Goodbye Grandma Sophie
The oldest-known Knysna dwarf chameleon, Sophie, died on Sunday at the ripe old age of nine years and eight months after defying all the odds and living nearly twice her expected age.
Knysna expert Aldo Kleyn began caring for chameleons 13 years ago, and a few years into his journey he rescued Sophie from the middle of Knysna’s main street amid traffic as she was trying to cross the road.
Over the course of the years, Sophie would change Kleyn’s life completely, as they developed a bond like no other, with Kleyn eventually being able to call her over to him by using “sign language”. Sophie gave birth to 158 babies in her time, with her latest litter consisting of 24 babies.
She died naturally from old age (she was about 96 years old in chameleon years!) on Sunday 14 July, at about 06:00, with Kleyn by her side, before he laid her to rest under the big tree in their garden.
“We shared one final look at each other and said our final goodbyes before she drew her final breath.”
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Kleyn has dedicated thousands of hours to the plight of these little creatures and has released litter upon litter in Knysna’s surrounding forests to ensure their survival. Follow his page Knysna Dwarf Chameleon on Facebook for more insight.