Wyvern and more as dangerous beasts smaller, weaker, and less intelligent than dragons. While a fantasy dragon often has a breath weapon, such as fire, wyverns rarely have such abilities and are more feared for their ferocity and sharp teeth and claws. Wyverns are sometimes associated with poison, either in the form of venomous fangs or poisonous breath, but this trait is not universally represented and may be a more recent addition to the lore based on the gila monster. A wyvern will typically be unable to speak, while a dragon often does have that ability. The wyvern features frequently in
Star (heraldry) Register, vol 1 p 188), while the Ordinary of Arms produced by a late 19th century Lyon King of Arms 'modernizes' the original as "Az. three mullets arg. ...". In Canadian heraldry the usual term is "mullet", but there is also the occasional six-pointed "star" (e.g. in Vol. IV, at p. 274 and in online version of the Canadian Public Register), which is what others would blazon as a six-pointed "mullet". The United States Army Institute of Heraldry, the official heraldic authority in the United States, uses the term "mullet" in its blazons, but elsewhere, as in US government documents