Billywig

Billywig
Species information
Eye colour	Grey
Skin colour	Bright blue
Native to	Australia
Height of average adult	Half an inch
Mortality	Mortal
Distinction	Flies very fast Wings atop head Stinger causes levitation
Ministry of Magic Classification	Beast XXX
Status	Extant

The Billywig was a magical insect native to Australia. It was rated XXX, and was around half an inch long and of a vivid sapphire blue colour. The speed of the Billywig may be why it was rarely noticed by Muggles, and wizards and witches often only spotted it once they had been stung.

Description

Billywig stings used in potions

The Billywig's wings were attached to the top of its head rotated extremely fast, spinning the Billywig so that it could fly. Xenophilius Lovegood used Billywig wings for his recreation of Ravenclaw's Diadem because he believed they "induce an elevated frame of mind".

The Billywig also had a long, thin stinger at the bottom of its body. Anyone stung by a Billywig would suffer giddiness, followed by levitation, which is what gave the Billywig its rating of XXX. This was also why young Australian wizards and witches tried to catch Billywigs and provoke them into stinging them. Too many stings, however, could cause the victim to hover uncontrollably for days on end. Sometimes, the victim would suffer from a severe allergic reaction, and permanent floating may have ensued.

Billywigs lived in swarms and were drawn to others of their species. They could signal the presence of another Billywig nearby by buzzing and then flying towards them.

Dried Billywig stings were used as ingredients in several potions, and were believed to be a component in Fizzing Whizzbees.

History

In 1926, several Billywigs escaped Newt Scamander's suitcase during his visit to New York.

In the fifty-second edition of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, in response to the entry about their usage as ingredients in Fizzing Whizzbees, Harry Potter or Ron Weasley wrote in the page's margin, "last time I eat them".

During the Calamity in the late 2010s and early 2020s, Gethsemane Prickle demanded that all new Magizoologist members of the Statute of Secrecy Task Force earn their stripes by trying to work up an immunity to Billywig stings, with each Magizoologist requiring intense concentration to avoid floating away.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game) (PS1 version only)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game) (Console version only, appears on Chocolate Frog Card in PC version)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Mentioned only)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (First appearance)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (film)
• The Archive of Magic: The Film Wizardry of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
• Fantastic Beasts: Cases from the Wizarding World
• Wonderbook: Book of Potions
• LEGO Dimensions
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery
• Harry Potter: Wizards Unite
• Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened (Mentioned only)
• Hogwarts Legacy (Mentioned only)
• The Wizarding World of Harry Potter (Appears in portrait(s))