Thestral

"I mean, a dog'll bite if yeh bait it, won' it - but Thestrals have jus' got a bad reputation because o' the death thing - people used ter think they were bad omens, didn' they? Jus' didn' understand, did they?"

- Professor Rubeus Hagrid during a Care of Magical Creatures class

A Thestral is a breed of winged horses with skeletal body, face with reptilian features, and leathery wide wings that resembles a bat.

They are very rare, and are considered one of the more dangerous creatures by the Ministry. Thestrals are, undeservedly, known as omens of misfortune and aggression by many wizards because they are visible only to those who have witnessed death (and fully accepted the concept) or due to their somewhat grim, gaunt and ghostly appearance.

These creatures can be domesticated and mounted, so they are used as an alternative to brooms, Apparition and other methods of transportation. Once trained, they are very diligent and will quickly carry their owners wherever they wish to go.

Due to their classification as XXXX, only experienced wizards should try to handle Thestrals. Breeding as well as owning these beasts may be discouraged or even illegal without Ministry consent; in fact, wizards that live in areas not protected against Muggles are forced by law to perform Disillusionment Charms on their winged horses regularly.

Physical appearance
Thestrals have a quite disturbing appearance and the wizards who are capable of seeing them often describe these animals as being sinister and spooky. And that first impression it's not only because their big, bony bodies, but also because their dragonish faces with white, frightening and glittering eyes lacking both expression and pupils.

Being winged horses, most of their anatomy is identical to a horse, excepting their large wings that sprout from their back and, in this particular cases, their faces. Unlike the Abraxan, another breed of winged horses, Thestral's wings don't possess any feathers at all; their vast, black and leathery wings are more similar to those of bats.

Their fleshless, lustrous bodies are covered with a translucid and glossy coat. This smooth and dark skin is a bit slippery and so thin that Thestral's bones are clearly defined through the entire extension of their sleek bodies.

These eerie horses have long black manes, as well as a large tail, either with flowing black hair, like horses or ending in a tuft, like zebra. Another distinction is their sharp fangs used to seize and slash their prey.



Nature
These creatures are seemingly rather dull, though Professor Rubeus Hagrid states that they are "dead clever", and, in fact, trained Thestrals are smart enough to understand their rider's words when they ask to travel to a specific location.

These magical animals can be found in dark environments, and the forest is their natural habitat. They communicate with each other through a shrill and strange yell that resembles some sort of monstrous bird.

They appear to be loyal creatures, able to discern a friend from an enemy. Thestrals would forcefully attack anyone or anything they saw as a threat and, in the unusual case of domesticated Thestrals, any enemy of its owners.

In the Battle of Hogwarts, Hogwart's trained flock of thestrals cooperated with Buckbeak, the Hippogriff, to attack the Voldemort's Giants. It's unclear whether or not wild herds can similarly cooperate with other species.

Diet
Thestrals are carnivorous animals. Professor Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank mentions that they often attack birds. This indicates that, naturally, they hunt not only for food in the ground, but also pursue flying prey.

The Thestrals that live within the Hogwarts grounds, in the Forbidden Forest, are properly fed and well trained. They don't attack other creatures or students without being seriously disturbed.



Abilities
The Thestral tail hair is a powerful and tricky substance that can be mastered only by a witch or wizard capable of facing death. It should be noted that this substance can be used as a core in a wand's conception and it was used to create the most powerful wand known by wizards, the Elder Wand.

The most well known ability of this beasts is their invisibility to those who haven’t seen death. In other words, they are only visible to people who have seen someone dying and fully accepted, understood and internalized the concept.

Thestrals have an extraordinary sense of smell and will easily recognize the smell of blood and fresh flesh, even if the source of the scent is rather distanced.

They also have a quite useful sense of direction. The Thestral can understand exactly where their owners need to go. If their riders need to travel to a certain place, they only need to say the destination and the creature will diligently carry them to the intended location - much like owls do with letters.

These winged monsters are very capable, fast fliers and can travel through long distances hardly beating their large wings. For example, in 1996, six members of the Hogwarts herd were capable of flying from somewhere in Scotland to London in a brief amount of time.

Their powerful wings are capable of lifting, at least, the burden of two humans plus their own weight.



Interaction with humans
Even with all their useful abilities, Thestrals are rarely used as methods of transportation due to their reputation as omens of evil and their somewhat dreadful and even distasteful appearance.

When riding a Thestral, the traveler usually holds the creature's mane to ensure balance during the flight (or ride.) To aid the mounting, the wizards also place their legs behind the wing joints to provide safety.

Flying on the back of a Thestral during a long journey is frequently an unpleasant experience, particularly to those who dare riding them without seeing the creature. The high speed flight on an invisible steed can be terrifying. The wind will, eventually, cause a temporary deafness and will force the riders to close their eyes. Plus, on their slick back it's hard to keep balance.

The Hogwarts herd is gentle towards humans, react satisfactorily to caressess and avoid attacking owls. However, taking in consideration the Ministry of Magic classification as "dangerous", this behavior may be exclusive to well-trained Thestrals.

Hogwarts herd
The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry have a very loyal flock of Thestrals used mainly to pull the carriages that led elder students between the Hogsmeade Station to the gates of the Castle. These creatures were also used by Albus Dumbledore when he needed to travel but didn't care to Apparate.

Rubeus Hagrid, the trainer and breeder of this specific herd, strongly suspects that this is the only trained large group of these beasts in the whole Great Britain.

Assuming that each carriage is pulled by at least one harnessed Thestral, this numerous herd should have about a hundred or so Thestrals, though it started with no more than a male and five females. The first foal born at the school was named Tenebrus, and it is the groundskeeper's favourite.

Harry Potter's encounters with Thestrals
Harry Potter first saw the Thestrals at Hogwarts in September of 1995, after having witnessed the murder of Cedric Diggory the same June. Harry could not see them that June because he had not yet dealt with what he had witnessed.

They were first identified by name by Professor Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank after Hedwig was found injured, when she mentioned that Thestrals sometimes go after birds. They were next mentioned by Hagrid in a Care of Magical Creatures class, where the students were told that they could be used as mounts, and introduced their navigation abilities.

In 1996, Harry, Hermione Granger, Ron and Ginny Weasley, Luna Lovegood, and Neville Longbottom flew to London atop the Thestrals in order to find Sirius Black, whom Harry believed to be in danger in the Ministry of Magic. (Hermione, Ron, and Ginny had trouble mounting their Thestrals for the ride, since to the three of them, the Thestrals were invisible.)

The Order of the Phoenix made use of Thestrals in the summer of 1997 during the flight from Little Whinging. Six of the Order's members took Polyjuice Potion to disguise themselves as Harry, and then the "seven Potters" and their protectors fled 4 Privet Drive to safe houses of other members. Hermione Granger and Kingsley Shacklebolt flew on a Thestral, and so did Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour, as Fleur doesn't like brooms.

During the Battle of Hogwarts, Thestrals were seen attacking Lord Voldemort's giant soldiers from the air.

Nineteen years later, James Potter teasingly warned his younger brother Albus about the Thestrals before they left for Hogwarts.

Known people who could see Thestrals by 1998
Presumably most of the deceased members in the Second Wizarding War of the Order of the Phoenix such as Alastor Moody, Remus Lupin, and Sirius Black could see Thestrals by the end of the First Wizarding War. Kingsley Shacklebolt and Bill Weasley were also likely to have been able to see them, as they rode Thestrals for the Battle over Little Whinging, and would most likely have picked them only if they saw them. After the Second Wizarding War, it is likely that many students of Hogwarts as well as other participants in the Battle of Hogwarts could see Thestrals after witnessing a great many casualties in battle, including the death of Lord Voldemort himself.

Behind the scenes

 * J.K. Rowling stated that the core of the Elder Wand is a Thestral tail hair.
 * J.K. Rowling also stated that the reason Harry was not able to see Thestrals until the beginning of his fifth year was that when he left Hogwarts in June he had not yet fully come to terms with Cedric's death.
 * Harry also had the chance to witness at least two people die before the death of Cedric Diggory in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. His mother was murdered by Lord Voldemort when he was one, and Professor Quirrell in his first year. Despite this, Harry is not able to see the Thestrals until the beginning of his fifth year. J. K. Rowling has explained this stating that he was in his crib when his mother was murdered, and passed out before Quirrell died. It's also plausible that when his parents died, Harry was too young to truly understand the concept of accepting someone's death. This creates a paradox in the films, since the first film appears to show Harry seeing Quirrell die.
 * There’s an interesting contradiction in the film. The Thestrals are depicted as having no hair at all, theoretically that would make the existence of an Elder Wand impossible in the movie adaptations.
 * Thestrals also don’t seem to have fangs in the film, at least in the young cubs. Instead they have a pointed beak which they use to grab food and then they swallow the aliment, almost without chewing, much like birds eat worms.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game)
 * Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Motorbike Escape
 * Harry Potter LEGO Sets

Notes and references
Sombral Фестрал Thestral