Magical creatures

From Auguries to werewolves and Bowtruckles to Occamy, a diverse menagerie of exotic magical beasts live inside J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World. Read on to learn about the many magical creatures of the Harry Potter universe.

'Harry Potter' magical creatures
A menagerie of colourful and exotic magical creatures live in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts universe.

A

Abraxan: gigantic and powerful palomino winged horse.

Acromantula: eight-eyed giant black-haired spider capable of human speech; usually inhabits dense jungles.

Acromantulas
Acromantulas in the Hogwarts Forbidden Forest.

Aethonan: chestnut-coloured winged horse popular in Britain and Ireland.

Ashwinder: thin pale-grey serpent which hatches from fires left to burn too long; lives for only one hour in which time it lays eggs and then ignites and burns, causing the eggs to hatch.

Augurey (Irish Phoenix): greenish-black vulture-like bird found natively in Britain and Ireland, looks mournful and shy; said to foretell death.

B

Banshee: malevolent Irish-native Dark spirit creature which takes the form of a skeletal green-tinged zombie-like woman and has a fatal cry.

Basilisk: large green serpent with venomous fangs; looking a Basilisk in the eyes causes instant death while viewing its eyes by reflection causes petrification.

Billywig
The Billywig is a swift-moving sapphire-blue insect native to Australia.

Billywig: swift-moving sapphire-blue insect native to Australia; its sting causes giddiness and levitation.

Blast-Ended Skrewt: aggressive crab-like creature illegally cross-bread from the Manticore and Fire Crab and covered in grey scaly armour; head end is a stinger (male) or sucker (female) and its rear end shoots fire.

Boggart: shape-shifting creature which takes the physical form of a person’s worst fear, its true form is unknown; repelled by laughter.

Bowtruckle: small green stick insect like tree guardian with long sharp fingers and natural camouflage ability; nests in trees with suitable wand wood and is intensely shy.

Bundimun: green many-eyed sludge-like pest known to infest houses; recognised by a foul smell of decay.

C

Centaur: intelligent creature with the body of a horse and head of a human; exceptionally proud and skilled in divination and astronomy.

Chimaera: rare Greek monster with the head of a lion, body of a goat and tail of a dragon; vicious and bloodthirsty.

Chizpurfle: parasitic crab-like creature with fangs; attracted by magic and (in the Muggle world) electricity.

Chupacabra: blue and red lizard-like blood-sucking creature with six legs; native to North and Central America.

Clabbert: tree-dwelling hybrid creature which resembles a monkey and frog; has webbed hands and feet, small horns, sharp teeth and a large red forehead pustule.

Cockatrice: dangerous dragon-like hybrid creature with the head and body of a rooster and tail of a lizard.

Crup: dog-like creature which resembles a Jack Russell Terrier with a forked tail, originating in the Southeast of England; likely bred by Wizards as aggressive towards Muggles.

D

Dementor: gliding and cloaked blind human-shaped foul Dark creature with rotting grey skin; feeds on and drains happiness and positive emotion.

Demiguise: monkey-like creature which can tell the future and turn invisible when threatened; native to the Far East and has fur suitable for invisibility cloaks.

Demiguise
The Demiguise can tell the future and turn invisible.

Diricawl: plump flightless bird native to Mauritius and capable of disappearing and reappearing at will; known to Muggles as the dodo (who mistakenly attribute disappearances to extinction).

Doxy: small fairy-like creature (‘biting fairy’) with an extra set of arms and legs; a household pest capable of a venomous bite.

Dragon (Antipodean Opaleye): dragon native to Australia and New Zealand, eats sheep and is rarely aggressive; said to the most beautiful dragon species.

Dragon (Chinese Fireball): red and gold dragon with a fringe of golden spikes, native to China and also known as the Liondragon; named for the balls of fire it shoots from its nostrils.

Dragon (Common Welsh Green): green dragon native to Wales with a distinct musical roar; less aggressive than other dragons and prefers to eat sheep and small animals.

Dragon (Hebridean Black): rough-scaled dragon with brilliant purple eyes, an arrow-shaped spiked tail and bat-like wings; native to the islands north of Scotland and more aggressive than its Welsh counterpart.

Dragon (Norwegian Ridgeback): skinny dragon with spiny wings, native to Norway; has large nostrils, stubby horns and bulging orange eyes.

Dragon (Peruvian Vipertooth): smooth-scaled copper-coloured dragon and the smallest of the known species; has venomous fangs and a taste for humans.

Dragon (Romanian Longhorn): green-scaled dragon native to Romania; has long golden horns (sought-after by witches and wizards) which it uses to stab prey.

Hungarian Horntail dragon
Harry battled a Hungarian Horntail dragon during the Triwizard Tournament.

Dragon (Swedish Short-Snout): silvery-blue dragon native to Sweden with the ability to shoot blue flames from its nostrils; its silvery hide is used in protective gloves and shields.

Dragon (Ukrainian Ironbelly): metallic grey-scaled dragon with red eyes and long talons; the largest breed of dragon in the Wizarding World.

Dugbog: marsh-dwelling fish-like creature native to Europe and North and South America; resembles dead wood when stationary and feeds on small animals and Mandrakes.

E

Erkling: green elf-like creature with a pointed face, likes to eat children and has an alluring high-pitched cackle; shoots darts at unsuspecting victims.

Erumpent: large African-native rhinoceros-like beast with a single fiery horn; its horn contains a deadly fluid that causes injected objects to explode.

F

Fairy: small winged human-like creature with colourful or translucent insect wings; is vain with diminutive intelligence and lives in woodlands or glades.

Erumpent
The Erumpent has a large horn with a fluid that causes objects to explode.

Fire Crab: large Fijian-native tortoise-like creature with a brightly-coloured and heavily-jewelled shell; shoots fire from its backside when attacked.

Flobberworm: ten-inch toothless brown worm which lives in damp ditches and eats lettuce; its mucus is often used as a thickening agent in potions.

Fwooper: magical African-native bird with feathers of vivd and bright pink, orange, yellow and green, and a high-pitched song which will slowly drive the listener insane; its feathers are used as quills.

G

Ghost: floating transparent three-dimensional imprint of a once-living person or animal; can pass through solid objects.

Grawp
Hagrid’s half-brother Grawp was a giant.

Ghoul: slimy buck-toothed ogre-like creature which inhabits attics and barns; has low intelligence and feeds on bugs and household pests.

Giant: enormous and hairy human-like creature with a violent temper; lives in tribal communities and inhabits mountains.

Glumbumble: grey bee-like flying insect native to Northern Europe; produces a treacle known to induce melancholy.

Gnome: small human-like pest with a large head, razor-sharp teeth and bony feet; infests gardens across Europe and North America.

Goblin: small and cunning highly intelligent human-like creature with long ears, fingers and feet; skilled in its own brand of wandless magic and metalwork.

Granian: grey winged horse known for speed and swiftness; its hair is used in potions.

Graphorn
Newt Scamander’s rescued Graphorn.

Graphorn: large and aggressive greyish-purple hump-backed creature with thick skin and two long sharp golden horns; walks on four thumbed-feet and inhabits mountains across Europe.

Griffin: large hybrid creature with the head, wings and front legs of an eagle and body, hind legs and tail of a lion; capable of flight.

Grindylow: small and aggressive horned octopus-like water demon with a large bulbous head and pale-green skin; native to Britain and Ireland and dwells in weeds at the bottom of lakes.

H

Hag: savage being which resemble a warty and old ugly witch; possesses basic magical ability and has a taste for the flesh of children.

Hidebehind: vicious and nocturnal hybrid forest-dwelling creature which preys on humans, the result of breeding a Demiguise and Ghoul; tall with silver hair and can turn invisible.

Hinkypunk: one-legged wispy blue-grey smoke-like creature which carries a lantern to lure travellers into bogs and wetlands; can shoot fireballs from its lantern.

Hippocampus: large blue-green hybrid water-dwelling creature with the head and forequarters of a horse and the tail and hindquarters of an enormous fish; its young are called ‘tadfoal’ and hatch from large, semi-transparent eggs.

Dobby the house-elf
House-elves have a unique brand of powerful wandless magic.

Hippogriff: large hybrid creature with the head, forequarters and wings of an eagle and the body, hindquarters and tail of a horse; has large talons, a razor-sharp beak and is capable of flight.

Hodag: small four-legged dog-sized creature with a frog-like head and glowing red eyes; has a large horn and dwells in Muggle farms where it feeds primarily on Mooncalves.

Horklump: small pink fleshy mushroom-like creature covered in corse black bristles; breeds rapidly and can infest a garden in days.

Horned Serpent: large water-dwelling horned snake which emits a low musical note to signal danger; some species have a forehead jewel said to grant invisibility and flight.

House-elf: small elf-like creature with a long nose and fingers, large bulging eyes and bat-like ears; has unique wandless magical ability and is fiercely loyal and bound to serve unless freed with clothing.

I

Imp: small grey wingless pixie-like creature with yellow eyes, found across Britain and Ireland; lives in marshland and revels in pushing and tripping those who come across it.

Inferius: pale-white skeletal human corpse reanimated with Dark Magic.

J

Jarvey: overgrown ferret-like creature with a long bushy tail and sharp teeth, capable of human speech; known for hunting gnomes.

Jobberknoll: small blue speckled bird found across northern Europe and North America; makes no sound until the moment before death when it screams and regurgitates every sound it has ever heard backwards.

K

Kappa: monkey-like Japanese water demon which inhabits shallow bodies of water and has fish scales and webbed hands and feet; holds water in a hole in its head and feeds on human blood.

Kelpie
Newt rides his Kelpie, a shape-shifting water demon.

Kelpie: shape-shifting water demon native to Britain and Ireland which inhabits rivers and lakes; usually takes the form of a horse with a bulrush mane and eats humans.

Knarl: small magical hedgehog almost identical to its Muggle-world counterpart and found across northern Europe and North America; known to savage gardens.

Kneazle: small spotted, speckled or flecked cat-like creature with large ears and a lion-like tail; highly intelligent and capable of detecting untrustworthy individuals.

L

Leprechaun (Clauricorn): small green mischievous human-like creature native to Ireland.

Lethifold: gliding and cloaked Dementor-like Dark creature which lives in tropical climates and feeds on humans.

Lobalug: ten-inch aquatic creature which resembles a yellow rubbery sack with spout; spits venom at attackers and is found at the bottom of the North Sea.

M

Mackled Malaclaw: grey black-spotted lobster-like creature found across the European coastline; its bite causes bad luck.

Manticore: rare and dangerous Greek-native beast with the head of a man, body of a lion and tail of a scorpion; capable of human speech and has skin which repels all known charms and a stinger which causes instant death.

Mooncalves
At the full moon Mooncalves perform a mating dance — the actual cause of crop circles.

Matagot: large black cat-like creature with bright blue eyes; vicious when provoked and capable of multiplying.

Merpeople: hybrid half fish and half human underwater creature with greyish skin, dark green hair and yellow eyes and teeth.

Moke: ten-inch silver-green lizard-like creature which can shrink at will; native to Great Britain and Ireland.

Mooncalf: young bovine-like creature with smooth pale-grey skin, thin legs with large hooves, a long neck and bulging blue-green eyes; comes out during the full moon to perform a mating dance which creates crop circles.

Murtlap: rat-like marine creature with a tentacle-like growth on its back, found in costal areas in Britain; its bite causes sweating and twitching and, in serious cases, flames to shoot from the victim’s rear end.

N

Niffler
Nifflers are attracted to shiny objects and metals and make great treasure hunters.

Niffler: long-snouted and black-furred platypus-like rodent creature with a deep pouch for storing treasures; has an affinity for shiny objects and metals and is a skilled treasure hunter.

Nogtail: long-legged demon piglet creature with a thick stubby tail and narrow black eyes; suckles pigs which places a curse upon the farm.

Nundu: yellow and black-spotted giant leopard-like East African beast with toxic breath capable of killing an entire village.

O

Occamy: extremely aggressive blue-green plumed two-legged purple-winged snake native to the Far East and India; grows and shrinks to fit available space and produces silver eggs.

P

Phoenix: red and gold plumed swan-sized magical bird with a golden beak and talons, healing tears and a long peacock-length tail capable of carrying immense loads; bursts into flame upon death and is reborn from the ashes.

Pixie: small electric-blue mischievous fairy-like creature with long limbs and ears; wingless but capable of flight and capable of carrying heavy loads.

Pygmy Puff
Ginny Weasley’s Pygmy Puff is a miniature Puffskein.

Plimpy: yellowish round magical fish-like creature with long thin legs and webbed feet; lives in deep lakes.

Pogrebin: small grey Russian demon creature with a large head which resembles a rock; follows humans and and eats them after inducing feelings of lethargy and despair, causing the victim to fall to their knees.

Poltergeist: indestructible spirit entity which causes chaos; usually without physical form.

Porlock: two-foot high horse-like creature with rough shaggy hair, a large nose and small arms with four stubby fingers; walks on two cloven-hooves and guards horses.

Puffskein: small custard-coloured fury spherical creature with a long thin pink tongue; resistant to being tightly squeezed or thrown and emits a low humming sound when content.

Q

Quintaped: five-legged club-footed creature with red-brown fur native to the Isle of Drear off the northernmost tip of Scotland; hostile and eats humans.

R

Ramora: giant silver fish native to the Indian Ocean which anchors ships in place.

Red Cap: small green dwarf-like creature with a red cap dyed with human blood; attracted to human blood and bludgeons victims to death.

Re’em: rare giant ox-like creature with golden fur native to North America and the Far East; drinking its blood increases strength.

Runespoor: bright orange and black striped scaly three-headed snake native to Burkina Faso; grows to six or seven feet.

S

Salamander: scarlet red fire-dwelling lizard-like creature which lives as long as the fire it was birthed from continues to burn; its blood has regenerative and healing properties.

Sea serpent: giant ocean-dwelling sea creature with a horse-like head and serpentine-like body; peaceful temperament and non-threatening to humans.

Swooping Evil
The Swooping Evil feeds on human brains and has a venom capable of removing bad memories.

Shrake: spiny fish-like creature native to the Atlantic Ocean; created by wizards in retaliation for insults from Muggles and known for destroying Muggle fishing nets.

Snallygaster: hybrid dragon-like magical beast resembling both a bird and reptile and native to North America; has serrated steel fangs and a bulletproof hide.

Snidget: small round walnut-sized fury golden bird with a long thin beak, bright red eyes and rotational wings; an agile flier and was used in primitive Quidditch matches before it inspired the invention of the Golden Snitch.

Sphinx: hybrid Egyptian-native beast with the head of a human and body of a lion; violent, highly intelligent and capable of human speech.

Streeler: giant African-native magical snail which changes colour hourly and has toxic spikes on its shell; produces a slimy venomous trail capable of destroying vegetation.

Swooping Evil: large blue and green spiky-winged butterfly-like creature which shrinks into a spiky-green cocoon when not in flight; feeds on human brains and produces a venom capable of erasing bad memories.

T

Thestral: rare skeletal black horse with leathery bat-like wings; only visible to those who have seen death.

Thestral
Thestrals are one of the four known varieties of winged horse and are only visible to those who have witnessed death.

Three-headed dog: large rare canine creature with a single body and three heads; falls asleep when played music.

Thunderbird: large golden-white eagle-like bird native to America and commonly found in Arizona; highly sensitive to danger and can create storms as it flies.

Tebo: dangerous ash-coloured warthog-like creature which can turn invisible; native to Congo and Zaire.

Troll: large aggressive giant-like creature with low intelligence and immense strength; different species inhabit forests, mountains and rivers.

U

Unicorn: single-horned and golden-hooved pure-white horse which begins life as a golden-coloured foal; the horn, hair and blood all have immensely powerful magical properties.

V

Vampire: human-like Dark creature which bites victims on the neck and sucks their blood.

Veela: semi-human Bulgarian-native creature which resembles a young, attractive, beautiful women with white-gold hair and moon-bright skin; its alluring and hypnotic dance is highly seductive.

W

Wampus cat: light brown and white-furred yellow-eyed cat native to the Appalachian Mountains and capable of walking on its hind legs; fast and powerful and capable of hypnosis and Legilimency (mind reading).

Werewolf (lycanthrope): human being who painfully transforms into a deadly wolf at the full moon; can infect other human beings by biting them.

Zouwu
The Zouwu is an enormous elephant-sized cat capable of superhuman speed.

Y

Yeti: large human-like white-grey hairy magical beast native to Tibet; often called the Abominable Snowman or Bigfoot by Muggles.

Z

Zouwu: large orange elephant-sized cat-like creature with a striped body, scraggly mane, long multicoloured tail, four fangs and long sharp claws; native to China and capable of superhuman speed.