Scientists say they have discovered a subspecies of chameleon the size of a sunflower seed that may well be the smallest reptile on Earth.
Two of the miniature lizards, a male and a female, were discovered by a German-Malagasy expedition team in northern Madagascar.
The male Brookesia nana, or nanochaeleon, has a body only 13.5 mm (0.53 inches) in length, making it the smallest of all about 11,500 known species of reptiles, said the State Zoo Collection of Bavaria in Munich. Its total length from nose to tail is just under 22 mm (0.87 inches).
The female nano-chameleon is significantly larger, with a total length of 29 mm, said the research institute, adding that scientists were unable to find any more specimens of the new subspecies “despite great effort”.
The species’ closest relative is the slightly larger Micron Brookesia, whose discovery was announced in 2012.
Scientists assume that the lizard’s habitat is small, as is the case with similar subspecies.
“The nanochaeleon habitat has unfortunately been cleared, but the area has recently been placed under protection, so the species will survive,” said Oliver Hawlitschek, a scientist at the Hamburg Natural History Center, in a statement.