In Norse mythology’s Ragnarok, the dragon Níðhöggr carries away the dead after the final destruction.
Níðhöggr is a serpent-like dragon associated with the roots of Yggdrasil. In Völuspá, he is described as flying over the fields after Ragnarok with corpses in his wings. The image appears near the poem’s closing vision and leaves the audience with an unsettling reminder that the renewed world is not presented as completely free from death.
Níðhöggr is often confused with Jörmungandr because both are giant serpentine beings. Their functions are different: Jörmungandr encircles Midgard and fights Thor, while Níðhöggr gnaws at the roots of the world tree and appears in the aftermath.
The exact visual details vary in translations. Some translators call Níðhöggr a dragon, while others use serpent or worm-like language. The stable point is his connection with corpses and the closing scene of Völuspá.