Brookesia tuberculata
Encyclopedia
Brookesia tuberculata is a diminutive chameleon
from far northern Madagascar
.
disputed a 1995 paper which considered this species and B. peyrierasi
to be the same species as B. minima
. The later paper discussed the same details as the first – subtle morphological
differences in the hemipenis
es of the respective species and determined they were not conspecific. They also found differences in the arrangement of head crests and in minute spines above the eyes.
Chameleon
Chameleons are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of lizards. They are distinguished by their parrot-like zygodactylous feet, their separately mobile and stereoscopic eyes, their very long, highly modified, and rapidly extrudable tongues, their swaying gait, the possession by many of a...
from far northern Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
.
Similar species
A 1999 paper in the Journal of ZoologyJournal of Zoology
The Journal of Zoology is a scientific journal concerning zoology, the study of animals. It was founded in 1830 by the Zoological Society of London and is published by Wiley-Blackwell. It carries original research papers, which are targeted towards general readers...
disputed a 1995 paper which considered this species and B. peyrierasi
Brookesia peyrierasi
Brookesia peyrierasi is a diminutive chameleon from north-eastern Madagascar. It is known commonly as Peyrieras' Pygmy Chameleon.-Similar species:...
to be the same species as B. minima
Brookesia minima
Brookesia minima, , is a diminutive chameleon "often said to be the smallest" or "probably the smallest" of the Chamaeleonidae.-Range:B...
. The later paper discussed the same details as the first – subtle morphological
Morphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
differences in the hemipenis
Hemipenis
A hemipenis is one of a pair of intromittent organs of male squamates .Hemipenes are usually held inverted, within the body, and are everted for reproduction via erectile tissue, much like that in the human penis. Only one is used at a time, and some evidence indicates males alternate use between...
es of the respective species and determined they were not conspecific. They also found differences in the arrangement of head crests and in minute spines above the eyes.