With a body that looks to be as wide as it is long, the critically endangered Nguru Spiny Pygmy Chameleon, is endemic to Tanzania’s Nguru mountains and a favourite of the exotic pet trade but that’s not the main reason its numbers continue to dwindle.  

Dispite government mandates in place for the Nguru Spiny Pygmy Chameleon’s protection, Shade crops replace continue to replace the forest reserves it depends on for survival. In their last project also funded by the Mohamed bin Zayed Species conservation fund, Hudson Laizer and his team at the Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology set out to gain an accurate overview of the population, finding only 53 chameleons in their 6-month search. Now, the team are determined to target the origin of the chameleon’s struggles.  

With a new grant from MBZ fund, the team have developed a specie action plan and their education campaign in local communities around the Nguru mountains. By raising awareness, the team hope to instil a sense of conservation responsibility, thereby reducing or even halting the habitat destruction pushing the Nguru Spiny Pygmy Chameleon to the brink.  

By turning the Nguru Spiny Pygmy Chameleon’s conservation into a collaborative effort, the team hope to make the chameleon’s conservation a sustainable one for all and will be continuing to keep a close eye on the population and habitat health.