There is a popular video on the Internet about a lizard crawling on colored pencils - as soon as it crawls onto a new pencil, the color of its skin changes dramatically. We decided to check if this video is true.

Videodemonstrating how a chameleon rises with colored pencils and changes color as you go, place on entertaining websites, video hosting sites and in social networks. It is popular both in Runet and in the English-speaking segment of the Internet. For example, in TikTok video dialed almost 1.5 million likes and 13,000 comments.

Chameleons really have the ability to change its color. This transformation is possible thanks to two types of cells: chromatophores and iridophores. The former contain pigments of different colors, the latter are responsible for the reflection and scattering of light. Chromatophores and iridophores provide the chameleon with a wide range of possible shades, including those shown in the viral video.

Original video published on Instagram* by @Pardalischamereon June 21, 2020. The account is dedicated to the life of a Madagascan chameleon named Dali. In the posted photos and videos it is depicted in a variety of colors: saturated emerald green, yellow-green, turquoise and almost white. However, in the viral video of the pencils, Japanese writing appears in the final frames.

Using image recognition and translation services, you can find out that the last frame is a notification that this is an edited video.

The same disclaimer is placed in the caption under the video. Moreover, the author of the video was asked in the comments whether the colors were edited. He replied that the animal's color was changed using Adobe's Premiere Pro program.

There is another post on the @Pardalischamereon page, which is a selection of identical video with the same chameleon, and each animal has a new skin color. There the author also placed a corresponding disclaimer about the use of editing.

Moreover, the chameleon changing skin color while moving across different colored pencils is implausible. Contrary to popular belief, chameleons change their color not for the purpose of mimicry, but to express emotions - during “duels» males and courtship during the mating season, and also depending on temperature environment.

Thus, the video showing how a chameleon changes its color while climbing colored pencils is the result of the use of special computer programs. The author of the video made a disclaimer about this in good faith, but most viral publications are silent about this, which misleads the audience.

*Russian authorities think Meta Platforms Inc., which owns the social networks Facebook and Instagram, is an extremist organization; its activities in Russia are prohibited.

Correction as of September 21, 2023: Originally in this text it was saidthat the disclaimer in the video is written in Chinese. However, it is actually Japanese.

Cover image: @Pardalischamereon, Instagram