Brookesia nana: World’s smallest reptile?

Context

Recently, a chameleon has been discovered in the island country of Madagascar by scientists from Germany and Madagascar. It may be the world’s smallest adult reptile.

About

• Scientists have named it Brookesia nana.
• The body of the male specimen appeared to be just 13.5-millimetres-long (a little more than a 1/2-inch.)
• That’s at least 1.5 millimetres smaller than the previous record-holder, another member of the Brookesia family.

What are Chameleons?

• Chameleons (Chamaeleonidae) are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of Old World lizards.
• They are best known for their ability to change body colour. Other characteristics of chameleons include
  • zygodactylous feet (with toes fused into opposed bundles of two and three)
  • acrodont dentition (with the teeth attached to the edge of the jaw)
  • eyes that move independently
  • atrophied venomglands that produce harmless trace amounts of venom
  • a long, slender projectile tongue.
• Chameleons are threatened by deforestation on Madagascar, which is home to numerous species.