What Animal Lives Where

Where has the European chameleon been recorded?

Chamaeleo chamaeleon occurrence evidence comes from 409 records in 16 countries and territories, from 1931 to 2026. Most records come from Israel.

European chameleon
European chameleon — Photo (display-sized rendition): Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons
SquamataChamaeleonidaeChamaeleo

Observation evidence passport

Evidence found

409 records across 16 countries and territories, 1931–2026.

Chamaeleo chamaeleon · GBIF taxon key 2449051

Source coverage

CC0 GBIF Animalia occurrence facets, including country, month and year summaries.

Refreshed 2026-09-23. Inspect the taxon on GBIF.

What this means

The species has been recorded in the listed places in the stated source universe. Peak month: September.

10 months reach at least 10% of the peak facet count.

What this does not mean

repeated describes the record pattern, not a formal range, residency, abundance or conservation assessment.

A single record remains evidence of a recording, not proof that a population lives there.

Compare this animal’s observation pattern

When it is recorded

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak month: September. Records cluster in the months an animal is present and being looked for, so a summer peak can reflect observer effort as much as the animal.

Records over time

19312026

Recording effort has risen steeply almost everywhere since the 1990s, so a rising line usually shows more observers rather than more animals.

Where European chameleon has been recorded

The countries below show where occurrence evidence exists for European chameleon. They do not define a complete habitat range: survey effort differs by place, and historical or one-off records can appear alongside repeated presence.

PlaceRecordsShare
Israel 137
Egypt 95
Spain 41
Tunisia 33
Saudi Arabia 30
Türkiye 24
Morocco 15
Cyprus 10
Portugal 8
Malta 5
Jordan 3
Yemen 3
Oman 2
Lebanon 1
Libya 1
PS 1

Related animals

Others in the family Chamaeleonidae.

Panther chameleon
Panther chameleon
55 records
Mayotte Chameleon
Mayotte Chameleon
6 records
Record pattern: repeated
Repeated records across many years and months. This is inferred from how many years and months the animal appears in, not from a range map — treat it as evidence, not a formal assessment.