A Hippogriff is a wizarding beast in the Harry Potter book series and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. It has the head of an eagle, body of a horse and twelve-foot wings.
About[]
Owners of Hippogriffs have to put a Disillusionment Charm on them every day to distort the vision of any Muggle they could encounter.[2]
Appearance[]
A Hippogriff
Hippogriffs have the body of a horse including hind legs and tails[3] with the head of an giant[1] eagle. They have steel-coloured beaks and large orange eyes. Their talons are sharp and steely and around half a foot long. They also have scaly legs and powerful twelve-foot wings.[3] Their coats have hair and gleaming feathers in a variety of colours including grey, bronze, pinkish roan, chestnut and inky black.[3] A Hippogriff will lay a single and fragile egg in a nest they've built upon the ground, which hatches within twenty-four hours. Within a week, ghe fledging will be ready to fly on short journeys. Within months, it will be able to fly far.[1]
Behaviour[]
A hatched, baby Hippogriff
Hippogriffs burrow for insects to eat but are known to eat birds and small mammals[1], including ferrets.[4] They are very proud creatures. They have to treated with respect or they provide a dangerous response. The way to approach a Hippogriff is slowly, keeping eye contact, and with a bow to show good intentions. If the Hippogriff bows back, then it is safe get closer and touch them. If they don't, they will likely attack using their talons. They can understand what people are saying.[3] Hippogriff-baiting was once used in defence of a Hippogriff at a hearing.[5]
A Hippogriff can be tamed but only by an expert.[1]
History[]
Before the International Statute of Secrecy, witches and wizards were persecuted by Muggles throughout the Middle Ages. Hippogriff sightings happened often to the point that it contributed to the hysteria towards the wizarding world.[6]
In 1269, Modesty Rabnott was fined ten Galleons by Chief Barberus Bragge for interfering with a Quidditch game where he tried to introduce Snidget-hunting. She could not afford to pay so they took her house, but let her keep her Hippogriff.[7]
In 1722, a Hippogriff was convicted for an unknown incident and killed in a brutal way. Another Hippogriff was once let free after a hearing with its defence of Hippogriff-baiting.[5]
Newton Scamander's mother was a breeder of fancy Hippogriffs.[8]
In September 1993, Hogwarts School had a Hippogriff paddock. They kept twelve Hippogriffs, including Buckbeak. They were used to teach third-years students including Harry Potter, who rode Buckbeak. Draco Malfoy later insulted Buckbeak and got attacked, and got a deep, long gash in his arm.[3] Buckbeak was later investigated by the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures and sentenced to a beheading, but he escaped.[9]
Known Hippogriffs[]
Notes and sources[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: An A-Z of Fantastic Beasts (Hippogriff)
- ↑ Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Introduction (Magical Beasts in Hiding, Disillusionment Charms)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 6
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 14
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 11
- ↑ Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Introduction (A Brief History of Muggle Awareness of Fantastic Beasts)
- ↑ Quidditch Through the Ages, Chapter Four: The Arrival of the Golden Snitch
- ↑ Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: About the Author
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 16