Niffler

"Long-snouted, burrowing creatures native to Britain with a penchant for anything shiny."

- Description of a Niffler A Niffler was a creature with a long snout and a coat of black, fluffy fur. They were attracted to shiny things, which made them wonderful for locating treasure, but this also meant that they could wreak havoc if kept (or set loose) indoors.

Description
Nifflers were rodent-like creatures with a long snout and a coat of black, fluffy fur. Native to Britain, they lived in burrows as deep as twenty feet below ground, and produced six to eight young in a single litter.

Nifflers have a pouch on their bellies which holds far more than at first seems possible, like the ef fects of a  Undetectable Extension Charm  on a container.

Nifflers were gentle by nature and could even be affectionate towards their owners. However, they could destroy belongings looking for sparkly objects, and for that reason it was inadvisable to keep them as a house pet.

Known events
Nifflers were kept by Goblins to burrow for treasure.



Newton Scamander owned a niffler, which twice escaped from his suitcase during his visit to New York in 1926 and tried to rob both the Steen National Bank and a jewel shop of numerous valuables.

During the 1994–1995 school year, Rubeus Hagrid used them as part of the Fourth years Care of Magical Creatures class. Prior to class he hid Leprechaun gold in the earth in front of his hut. He paired each student with a Niffler and promised a prize to whoever found the most gold. Ron Weasley asked Rubeus Hagrid if they could buy these Nifflers as pets, and with knowledge, Hagrid said his mum wouldn't want one because they wreck houses, but this was not a definitive "no". This means there is a very good chance that wizards can purchase Nifflers. When Hagrid caught Gregory Goyle pocketing the gold, he explained that trying to steal it was pointless, as Leprechaun gold was worthless because it disappeared after a few hours. Ron's Niffler found the most gold, so Hagrid rewarded him with an extremely large slab of chocolate from Honeydukes.

During Dolores Umbridge's tenure as Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Lee Jordan used a Levitation Charm to levitate two Nifflers through her office window to wreck the place. Umbridge blamed Hagrid for it, and this did not help him in the least during her Hogwarts High Inquisitor inspections.

Behind the scenes

 * In, Nifflers can be seen in outdoor places such as on the Hogwarts grounds, and in the maze used for the Third Task. They can be shot with Reducto and similar spells for Studs. Sometimes, like on the shores of the Black Lake, a certain number must be shot to unlock characters. They appear similar to moles.
 * After the second Niffler was let loose in Dolores Umbridge's office, she put in place an extra security protection that caused her to catch Harry when he sneaked into the office to use the fireplace.

Etymology
Niffler may derive from the provincial verb Niffle, meaning 'to pilfer'.

Notes and references
Escarbato Niffler Niffleur Niuchacz Нюхлер Småtler