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Aim  The high amount of species diversity concentrated in southern Africa has been attributed to palaeoclimatic factors, and the timing of radiations in some taxa corresponds to global palaeoclimatic trends. Using dwarf chameleons (Bradypodion: Chamaeleonidae) as a model system, we explored the relationship between palaeoclimatic fluctuations and cladogenesis with respect to both temporal and spatial patterns in an effort to understand the process of speciation in southern Africa.

Location  South Africa, with particular emphasis on the Cape Floristic Region and the Maputaland–Pondoland–Albany hotspot.

Methods  Mitochondrial sequence data (ND2 and 16S) were used to estimate the timing of major radiations and to examine the number of lineages through time. A dated phylogeny was constructed using Bayesian phylogenetic reconstruction, and a Bayesian relaxed molecular clock was used to …