Last updated on July 19th, 2022 at 10:27 am
The magic in Harry Potter is complex and interesting, especially as it relates to magical creatures. For example, how do owls know where to go when delivering letters to people?
Owls know where to go in Harry Potter because they have magical abilities, and they are trained to use them to find people. As long as the owl understands who the intended recipient is, it can use tracing magic to find that person’s location unless that person cast a masking spell.
This Is How the Owls Know Where To Go in Harry Potter
In the world of Harry Potter, certain animals are inherently gifted with magical abilities.
Some of these are unknown to muggles, like the banshee, and some are known to muggles but secretly have magical abilities, like the owl.
Because owls have magical abilities, they can find the recipients of letters with just a name unless the recipient cast a spell to hide or disguise themself from such magic.
That said, in the movie version of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the paper The Quibbler advertises owl training.
This suggests that their magic still requires some training.
Owls must understand who a letter-writer intends the letter to go to.
Even if the owl has the best magical tracking skills available, it still needs to learn which people the writer might be referring to.
For example, when Harry writes to Ron, Hedwig needs to know that he means Ron Weasley of the Burrow. He learns this by getting to know Harry.
Which Creatures Are Magical in Harry Potter?
Many creatures are magical in Harry Potter, including the following:
- Basilisk
- Blast-Ended Skrewt
- Boggard
- Bowtruckle
- Chimaera
- Dementor
- Doxy
- Dragon
- Flobberworm
- Ghoul
- Giant
- Gnome
- Hippogriff
- House-elf
- Merpeople
- Phoenix
- Pixie
- Sphinx
- Thestral
- Troll
- Unicorn
Each of these creatures can harness magical powers of some kind, and only magical people know about the existence of these creatures.
In most cases, witches and wizards work to conceal the existence of these species to prevent muggles from discovering that magic exists.
Extra-human beings are sometimes classified as magical creatures, although they are more like humans than animals.
These include werewolves, veela, and centaurs and are seen serving as professors at Hogwarts, marrying humans, and acting as fully functional, intelligent people.
Well-Known Owls in Harry Potter
All owls have the capacity for magic in Harry Potter, but some are more highly trained by wizards than others.
Some are also more personally bonded to particular wizards than others. For example, Hedwig is Harry Potter’s personal owl, whereas many owls work as post owls for Hogwarts.
Hedwig
Hedwig is Harry Potter’s personal snowy owl, a companion and a useful letter carrier and has magical abilities in that he can find letter recipients by name only, just like other host owls.
Hagrid gives Hedwig to Harry in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the first book, and Harry proceeds to choose a name for the bird from the book A History of Magic.
Hedwig is a constant in Harry’s life as he grows as a wizard until finally, Harry turns 17, and his owl is lost in battle.
The death of Hedwig is a symbol of Harry’s loss of innocence in becoming an adult and living through war.
Pigwidgeon
Pigwidgeon, or Pig, is Ron Weasley’s first pet owl, gifted by Sirius Black in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the third book in the series.
Pigwidgeon is a miniature owl with magical abilities that serves as a post owl and a companion for Ron.
Ron’s sister Ginny chose the name Pigwidgeon, and although Ron objected, the bird would only respond to this name.
Pigwidgeon is vital in several instances, carrying food and messages to Sirius while he is in hiding and enabling Fred and George to develop their secret business.
Pigwidgeon is a small bird but very enthusiastic and energetic.
Errol
Errol is an owl owned by the Weasley family, a great gray owl tasked with carrying the family’s mail.
Errol is known for his poor eyesight and difficulty flying, and he tends to make mistakes when carrying letters.
He first appears in the second book of the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, when he hits the window in the kitchen at the Burrow.
Another notable scene involving Errol is when the owl delivers a Howler to Ron at Hogwarts. The Howler, sent by Mrs. Weasley, details Ron’s misdeeds loudly for all to hear.
Errol also proves his inability to deliver letters and other owls when he gets lost trying to deliver Hagrid’s release papers when he is imprisoned.
Because of this, Hagrid has to wait longer to be released.
Hermes
Hermes is Percy Weasley’s personal owl, a screech owl that his father gives him when he becomes a prefect for Gryffindor in his fifth year at Hogwarts.
Hermes is named after the Greek messenger of the gods Hermes.
Hermes is first introduced in the first Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
He is mentioned in every book up through the fifth, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, when Percy uses Hermes to warn Ron not to trust Harry.
But to instead join sides with Dolores Umbridge and the Ministry of Magic instead.
Can You Train Owls To Carry Letters in Real Life?
You cannot train owls to carry letters in real life. Although owls are gifted hunters, they are easily thrown off by carrying heavy things like weighty letters and packages.
They’re unlikely to make it long distances while carrying something. Owls are also difficult to train.
And in the United States, it is illegal to own a native owl as a pet.
They can only be held in captivity by wildlife rehabilitation professionals with a license, and they must be used for conservation or education purposes, not for any personal use.
Therefore, even if an owl could carry a letter, you still wouldn’t be able to own and train one for that purpose in the U.S.