. The forest was silent while I sat underneath a tree with a Varecia overhead that was continuously “Resting, no change” for several hours. All of a sudden, the leaves nearby rustled with such precision and intensity that I thought that some person had tracked us down. Instead, I saw a yellow and black tenrec, no bigger than a rat, snuffling through the leaves with determination. Tenrecs generally remind me of a cross between a bandicoot and a hedgehog, but at that moment I could not help thinking of a large bumblebee covered in yellow and black stripey fuzz. It was purposely headed towards some place but did not seem too bothered by humans watching it from a rock. It was still too fast for a camera, though.

 

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