Ironspike drakes are typically found in mountainous area with large amounts of metallic ores. They possess dark metallic scales and numerous ridges of spines and spikes along their back, wings, neck, and face. As this species ages, their scales tend to take on a reddish tint as the ferrous metal in their scales oxidized. While they have powerful wings that span nearly three times their body length, they are unable to fly and must instead glide due to their extreme weight.