• Question: How do chameleons change their skin colour to match their surroundings?

    Asked by Yvie to Deborah, Euan, Maheen, Rob, Stu on 13 Jun 2016.
    • Photo: Euan Allen

      Euan Allen answered on 13 Jun 2016:

      Hi Yvie,

      This is a great question, and is actually one of my favourite things in nature.

      Chameleons have a very special way of choosing the colour they are that scientist call structural colour. This means that they generate different colours based on the pattern or structure of their skin on a microscopic level. The structure that causes the colour is actually a mixture of the chameleons ,skin with lots of holes spread around it.

      The chameleon chooses which colour it wants to be by changing the size of the wholes, which changes which colour it reflects back into your eyes.

    • Photo: Rob Stanley

      Rob Stanley answered on 14 Jun 2016:

      I’ll just add to Euan’s answer that chameleons don’t just change colour to match their surroundings, but also to communicate with other chameleons.

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