PROF KRYSTAL TOLLEY​

Prof Tolley is the research leader of the Leslie Hill Molecular Ecology Laboratory at the South African National Biodiversity Institute. The research laboratory focuses on using genetic and ecological approaches to further investigate and catalogue biodiversity in Southern Africa. The laboratory works on various taxa, especially reptiles and amphibians, with the goal of understanding the processes that have led to the evolution of biodiversity in Southern Africa.  Krystal Tolley has worked on chameleons since coming to South Africa in 2001. She has spent many hours studying chameleons in the field “and even more time in the DNA lab, uncovering the secrets of their evolution, relationships, and taxonomy.”  Her book, Chameleons of Southern Africa, came about “because so many people had so many questions about chameleons – how many babies do they have, how can you tell females and males apart, what do they eat” and because, “amazingly – there was no readily available book on the natural history of chameleons.” She has recently dsecribed three new chameleon species, one of which is only found in the Grootvadersbosch Forest.