Dragon/Wizarding World

: "Four fully grown, enormous, vicious-looking dragons were rearing on their hind legs inside an enclosure fenced with thick planks of wood, roaring and snorting torrents of fire were shooting into the dark sky from their open, fanged mouths, fifty feet above the ground on their outstretched necks."
: — The dragons used in the Triwizard Tournament[src]
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Dragons were giant winged, fire-breathing reptilian beasts. Widely regarded as terrifying yet awe-inspiring, they could be found all over the world and were frequently referred to in Asian and medieval European folklore.
Able to fly and breathe fire through their nostrils and mouths, they were one of the most dangerous and hardest to conceal creatures in the wizarding world. Their heartstring could be used as the core of a wand and were designated by Garrick Ollivander as one of the "Supreme Cores", which was a distinction shared by only two other beasts.
The British Ministry of Magic classified them as XXXXX, known wizard killers that were impossible to train or domesticate. Despite how dangerous they were, there were people who were trained to work with them, called dragon keepers, or dragonologists.
A wizard or witch who traded and sold dragon eggs (which was an illegal activity) was referred to as a dragon dealer.
It was a possible, yet rare corporeal form of the Patronus Charm.
== Contents ==
* 1Description
** 1.1Early life
** 1.2Social behaviour
* 2History
* 3Dragons in the wizarding world
** 3.1Uses
** 3.2Books
** 3.3Spells that affected dragons
** 3.4Dragon reserves
* 4Known breeds
* 5Behind the scenes
* 6Appearances
* 7Notes and references
== Description ==
=== Early life ===
: "Your dragon requires a lot of care during these first few months."
: — Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit[src]
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Dragon mothers breathed fire on their eggs to keep them warm. They did not keep their eggs in nests. Newly born dragons were referred to as chicks. The dragon's first fire breaths, usually accompanied by thick grey smoke, appeared when the dragon was around six months old.
However, the ability to fly was normally developed later, at around twelve months, and the dragon would not be fully mature until it was two years old, having developed both of these abilities, and ready to live on its own. Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit stated that you were to feed a baby dragon a bucket of brandy mixed with chicken blood every half hour. This apparently served as a replacement for dragon milk.
=== Social behaviour ===
Not much is known about dragon behaviour, however it seemed that, at least with the Chinese Fireball breed of dragons, females were generally larger and dominant over males. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them stated that sometimes females ousted males from their territories, at least with the Antipodean Opaleye.
It also stated that Fireballs were unusual in that they were willing to share territory with one another, although when it came to other species of dragon, no more than three dragons would share the same territory. This indicated that dragons were highly territorial.
Dragons were generally highly aggressive towards anything, even wizards, and would sometimes attack humans without provocation, such as in the case of the Ilfracombe Incident.
== History ==
The Great Fire of London in 1666 was probably started by a young Welsh Green Dragon kept in the basement of the house in Puddling Lane.
Dragon breeding was outlawed by the Warlocks' Convention of 1709.
In 1799, a Ukranian Ironbelly dragon carried off a Muggle sailing ship, fortunately there was no one aboard the ship at the time.
In 1802, according to an unsubstantiated report off the coast of Norway A Norwegian Ridgeback dragon (supposedly) carries off a whale calf.
Newt Scamander, for a time, worked in the Dragon Research and Restraint Bureau at the Ministry of Magic. He also spent World War I working with Ukrainian Ironbelly dragons on the Eastern Front.
A rogue Welsh Green dragon descended on a beach full of Muggle holidaymakers in 1932. Tilly Toke and her family happened to be there, and her family cast the largest mass of Memory Charms of the century on all the Muggles of Ilfracombe. She was later awarded the Order of Merlin, First Class for her quick action to avoid breaking the International Statute of Secrecy. The Muggles later remember nothing of the incident, with the exception of an old fellow known as Dodgy Dirk, who still claims that a “dirty great flying lizard” attacked him on the beach. However, Muggles do not believe him and consider him to be crazy.
In the 1970s, a rogue Antipodean Opaleye dragon killed several kangaroos in Australia. It was a male, believed to have come to Australia in search of a place to live after being ousted from its territory in New Zealand by a female.
In 1992, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger arrived just in time to see a baby Norwegian Ridgeback emerge from its egg. The baby dragon sneezed some sparks and almost bit Hagrid (who was delighted). The first signs of hatching must have begun by breakfast time, since it was then that Harry, Ron, and Hermione received a note from Hagrid informing them of it. They went to his hut right after their morning Herbology class.
== Dragons in the wizarding world ==
: "It's hard to stop Muggles noticing us if we're keeping dragons in the back garden — anyway, you can't tame dragons, it's dangerous."
: — Dragons and their nature[src]
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Draco Malfoy's first name came from the constellation The Dragon ("Draco" in Latin). The motto of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was Draco dormiens numquam titillandus; Latin for Never tickle a sleeping dragon.
The Hogwarts gamekeeper, Rubeus Hagrid, loved and adored dragons, briefly owning a Norwegian Ridgeback named Norbert, who turned out to be a female and was subsequently renamed Norberta. In 1993, the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, suggested placing dragons to guard the school, after being compelled to remove the Dementors, something that Professor Dumbledore thought Hagrid would be very happy with.
Many useful materials came from dragons, but they were hard to obtain (see Uses below). It took almost half a dozen wizards just to stun a dragon. Muggles believe that dragons are a mere myth, but have been known on occasion to glimpse these beasts and thus the dragon became a huge staple of European and Asian legends. To prevent them from being seen by Muggles, and to protect them from poaching, dragons were kept in dragon reserves around the world, most of which were far from human habitation. Dragons couldn't be domesticated, despite individuals trying to do so.
However, it was possible to condition them via torture to make them somewhat subservient, as Gringotts Wizarding Bank had done to the one guarding the lower vaults, who had been trained to expect pain upon hearing a certain noise. The selling of dragon products was closely regulated by the British Ministry of Magic, and only dragon species that were over-breeding were killed to make these items. Those who studied dragons were known as dragonologists.
A dragon was mentioned in a song heard by Newt Scamander and his friends at the speakeasy known as the Blind Pig in 1926 New York. Also, the curse Fiendfyre produced flames in the shape of dragons, and Gringotts Bank employed dragon feeders. The position included fireproof robes and paid 7 Galleons per week.
=== Uses ===
Dragons were used in the First Task of the Triwizard Tournament of 1994, in which the champions had to retrieve a golden egg from a nesting mother. The varieties used were: the Hungarian Horntail, the Chinese Fireball, the Swedish Short-Snout, and a Welsh Green. Ron Weasley's brother Charlie worked with dragons in Romania at the time, and helped transport the dragons used in the Tournament.
Dragons were also used to guard certain vaults at Gringotts Wizarding Bank, and one was used by Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger to escape the bank following their break-in in 1998.
Though they couldn't be domesticated, there was one known instance of a dragon being used as a mount. In May 1998, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger rode on the back of a dragon, though they had trouble maintaining a grip on their steed, and could not control its flight. During the 1993–1994 school year, before playing in the Quidditch final against Slytherin, Harry dreamed that the Slytherin team were flying on dragons instead of broomsticks. When he awoke he realised that in reality they would not be allowed to ride dragons.
The dragon model, like the model in the First Task of Triwizard Tournament of 1994, was used in a roast chestnuts sale, near Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes, in Diagon Alley to hold the chestnut in place.
Dragon milk could be used to create dragon milk cheese, as noted in the revised edition of Charm Your Own Cheese.
Madam Rosmerta owned a silk dressing gown embroidered with dragons, which she was wearing on the night in June 1997 when Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore apparated back from the Crystal Cave.
There was also a disease called the Dragon Pox in the wizarding world, which was named after the dragon, although it had nothing to do with the creature.
In rare cases, a corporeal Patronus might take the form of a dragon.
Material 	Use
Dragon blood	Albus Dumbledore discovered the twelve uses of dragon blood. The twelfth use was as an oven cleaner. Another one is spot remover. Dragon blood was used in potions within the wizarding world.
Dragon claw 	During the 1995–1996 school year, in the midst of the O.W.L.s, a trade sprang up among the fifth and seventh year students for various supposed brain stimulants. A student named Harold Dingle was offering powdered dragon claw, though Hermione Granger confiscated it, as it turned out to be dried Doxy droppings. Ron Weasley said that dragon claw did work and that it gave your brain a boost, making you cunning for a few hours, though it is not known if this was actually true.
Dragon dung 	Dragon dung was sold by the barrel in Knockturn Alley. It was a rich fertiliser used by students at Hogwarts in Herbology.
Dragon eggs 	Dragon eggs were classified as a Class A Non-Tradeable Material by the British Ministry of Magic. Despite the ban, many dragon eggs could still be found on the black market. Chinese Fireball egg shells were highly prized as potion ingredients by Chinese witches and wizards.
Dragon heart	Dragon heartstring was an exceptionally powerful, and one of the most common kinds of core used in wands.
Dragon horn 	Powdered dragon horn was used in many potions. Romanian Longhorn Horns were listed as a Class B-Tradable Material by the British Ministry of Magic.
Dragon hide 	Dragon hide was used to make clothing. Where Muggles would wear leather, wizards wore dragon hide. The skin was very tough, impervious to some spells, and provided the same physical protection as leather, while at the same time having the same texture and appearance as snake skin. Dragon hide was used to make gloves, boots, jackets and shields. In high demand at the moment was the skin of the Swedish Short-Snout. Fred and George Weasley wore dragon skin jackets when they greeted Harry after his fifth school year. Professor Horace Slughorn had a dragon-skin briefcase, with gold clasps. When Rubeus Hagrid and Olympe Maxime went to be emissaries to the giants, on Albus Dumbledore's behalf, they brought a roll of dragon skin as a gift for the Gurg.
Dragon liver	Dragon liver was sixteen Sickles an ounce, and was often used as an ingredient for potions.
Dragon meat 	When Hagrid returned from his trip to the giants with many injuries (actually acquired from his half-brother Grawp), he put a bloody, green-tinged, dragon meat steak, slightly larger than an average car tire, on his face as it helped the stinging. It is not known if dragon meat was safe for humans to eat but seemed fine for canines.
=== Books ===
: "Tried and tested tips to help you breed dragons, including the old-time favourite of brandy and chicken blood every half hour for newly-hatched chicks."
: — Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit[src]
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Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit
Dragon Species of Great Britain and Ireland
From Egg to Inferno: a Dragon-Keeper's Guide
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander
=== Spells that affected dragons ===
: "Dragons are extremely difficult to slay, owing to the ancient magic that imbues their thick hides, which none but the most powerful spells can penetrate..."
: — A Hogwarts Library book[src]
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While dragon skin could resist most spells, such as a single Stunning Spell, a dozen wizards casting one at once at a dragon could stun it, and certain strategies might be employed to circumvent the strength of their hides.
While dragons resisted most spells due to their hide, their eyes were their weakest point, and as such, the Conjunctivitis Curse, which caused irritation in the eyes, remained effective towards them. In the Triwizard Tournament of 1994, Durmstrang champion Viktor Krum used this curse on a dragon, with satisfying results.
In the Triwizard Tournament of 1994, the idea that multiple wizards using the same spell as a dragon could indeed stun it was proven, as Charlie Weasley and several other dragonologists used multiple Stunning Spells to successfully subdue several dragons.
Fleur Delacour somehow succeeded in putting a Common Welsh Green into a trance or bewitched sleep during the Triwizard Tournament.
=== Dragon reserves ===
: Main article: Dragon reserve
== Known breeds ==
: "There was a silvery blue one with long, pointed horns, snapping and snarling at the wizards on the ground, a smooth-scaled green one, which was writhing and stamping with all its might, a red one with an odd fringe of fine gold spikes around its face, which was shooting mushroom-shaped fire clouds into the air, and a gigantic black one, more lizard-like than the others, which was nearest to to them."
: — Physical descriptions of different breeds[src]
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There was no officially sanctioned breeding of dragons, as dragon breeding was outlawed by the Warlocks' Convention of 1709. However, they had been known to interbreed, producing rare hybrids. Below is a list of the ten known pure-bred breeds of dragons according to the fifty-second edition of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them:
Breed 	Image	Description
Antipodean Opaleye (the least aggressive of all dragons) 	 	Native to New Zealand, the Opaleye was generally considered one of the most beautiful dragons, with pearly scales that lined its body, and glittering multi-coloured eyes that had no pupils.
Chinese Fireball (known as "Lion Dragon") 	 	The Fireball was scarlet and smooth scaled with a fringe of golden spikes around its snub-snouted face and extremely protuberant eyes.
Common Welsh Green (a native dragon of Great Britain) 	 	The common Welsh was green in colour and with two spiked horns that resided on top of its head. The tail was vert stream-line with a single pointed tip at the end.
Hebridean Black (the other native dragon of Great Britain) 	 	It had dark rough scales, ridges along its back, and a tail tipped with an arrow-shaped spike. The Hebridean Black had brilliant purple eyes and could grow to be up to thirty feet long.
Hungarian Horntail (considered to be the most dangerous dragon)	 	It had black scales, and was lizard-like in appearance. It also had yellow eyes, bronze horns and similarly coloured spikes that protruded from its long tail.
Norwegian Ridgeback 	 	It resembled the Hungarian Horntail, except for the black ridges on its back, the browner texture in its scales.
Peruvian Vipertooth (a highly venomous dragon) 	 	Its scales were smooth and copper-coloured. It also had black ridge-markings and short horns on its head.
Romanian Longhorn 	 	The Romanian Longhorn had dark green scales, and two long, glittering golden horns.
Swedish Short-Snout 	 	The scales were silvery blue, and its powerful flame was also a brilliant blue colour — and hot enough to reduce timber and bone to ashes in seconds.
Ukrainian Ironbelly (the largest dragon breed ever recorded) 	 	It was a bipedal breed, metallic grey in colour, with an immense wingspan, long talons and rough scales said to be as hard as steel. It was the largest breed of dragon which reached up to six tonnes, and its eyes were deep red. Sometimes the eyes seemed to be the same colour as its body because of a protective scale.
The existence of these two dragons were only shown on a page of notes concerning the book Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit.
Breed 	Image	Description
Catalonian Fireball 	 	It appeared to have a black or possibly scorched, somewhat oddly shaped snout and possessed a row of spikes that descended down its neck. Two black horns resided on the top of its head.
Portuguese Long-Snout	 	Its appearance was somewhat similar to that of the Catalonian Fireball, with ridged neck and scaly hide, but with a longer snout and pointier horns.
== Behind the scenes ==
* Dragons exist in the legends of many cultures worldwide. The dragons of Harry Potter bear the most resemblance to the modern European dragon in that they fly, breathe fire, and have magically powerful blood.
* Draco Malfoy's first name, Draco, is Latin for both "snake" and "dragon".
* In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Fred and George Weasley have a firework dragon chase Dolores Umbridge through the Great Hall.
* Most of the dragons in the films don't have front legs and have the posture of a bat or a pterosaur.
* The Catalonian Fireball appears to be an early draft on the Chinese Fireball because these were notes for Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit on J. K. Rowling's official site. The same for the Portuguese Long-Snout which seems to be an early draft for the Romanian Longhorn and the Swedish Short-Snout.
* In the credits of the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, it says "No Dragons were harmed in the making of this movie". This probably refers to the scene in the film where the Hungarian Horntail falls off the bridge and presumably dies.