Gryphons have adapted to all sorts of climates, and one of the more recently discovered species is the Deep Snow Gryphon, a large and imposing kind that lives in the icy oceans of the north-west. They’re rarely seen on land and are often too heavy to walk on the ice sheets, so they drift with the ocean currents as they tail their primary food  source – fish.

In the ocean they are lean, graceful things with thick fur and a covering of insulating fat about their necks and chests, and they can swim as fast as leviathans. On land, however, they can be chunky and ungainly, moving slowly, often with an oily look to their fur and feathers. Despite their colouring they can blend almost seamlessly into the snowy landscape, especially the rocky shores. To date, a hatchling has never been seen, although a single instance of a juvenile following an adult was documented a few months ago.