# Yes (at least some of them). # I've done a thorough trawl through the books, including *Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them*, in search of all the plants and animals which Lovegood believes in. I've tried my best to make the answer exhaustive. There remains some doubts about some of the plants and animals which are only mentioned in passing and whose existence cannot be definitively proven or disproven. I've included entries which are mentioned by Luna Lovegood too since she often touts the beliefs of her father. I've also included creatures and objects referenced in *The Quibbler*. My conclusion: not everything Lovegood believes in is nonsense, although some of it is. At least six things mentioned by Xenophilius Lovegood definitely exist. Naturally, it's much harder to find real things which are *not* believed in by the rest of the magical community. **Things which actually exist and which are also believed to exist by others.** - **Goblins** Lovegood mentions goblins in *The Quibbler.* > *"Cornelius 'Goblin-Crusher' Fudge, that's what his friends call him. If you could hear him talking when he thinks no-one's listening, oh, he's always talking about the goblins he's had done in." <sub>(Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 10, Luna Lovegood)*.</sub> We see plenty of goblins elsewhere in the series. They are a widely believed in throughout the wizarding world. - **Kumquats** Also from *The Quibbler*: > According to the magazine, if you turned the runes on their heads they revealed a spell to make your enemy's ears turn into kumquats. <sub>(Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 10, Luna Lovegood)*.</sub> Kumquats are normal fruits found in the Muggle world, so presumably were widely believed in by wizards. - **Garden gnomes** Xenophilius believes in these. > "[Luna] lingered in that charming little garden to say hello to the gnomes, such a glorious infestation. Few wizards realise just how much we can learn from the wise little gnomes - or, to give them their correct name, the *Gernumbli gardensi*." <sub>*(Deathly Hallows, Chapter 8, The Wedding)*.</sub> We see the Weasleys' garden gnomes on several occasions so they're definitely real. They also appear in a Gilderoy Lockhart book, so were presumably widely accepted by the public. > "Now, let's see what Lockhart's got to say on the subject." [...] Harry looked at the cover of Mrs Weasley's book. Written across it in fancy gold letters were the words: *Gilderoy Lockhart's Guide to Household Pests. <sub>(Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 3, The Burrow)*.</sub> Although his beliefs in the magical properties of gnome saliva *may* not be scientifically verified. > [Luna] held up her finger and said, "Daddy, look - one of the gnomes actually bit me!" "How wonderful! Gnome saliva is enormously beneficial!" said Mr Lovegood, seizing Luna's outstretched finger and examining the bleeding puncture marks. "Luna, my love, if you should feel any burgeoning talent today - perhaps an unexpected urge to sing opera or to declaim in Mermish - do not repress it! You have been gifted by the *Gernumblies! <sub>(Deathly Hallows, Chapter 8, The Wedding)*.</sub> - **Mistletoe** Lovegood has a sign outside his house which references mistletoe. > *Pick Your Own Mistletoe. <sub>(Deathly Hallows, Chapter 20, Xenophilius Lovegood)*.</sub> Harry observes this himself. > Two aged crab-trees, bent with the wind, stripped of leaves but still heavy with berry-sized red fruits and bushy crowns of white-beaded mistletoe, stood sentinel on either side of the front door. <sub>*(Deathly Hallows, Chapter 20, Xenophilius Lovegood)*.</sub> Mistletoe is a pretty standard thing, accepted by everyone. Cho Chang expressed no scepticism in it, especially when Harry was standing underneath it. - **Freshwater Plimpies** Xenophilius says that Luna is fishing for plimpies in a nearby stream. > "Where's Luna?" asked Hermione. "Let's see what she thinks." Xenophilius gulped. He seemed to be steeling himself. Finally he said, in a shaky voice difficult to hear over the noise of the printing press, "Luna is down at the stream, fishing for Freshwater Plimpies. She...she will like to see you." <sub>*(Deathly Hallows, Chapter 20, Xenophilius Lovegood)*.</sub> The plimpy is a real animal, cited in *Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them*. > Plimpy M.O.M. Classification: XXX The Plimpy is a spherical, mottled fish distinguished by its two long legs ending in webbed feet. It inhabits deep lakes where it will prowl the bottom in search of food, preferring water snails. The Plimpy is not particularly dangerous, though it will nibble the feet and clothing of swimmers. It is considered a pest by merpeople, who deal with it by tying its rubbery legs in a knot; the Plimpy then drifts away, unable to steer, and cannot return until it has untied itself, which may take hours. <sub>*(Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them)*.</sub> It's not totally clear whether the plimpies Lovegood refers to are the same ones which feature in *Fantastic Beasts*. Those plimpies are said to live in "deep lakes", which doesn't quite fit with the stream-dwelling plimpies Lovegood describes. It's certainly not inconceivable that there may be different varieties of plimpy which suit different locales, however. We should also factor into the equation the fact that Lovegood was bluffing at this point about where Luna was. So he may not even believe in Freshwater Plimpies. However, lies are more effective when based on reality so I suspect that Lovegood may have been referencing real creatures here. Presumably the wizarding world would accept the legitimacy of the creatures found within *Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them* as the book is widely respected. > Newt’s masterpiece has been an approved textbook at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry ever since its publication and must take a substantial amount of credit for our students’ consistently high results in Care of Magical Creatures examinations – yet it is not a book to be confined to the classroom. No wizarding household is complete without a copy of Fantastic Beasts, well thumbed by the generations who have riffled its pages in search of the best way to rid the lawn of Horklumps, interpret the mournful cries of the Augurey, or cure their pet Puffskein of drinking out of the toilet. <sub>*(Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them)*.</sub> - **Billywigs** Lovegood speaks of a Billywig as being a constituent part of his model of Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem. > He indicated the objects like ear-trumpets. "These are the Wrackspurt siphons - to remove all sources of distraction from the thinker's immediate area. Here," he pointed out the tiny wings, "**a Billywig propeller,** to produce an elevated frame of mind." <sub>*(Deathly Hallows, Chapter 20, Xenophilius Lovegood)*.</sub> Similarly, this creature has been verified to be real by Newt Scamander and features in *Fantastic Beasts*: > **Billywig** M.O.M. Classification: XXX The Billywig is an insect native to Australia. It is around half an inch long and a vivid sapphire blue, although its speed is such that it is rarely noticed by Muggles and often not by wizards until they have been stung. The Billywig’s wings are attached to the top of its head and are rotated very fast so that it spins as it flies. At the bottom of the body is a long thin sting. Those who have been stung by a Billywig suffer giddiness followed by levitation. Generations of young Australian witches and wizards have attempted to catch Billywigs and provoke them into stinging in order to enjoy these side effects, though too many stings may cause the victim to hover uncontrollably for days on end, and where there is a severe allergic reaction, permanent floating may ensue. Dried Billywig stings are used in several potions and are believed to be a component in the popular sweet Fizzing Whizbees. <sub>*(Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them)*.</sub> **Borderline cases.** - **Dirigible Plums** The [Dirigible Plum][1] exists and, again, features on Lovegood's replication of Ravenclaw's diadem. > "Finally," he pointed to the orange radish, "the Dirigible Plum, so as to enhance the ability to accept the extraordinary." <sub>*(Deathly Hallows, Chapter 20, Xenophilius Lovegood)*.</sub> Clearly the plums are not figments of Lovegood's imagination. There is something real which Lovegood refers to as a Dirigible Plum and which he grows in his garden. Luna also wears them as earrings. Whether the rest of the wizarding community is aware of the Dirigible Plums or refers to them as such is unclear, as the Lovegoods are the only ones who ever refer to them. - **Gurdyroots** Again, something definitely exists in the real world which is referred to by Luna and Xenophilius as a [Gurdyroot][2]. > [Luna] thrust what appeared to be a green onion, a large spotted toadstool and a considerable amount of what looked like cat litter into Ron's hands, finally pulling out a rather grubby scroll of parchment that she handed to Harry. [...] "What's this, by the way?" [Ron] added, holding the onionlike object up to eye-level. "Oh, it's a Gurdyroot," she said, stuffing the cat litter and the toadstool back into her bag. <sub>*(Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 20, Lord Voldemort's Request)*.</sub> Xenophilius Lovegood also serves the trio an infusion of Gurdyroots. Again, the Gurdyroot is real. It's not entirely clear whether others believe in it too. It's possible that the Gurdyroot was sold as an amulet to ward off the Monster of Slytherin. Although it's not named, one of the items Neville buys seems to match the description. > Meanwhile, hidden from the teachers, a roaring trade in talismans, amulets and other protective devices was sweeping the school. Neville Longbottom bought **a large, evil-smelling green onion**, a pointed purple crystal and a rotting newt-tail before the other Gryffindor boys pointed out that he was in no danger... <sub>*(Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 11, The Dueling Club)*.</sub> If it was a Gurdyroot which Neville bought then that may go some way towards legitimising the Gurdyroot as 'real', not just for the Lovegoods but for everybody else. **Things which actually existed, but which others didn't believe in.** There are no clearcut examples, although Gurdyroots and Dirigible Plums may count. **Things which didn't exist, which the Lovegoods didn't believe in but which others did.** None! If the Lovegoods don't believe in it it doesn't exist! Dabberblimps are video game canon so are included in this category. **Things which didn't exist, which were believed in by the Lovegoods but not by others.** - **Crumple-Horned Snorkacks** The humble Crumple-Horned Snorkack [does not exist][3], despite the insistence of Xenophilius. Nobody else seems to have even considered that they may exist. - **Blibbering Humdingers** These are mentioned by Luna and confirmed as non-existent by Hermione. > "You can laugh," Luna said, her voice rising, apparently under the impression that Parvati and Lavender were laughing at what she had said rather than what she was wearing, "but people used to believe there were no such things as the Blibbering Humdinger or the Crumple-Horned Snorkack!" "Well, they were right, weren't they?" said Hermione impatiently. "There *weren't* any such things as the Blibbering Humdinger or the Crumple-Horned Snorkack." <sub>*(Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 13, Detention with Dolores)*.</sub> This is the only reference to [this creature][4] in the books. I think we can depend on Hermione to speak the truth here. She's abnormally well-informed on such topics and can be presumed to speak for her fellow-wizards and -witches when she says that Humdingers do not exist. - **Heliopaths** [Heliopaths][5] are described by Luna. > Nearly everyone looked stunned at this news; everyone except Luna Lovegood, who piped up, "Well, that makes sense. After all, Cornelius Fudge has got his own private army. "What?" said Harry, completely thrown by this unexpected piece of information. "Yes, he's got an army of Heliopaths," said Luna solemnly. "No, he hasn't," snapped Hermione. "Yes, he has," said Luna. "What are Heliopaths?" asked Neville, looking blank. "They're spirits of fire," said Luna, her protuberant eyes widening so that she looked madder than ever, "great tall flaming creatures that gallop across the ground burning everything in front of -" "They don't exist, Neville," said Hermione tartly. "Oh, yes, they do!" said Luna angrily. "I'm sorry, but where's the proof of that?" snapped Hermione. "There are plenty of eyewitness accounts. Just because you're so narrow-minded you need to have everything shoved under your nose before you -" <sub>*(Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 16, In the Hog's Head)*.</sub> Make what you will from that exchange. Personally, I am in little doubt that the reader is meant to believe Hermione, although it's interesting that Luna seemingly has eyewitnesses who can testify to the existence of the Heliopaths. It's more than likely that they did not exist, and that the wider public didn't believe in them (especially as they are apparently Cornelius Fudge's private servants, a favourite point of intrigue for *The Quibbler*). The description of Heliopaths is not altogether dissimilar to the effects of Fiendfyre, although presumably Luna is not getting confused between the two. [1]: https://www.hp-lexicon.org/thing/dirigible-plum/ [2]: http://lexicon.org/thing/gurdyroot/ [3]: https://scifi.stackexchange.com/a/157854/64888 [4]: http://lexicon.org/creature/imaginary-creatures/blibbering-humdinger/ [5]: http://lexicon.org/creature/imaginary-creatures/heliopath/