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The Meller’s chameleon, aka Meller’s giant one-horned chameleon or giant one-horned chameleon, hails from east Africa in Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania. They face the threat of capture for the international pet trade. Between 1977 – 2011 approximately 50,363 live individuals were exported from across the native range of this species […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The Kaempfer’s woodpecker, aka Piauí woodpecker, can only be found in Brazil. They seem to prefer bamboo forests. These woodpeckers were previously named caatinga woodpecker. Due to habitat loss and destruction at the hands of farming, ranching, logging, dams, roads, and railroads (which divide their territory); fires; and fire suppression, […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The Tarzan chameleon, aka Tarzan’s chameleon, hails only from central eastern Madagascar. They prefer the fragmented forest habitats outside of Tarzanville, Province Moramanga, Madagascar. Sadly, these chameleons are faced with the threats of habitat destruction at the hands of the logging industry, agriculture, and mining. The IUCN lists these chameleons […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The great spotted woodpecker is widely distributed throughout Europe, Asia, and into Northern Africa. They can tolerate a wide variety of habitats, including: broadleaf forests, coniferous and/or mixed forests, woodlands, gardens, olive groves, and parks. Even though they face the threats of deforestation and climate change, these birds are numerous […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The terrifyingly real, diminutive monster of the deep, and the stuff of nightmares, it’s the tongue-eating louse. These creatures live in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. What they do, besides haunt people’s dreams, is find their way into the mouth’s of fishes, through their gills, and there they take over. […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The panther chameleon is arguably the most beautiful of all the chameleon species. They can be found in the northern & eastern parts of Madagascar, Réunion, and Mauritius. They naturally occur in Madagascar and were introduced to Réunion and Mauritius. These beauties can be blue, green, red, orange, yellow, or […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

Say hello to the okapi (pronounced oh-COP-ee). It’s the only known relative of the giraffe. They can be found in the northern, central, and eastern parts of Africa’s Congo region. They like the wet and thick vegetation of the rainforest. These beautiful beasts’ numbers have fallen dramatically since the 20th […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

One of the more bizarre mammals, and there are a few, is the anteater. They can range in size from a squirrel, to up to 7′ long! There are 4 species of anteater: the giant anteater, silky, northern tamandua and southern tamandua. The giant anteater is listed as Vulnerable but […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The blue-tongue skink is the largest member of the skink family. They are known for their think bodies stubby little T-Rex arms/legs, and mostly their long bright blue tongues. These lizards spend the majority of their day basking or looking for food. They also have one heck of a bite! […]

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This article was originally published on Critter Science.

The pangolin, aka scaly anteater, is the only mammal to be covered (head to toe) in keratin scales (the same material in human hair and fingernails). Their scales make up about 20% of a Pangolin’s weight! Pangolins are all endangered to one degree or another and conservation efforts are struggling […]

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