Habitat selection of the common chameleon (Chamaeleo chamaeleon) (L.) in an area under development in southern Spain: implications for conservation

We studied the features of the habitat selection of the common chameleon [C hanaeleo chamaeleon (L.)] in a population located in an area under developm ent in south-eastern Spain. Chameleons were recorded in zones characterised by the presence of roads, lack of natural vegetation and presence of culti vation at the macrohabitat level, and tree-dominated vegetation and bare so ils at the microhabitat level. This particular habitat selection increases the propensity for casualties due to illegal collection, accidental road de aths or nest losses because of ploughing. However, chameleons were not pres ent in nearby natural environments in which these sources of mortality are much less intense or absent. We suggest that the sustainability of chameleo n populations requires a combination of maintaining traditional human rand uses and the adoption of preventive measures, such as road barriers in some selected sites or the protection of safe sites for nesting, since both the more aggressive human pressures (settlements for tourism) and the promotio n of natural landscapes (reforestation) could be negative for the species. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.