With the Fantastic Beasts franchise kicking into full gear, the magical creatures of the Harry Potter universe are receiving much more attention. J.K. Rowling has shown her creativity in creating fantastical creatures to fill her world and has managed to spin off a whole new series around the idea.
Though Rowling has shown that there is much more to the world of Harry Potter than the merely traditional, there are always the iconic creatures that really make an impression. The dragons in Harry Potter stand out as a remarkable mixture of the classic fantasy beast mixed with Rowling’s creativity. From the first book in the series, when Hagrid takes on a baby dragon of his own to the thrilling escape from Gringotts on the back of a dragon, Dragons have a special place throughout the books. The dragons of Harry Potter manage to feel unique because of the wild variance in species and characteristics that Rowling gives. In the books, we see the Hungarian Horntail in particular given a reputation as an extremely fearsome species when Harry has to face one in the Triwizard tournament. Through Pottermore and other sources, Rowling has fleshed out other species of dragon in the same ways.
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Norwegian Ridgeback
This dragon was the reader’s first glimpse of one in the Harry Potter series. Hagrid buys a dragon egg off a mysterious stranger in a bar and raises it till it hatches. Hagrid names the little dragon Norbert. This was a great way for Rowling to show the loving and caring nature of Hagrid while also showing that at times he can be a little reckless in his care for magical creatures. It sets up Hagrid’s tenure as a teacher incredibly well. It turns out that Norbert is a girl and apparently they are much more vicious. According to Rowling, Norwegian Ridgebacks like to hunt water-dwelling creatures and have even eaten a baby whale whole.
Antipodean Opaleye
This dragon is the showcase of what a magnificent dragon can be. The dragon is known for its beauty and has scales that shimmer in the light. Coming from New Zealand and Australia, they have found an interesting prey, hunting kangaroos on occasion. The dragon finds its name from its multi-colored eyes.
Common Welsh Green
These dragons are like the garden snake of the wizarding world. They are extremely common (if it wasn’t obvious by the name) and tend to be not too dangerous. They feed on mostly sheep and leave humans alone. This dragon is most well known for being the one that Fleur faces in the Triwizard Tournament. She was lucky to pull it, as it doesn’t present too much of a threat, at least compared to other dragons. Their natural habitat is in the mountains where they can blend in with the green of the grass. According to Rowling, there is a reservation specifically to preserve these dragons.
Chinese Fireball
This dragon is bright red and is the one that Viktor Krum faced during the Triwizard Tournament. Coming from China, its eggs are highly sought after by Chinese wizards, due to being specked with gold. They are pretty dangerous, especially because they get their name from their tendency to shoot massive balls of fire out of their snout. Another name for the beast is the “liondragon.” One of its distinctive feature is the golden spikes which line its face.
Swedish Short Snout
Cedric Diggory was presented with this dragon during his challenge and as far as dragons go there are worse options. The species isn’t especially dangerous and hasn’t killed too many humans. Though it is on the less deadly side, there are some interesting aspects to the dragon. It is known for having a blue flame when it breathes fire and it has silvery blue skin that has a lot of uses, as protective gloves and shields are made from the hide of a Swedish Short Snout.
Peruvian Vipertooth
This dragon species is especially interesting. They are the color of copper and extremely venomous. They are known for being on the smaller side, but that does not mean that they are any less deadly, as the species is notorious for killing humans and wizards had to purposefully hunt them down to try and lessen their population.
Ukrainian Ironbelly
Though it is never explicitly stated, this is most likely the type of dragon that Harry, Ron, and Hermione escaped on when they made their way out of Gringotts. It has bright red eyes, grayscales and is the largest of all the dragon breeds. They are incredibly vicious and it’s obvious why the goblins chose this species to guard their vaults.
Hebridean Black
The Hebridean Black is named for the islands off the coast of Scotland, the Hebrides, as the dragon resides in that area. Able to grow up to 30 feet long, the Hebridean Black is most notable for its purple eyes and spike on its tail. Rowling has described the dragon as having “bat-like” wings.
Romanian Longhorn
This dragon is notable for many different reasons and its natural habitat even became the central place for wizards to go who were interested in studying dragons. In the books, Charlie spends time in Romania for this very reason. Even though it can breathe fire and has large claws, the Romanian Longhorn prefers to use the horn on its head to hunt its prey. These horns became extremely valuable and extinction was a serious danger for the species.
Hungarian Horntail
This dragon species is known for being particularly dangerous. Harry had to fight one during the Triwizard Tournament and only succeeded by summoning his broom and using his talent for flying to get away. The dragon is vicious and has no shortage of ways to end a life. It’s covered in spikes all the way from its head to its tail and will use them as a weapon. As if that wasn’t enough, the Hungarian Horntail is also capable of shooting a flame over 50 feet. There’s definitely a reason why it’s known as the most dangerous of dragon breeds. Hagrid even went so far as to give a special warning about it in particular in The Goblet of Fire.
