the green anole lizard is usually sold in pet shops as a chameleon by which name it has been known to generations of America children. The true chameleon and the green anole are actually different animals but they do have much in common. They are both lizards. Most live in trees or bushes, subsisting mainly on insects Both can change color, although the anole's ability to do so is consideradly more limited than the chameleon's. This is the trait that has made chameleons and anoles popular as pets.