Rieppeleon

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Cladus: Craniata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Lepidosauromorpha
Superordo: Lepidosauria
Ordo: Squamata
Cladus: Unidentata Episquamata Toxicofera
Subordo: Iguania
Infraordo: Acrodonta

Familia: Chamaeleonidae
Subfamilia: Brookesiinae
Genus: Rieppeleon
Species: R. brachyurus – R. brevicaudatus – R. kerstenii
Name

Rieppeleon Matthee, Tilbury & Townsend, 2004
References

Rieppeleon at the New Reptile Database. Accessed on 11 Mar 2008.

Vernacular names
English: African Leaf Chameleons

Rieppeleon is a genus of small, typically brown chameleons found in forests and savannas in central East Africa (extending slightly into adjacent DR Congo). They are found at low levels in bushes, or on the ground among grass or leaf litter.[1]

Etymology

The genus Rieppeleon was named after Swiss-born American herpetologist Olivier Rieppel (born 1951).[2][3]

The specific name, kerstenii, is in honor of German chemist and geographer Otto Kersten (1839–1900).[3]

The subspecific name, robecchii, is in honor of Italian geologist and explorer Luigi Robecchi Bricchetti (1855–1926).[3]
Taxonomy

Until recently, the species in the genus Rieppeleon were commonly included in the genus Rhampholeon instead.
Species and subspecies

The following species and subspecies are recognized as being valid.[4]

Image	Scientific name	Common Name	Distribution
	Rieppeleon brachyurus (Günther, 1893)	beardless pygmy chameleon	Malawi, Mozambique, and southeastern Tanzania.
	Rieppeleon brevicaudatus (Matschie, 1892)	bearded pygmy chameleon	eastern Usambara and Uluguru Mountains in northeastern Tanzania and Kenya
	Rieppeleon kerstenii (W. Peters, 1868)	Kenya pygmy chameleon	eastern Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and northeastern Tanzania

Nota bene: A binomial authority, or trinomial authority, in parentheses indicates that the species, or subspecies, was originally described in a genus other than Rieppeleon.
References

Spawls, S.; Drewes, R.; Ashe, J. (2002). A Field Guide to the Reptiles of East Africa. Köln: Academic Press. ISBN 0-12-656470-1.
Mattison, Chris; Garbutt, Nick (2012). Chameleons. United States: Firefly Books Inc. p. 92. ISBN 978-1-77085-121-4.
Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Genus Rieppeleon, p. 221; Rieppeleon kerstenii, p. 140; Rhampholeon robecchii, p. 223).

"Rieppeleon ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.

Further reading

Matthee CA, Tilbury CR, Townsend T (2004). "A phylogenetic review of the African leaf chameleons: genus Rhampholeon (Chamaeleonidae): the role of vicariance and climate change in speciation". Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B. 271 (1551): 1967–75. doi:10.1098/rspb.2004.2806. PMC 1691807. PMID 15347522. (Rieppeleon, new genus, p. 1673).