Chameleons are believed to have originated in the Eastern portion of the African continent. Scientists have dated many chameleon fossil remains to the tertiary period. The tertiary period is the time period between the end of the dinosaurs and the most recent ice age. Chameleons are classified in the Agamidae family which is also an ancient group of lizards. Although the oldest known chameleon fossil, described as Chamaeleo caroliquarti is dated at 26 million years old, chameleons are believed to have been in existence for about double that amount of time. While chameleon species previously roamed a larger portion of the Earth, they have since migrated to warmer locations when the temperatures in the North started to decline.
