[RPG] Do magical beasts have a magical aura with regard to Detect Magic spell

dnd-3.5emagic

The description for Detect Magic doesn't explicitly cover this. Some monsters, like the Ankheg, are categorized as magical beast, but don't have any magical or spell-like abilities. If they are detectable, what school of magic would they be in?

I could picture some magical beasts having the aura of their spell-like ability. A Blink Dog might always emanate an aura of Conjuration since it uses Dimension Door. However even that seems like it would only have a lingering aura after using the Dimension Door ability.

Best Answer

No.

"Magical Beast" means that the species is not a product of natural processes, but is rather the result of something fantastic: weird wizard experiments, development in a naturally high-magic environment, or merely being a fantastic and bizarre creature that defies the knowable laws of nature. They are not made of magic or something like that, and aren't detectable with detect magic.