Creatures We Would Like to See in "Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore"

Shock waves rippled through the wizarding world fandom when the name and release date for the long-awaited and highly anticipated third installment of the Fantastic Beasts franchise was announced. 

Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore is set to hit screens on April 15, 2022 and Wizarding World Digital has given us a peek at what we can expect from the film’s plot:​

“Professor Albus Dumbledore knows the powerful Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald is moving to seize control of the wizarding world. Unable to stop him alone, he entrusts Magizoologist Newt Scamander to lead an intrepid team of wizards, witches, and one brave Muggle baker on a dangerous mission, where they encounter old and new beasts and clash with Grindelwald’s growing legion of followers. But with the stakes so high, how long can Dumbledore remain on the sidelines?”

While we expect that our favorites from Newt’s suitcase and the phoenix Credence is caring for will be back, we’re also hoping to meet some new, never-seen-before-on-screen creatures. 

It’s got us thinking about which ones we’d like to see in The Secrets of Dumbledore. 

Read on to see some of our top picks!

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Dragon

​​The Harry Potter series gave us a good dose of dragon screentime, from Norberta the Norwegian Ridgeback, to the Hungarian Horntail at the Triwizard Tournament, to the Ukrainian Ironbelly who guarded the Lestrange Vault at Gringotts Wizarding Bank. (Fun fact: Newt Scamander notably worked with Ironbellies during World War I).

There are ten breeds of dragon in the wizarding world. We’ve picked out three that we haven’t seen on screen before, but as lovers of all creatures, we wouldn’t say no to any of the other seven (or their hybrids)!

First, we’ve gone for the Peruvian Vipertooth, the smallest of all known dragons. 
At only fifteen feet in length, they are smooth-scaled with black ridged markings and are known for their venomous bites. 

When Vipertooth numbers began increasing rapidly in the late 19th century (after it was discovered that they were eating humans), the International Confederation of Wizards sent in exterminators to reduce their numbers. 

We are certain that Newt wouldn’t have been happy about this, and might therefore have a soft spot for these creatures. This dragon is native to Peru, not far from where part of the new film might be taking place!

Since most of the Harry Potter series takes place in Scotland, we’d love to see Scotland’s native dragon: the Hebridean Black. They are rough-scaled with purple eyes and a line of razor-sharp ridges along their backs, tails tipped with arrow-shaped spikes, and bat-like wings. 

The Scottish wizarding clan, MacFusty, who have lived in the Hebrides for centuries, have taken on responsibility for their native dragons. We think it would be incredibly interesting to meet this clan.

Our final dragon pick is the Romanian Longhorn. They have dark green scales and golden horns, which are considered highly valuable in potion-making (sadly resulting in the deaths of many of them). 

Images from "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Illustrated Edition"

After an intensive breeding program, their population has gone up. Their horns are defined as Class B Tradeable Materials, meaning they are dangerous and subject to strict control. 

There’s a bit more work needed on the Romanian Longhorn front to get their horns into the Class A Non-Tradable Goods category, something we think Newt would feel very strongly about.
 
The next question is: In what circumstances would the characters of The Secrets of Dumbledore be to end up facing a dragon? 

Since Newt already has prior experience with dragons, we’d hope that if he came into contact with another one, he’d know how to act and what to do. 

Maybe, like the Ukrainian Ironbelly who guarded the Lestrange vault, the main characters will come across one who is also being used as a guard for something. 

Perhaps we’ll see one being exploited by humans for their hide, blood, heart, liver, or horn, all of which have highly magical properties, and then rescued by our heroes. Or maybe part of Newt’s journey will take us to the shadowy world of illegal trading of magical goods, such as dragon eggs, which he will then put an end to.

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Image from "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Illustrated Edition"

Tebo

​Tebos are ash-colored, warthog-like creatures. They are found in Africa and are particularly hard to catch because they can make themselves invisible. Their hide is very strong, meaning they are prized by wizards to make protective shields and clothing.

This is something that is very relevant for non-magical creatures in the Muggle world, such as warthogs and wild boars, both of whom are hunted for sport.

If Newt were to meet one, we would hopefully get some much-needed animal rights content, like we see in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, as he attempts to educate others on why it is wrong to exploit creatures for profit. ​

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Ilvermorny House Mascots

The Fantastic Beasts series has introduced us to the North American side of the wizarding world, name dropping the United States-based wizarding school, Illvermorny. 

Each of the school’s Houses are named after the four founders’ favorite creatures: Horned Serpent, Wampus, Thunderbird, and Pukwudgie.

We’ve already met Frank the Thunderbird in the first Fantastic Beasts film, so we’d love to be introduced to the other House representatives. 

We think all three of the other creatures, with their own magical powers and tricks, would prove to be interesting to behold. 

Horned Serpents are snakes who are most commonly found in North America. These magical serpents have a pair of small horns and a jewel encrusted in their forehead. The jewel is rumored to grant powers of flight and invisibility, while shavings from their horns are considered powerful wand cores. Because of this, Horned Serpents have historically been hunted and harmed. Newt standing up on behalf of Horned Serpents and advocating to protect them is something we’d love to see.

Wampus Cats are felines who resemble mountain lions and live in the Appalachian Mountains. They are able to walk on their hind legs and they have yellow eyes with the power of hypnosis and Legilimency. Wampus Cats are fast, intelligent, and powerful.

Distantly related to the European goblin, Pukwudgies are short, gray, and large-eared creatures who possess their own powerful magic. They are fiercely independent and not fond of Muggles or the wizarding community. As a result, they enjoy playing tricks on humans.

Images from "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Illustrated Edition"

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Image from "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Illustrated Edition"

Golden Snidget

​The Golden Snidget is an extremely rare and protected species of bird. They are completely round with long, thin beaks and red eyes. They are capable of very fast flight and are able to change direction with astonishing speed, thanks to the rotational joints in their wings. 

The Golden Snidget is a truly “golden” example of animals being exploited for human entertainment. They are best known for their use in the wizarding game of Quidditch. The practice began in the 1200s when a Snidget was released during a Quidditch match and the player who caught them was given 150 Galleons. 

Madam Modesty Rabnott protested against the barbaric treatment of the bird by summoning the Snidget to her and releasing them into the wild. Despite her efforts, Snidgets continued to be used in Quidditch, with the prize changing from 150 Galleons to 150 points. 

However, it was eventually realized that the sport had considerably harmed the species. When they were close to extinction, Golden Snidgets were declared a protected species and classified as XXXX, not because they were dangerous, but because severe penalties were given to anyone who captured or injured the species.

The Modesty Rabnott Snidget Reservation was founded in Somerset, England, and Snidgets were eventually replaced by the Golden Snitch.

Snidget sanctuaries exist worldwide, so wherever Newt and his team venture, perhaps they’ll bump into this adorable species along the way.

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Diricawl

​A Diricawl is a plump, fluffy-feathered, flightless bird known for their remarkable method of escaping danger-- they can vanish in a puff of feathers and reappear elsewhere. 

We think it would be an interesting encounter, especially for Jacob, because Muggles were once aware of the Diricawl’s existence -- knowing them as the Dodo bird. 

Unaware that the creature could vanish into thin air, Muggles thought the bird had been hunted to extinction. In order to protect the species, it was decided that Muggles should never be made aware that the Dodo continued to live on. 

If Jacob encountered a Diricawl, he may have to swear an oath to never reveal their existence to the Muggle community.

Image from "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Illustrated Edition"

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Image from "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: Illustrated Edition"

Hippocampus

​​Our final choice is the Hippocampus, which some people might rightfully think of as a part of the brain within the temporal lobe. 

However, in the wizarding world, the Hippocampus is an underwater creature with the head and body of a horse and the tail of a fish. 

The Hippocampus is derived from Greek mythology, with “hippos” meaning “horse” and “kampos” meaning “sea monster.” 

According to Newt’s book, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, they are usually found in the Mediterranean. But in 1949, a group of merpeople caught some off the shores of Scotland and subsequently domesticated them. 

This is an interesting case because these creatures appear to have been exploited, not by humans this time, but by merpeople.

Newt’s discovery of the merpeople domesticating the Hippocampus has not yet happened in the Fantastic Beasts timeline. We know that Dumbledore and Grindelwald’s fight doesn’t take place until 1945, which is supposedly when the fifth and final film will take place, but perhaps Newt will come across some Hippocampuses while adventuring through the upcoming films.

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What do you think of our list of creatures? Which creatures would you like to see in Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore?

Whatever happens, we can’t wait to watch The Secrets of Dumbledore and discover which magical creatures Newt and his companions encounter along the way!


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Written by Grace Hurley

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