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I have been raising a male sambava and am wondering when most sambavas start changing into their adult coloration. Looking around on the net I have seen some awesome looking chameleons at just 4.5 months. Is this typical? My male is about 5 months and is still a pretty drab brown coloration. I can only see hints of green on some scales and a little red on his dewlap. Does this mean he will be ugly as an adult? Do chameleons develop their adult colors quickly, or does it happen over time. Thanks.

HEllo,

You are certainly right at the beginning of the GRADUAL color change for your little guy... I have a male sambava that is still a fairly drab brown at almost a year now but with each shed is becoming more colorful... I certainly wouldnt worry about it just keep him healthy and happy and he is sure to color up. The coloration usually only STARTS at about 3-4months and thats VERY minimal so 5 months with the drab brown is CERTAINLY not unusual...
Hope that helps
Any More questions just holler

Jason

Hey There,

Sambava and Ambanja Locales usually take the most time of all the Panther locales to color up. Ive' found it has to do a TON with genetics, and some will color up EXTREMELY early, while some will take some time. Don't worry, I doubt your panther could turn out ugly...even if he were to be brown his whole life (which wont happen) He'll still be gorgeous!

I posted some pics of my chameleon below. I purchased him at 9 months old, and you can see his color is just starting to develop. After about 4 months of basking outside in the natural sunlight, and shedding often, almost overnight he gained all his colors!

Michele

Lady Magnet, LOL he's so gorgeous they will be fighting over who gets him first, hehehehehhee !

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