When housed in a home or an office that is active by day, the pet melleri takes an interest in what its keeper is doing. Until you have experienced this, you have never really had a pet chameleon.

 

"I had a free-ranged WC melleri who would follow me throughout our multi-level rental townhouse at the time, climbing stairs behind me. He'd get right into the middle of sorting the dirty laundry, or climb up me and perch on my shoulder or head as I washed dishes (not exactly desirable or sanitary). I can't tell how many times I stood alone, unsuspecting at the sink, only to suddenly twitch in shock at the touch of a lizard paw on the back of my ankle, starting his way up. He also had a habit of purposefully climbing down from his tree, climbing up onto my worktable in the studio, and visiting while I sculpted. Sometimes, he'd climb up on my sculptures or armatures as I was working on them and bask under my ordinary work light, from the time we first got him. I could put him back in his home every time, and each time before his lights went out, he'd come sauntering back. He grew up to be the sire of my 2005 CBs, and several of them have his ultra-inquisitive, gentle nature." - Kristina Francis

 

At the risk of tipping the reader in favor of subjective emotions, and bypassing the scientific aspects of the reptile hobby, it's been noted by keepers that each melleri has a personality, and a lot of them are "outgoing". Many are so passive that they will let their keeper or vet examine them and never so much as raise a spot in stress. It may take 90 days for a new pet to settle and show its true self, but when it does, it's unmistakable. There is definitely someone home in that lizard skull, and most often it is a very pleasant someone, indeed. Some describe melleri attitude as similar to cats or parrots, but ultimately, they are the most appealing of chameleon attitudes.

 

 

For all the weakness and delicacy of the typical WC melleri, LTC and CB melleri tend to be very hardy, even compared to other chameleon species. Melleri rebound from illness with proper veterinary care, and well kept females lay clutches without trouble.

 

"My guy is growing leaps and bounds. I have decided to keep him as I have so much invested in him and he is so cool. He is the easiest chameleon to care for. He eats everything and hydration is not a problem." -Brion Miller

 

"... I only have vet problems with panthers and werneri, go figure…" -Michael Manna 

 

Melleri are one of the three true giant species of chameleons. Some people are drawn to the impressive size, and perhaps an interest in feeding it very large prey, including some vertebrates. Some choose giants for practical reasons, such as being able to utilize modern veterinary techniques, as opposed to the difficulty of surgery or treatment of smaller species. Others want a chameleon that is large enough to be seen by an audience, in wildlife education presentations.

 

Colors and patterns abound: melleri, no matter their mood, are attractive lizards. Every year or so, we record new wild type color morphs and phases for the species. They have a lot of variation in addition to their base morphs, perhaps a handful of modifying genes at work on their base colors. Healthy and happy melleri show neon-bright colors. Unfortunately, sometimes they show brightness in stress or thirst, as well, so a WC can misrepresent its true condition (or "hide" its weakness). A positively excited melleri will show as striking a black spot pattern as a negatively stressed one. The body language and situation gives the context for what the animal is actually experiencing. Thus, melleri colors and patterns can be deceiving, but are across-the-board beautiful. Courtship is truly when they show their "fireworks". Neonates and juveniles sport striped "tuxedos" that blend to green and white with adolescence. Even elderly melleri have a pastel color quality that is subdued but clear and pretty. No two melleri have exactly the same base stripe pattern, even their face markings are unique. Some have incomplete stripes (saddles), some have stripes that form a connection or an "isthmus", some have straight vertical banding from shoulder to tail tip.

 

Melleri have very interesting shapes, as well. They are the most extreme example of a wavy or crenulated dorsal crest among chameleons. They have double conical crests on top of their crenulations, which are themselves on top of fins! Some melleri sport very high dorsal fins, proportionately comparable to even the most high-finned (but smaller) species Ch. montium, Ch. cristatus, and Ch. quadricornis. Melleri caudal fins are segmented by their crenulations, and they fold into each other when the tail is raised or straightened, like fanned out playing cards folding back into a deck. When the melleri tail is curled, it is one of the most beautiful forms in all of Chamaeleonidae. Melleri have a lot of variety in their skull shapes. Some have extremely high casques, comparable in curvature to the casque of Ch. hoehnelli. Others have low or swept-back casques, giving the head a more elongate profile. Melleri rostral horns and the horn bed, the laterally compressed rostral "blade" of bone, have a huge amount of variation. Some rostrums sweep downwards majestically to a sharp degree. Some are very long and project out far beyond the end of the muzzle. Some lose their horns completely, others grow a single, bizarre, long, annulated, keratinous horn. Mature melleri can be identified by profile of the face, they are so different from each other. The large occipital lobes are another appeal of this species. Among chameleons, melleri lobes are proportionately comparable to those of the smaller Calumma cucullata, an extremely lobed species not in the trade. Melleri lobes come in every imaginable shape: curly, wavy, lumpy, flat, convex, concave, folded into each other, "handles" curled over at the tops, scalloped, round, oval, semi-circular, short, long, narrow, wide, horizontal, vertical, rolled under tightly like a taco or a crepe, and some sport multiple traits on one animal! The melleri lobes that are shaped like the ears of the African elephant are probably the type seen when they first discovered, and given the common name, "Elephant-eared Chameleon". Both melleri lobes and African elephant ears can have fleshy ripples or waves in them, and both animals threat display by moving their respective appendages perpendicular to their heads.

 

Melleri attract keepers, and keep their attention with their beauty, their personalities, and their natural mysteries. We are always looking for the best methods for keeping them happy and reproducing in captivity, because more Captive Breds means less demand for widespread importation and exploitation of wild melleri.