The common chameleon (Chamaeleo chamaeleon) is a species that, in Portugal, only exists in the Algarve, and is at risk of extinction. The biggest threat to the habitats of this reptile, recalls the Ria Formosa Natural Park (PNRF), is the "incessant urban and tourist pressure existing along the entire coastal strip of the Algarve".


The Algarve Chameleon Recovery and Research Center is a winning idea of the 2019 edition of the Youth Participatory Budget Portugal, whose execution, worth 60,000 euros, was awarded to the Vitanativa Association, which will carry out initiatives between Loulé and Vila Real de Santo António.


The biggest action of the project is the "creation of the chameleon interpretation center", at Quinta de Marim, in Olhão, with the "recovery of a building" that will have a "permanent exhibition on the biology and ecology of the common chameleon".


Besides receiving visitors from the Ria Formosa Natural Park, the center intends to be also the "starting point to develop an environmental education plan for schools", having also a scientific component with the welcoming of students to "realize academic works about the species".


A partnership with the "Centro de Recuperação e Investigação de Animais Selvagens" (RIAS) intends to improve conditions for the "treatment of injured chameleons", namely, with the "creation of a terrarium" to facilitate the recovery of the many animals that arrive at the center - "most of them predation targets".

Source: "Público" Newspaper