Karoo dwarf chameleon no means closely related. Rather, the Karoo dwarf chameleon belongs to a group of mostly short-tailed drab "Bradypodion" species which mostly inhabit semiarid to arid habitats. Its closest living relatives among these appear to be the peculiar and nearly extinct Smith's dwarf chameleon from mountainous habitat, and especially the southern dwarf chameleon. The Karoo dwarf chameleon may actually be a subspecies of the latter; there appears to be significant gene flow between the two. Karoo dwarf chameleon The Karoo dwarf chameleon ("Bradypodion karrooicum") is a chameleon native to South Africa. It is about 14 cm (6 in) long, mostly colored
Karoo as "Karoo". However, it has a major extension inland into the Tankwa Karoo and Moordenaarskaroo regions of the Lower Karoo, and adjoining Upper Karoo region of the geographic Great Karoo. It also occurs to the south, in part of the Breede River Valley, as the Robertson Karoo. From here, it continues eastwards into the western half of the Little Karoo. The Succulent Karoo biome is dominated by dwarf, leafy-succulent shrubs, and annuals, predominantly Asteraceae, popularly known as Namaqualand daisies, which put on spectacular flower displays covering vast stretches of the landscape in the southern spring-time (August–September) after good rains in