HBO picks up George RR Martin series - Game of Thrones
That doesn’t address the snarks and grumpkins question
Actually, it does in many ways. As ridiculous and ludicrous as it seems to modern types like us today, Guido, as well-traveled and knowledgable as scientists or naturalists were in ancient classical antiquity, what they knew about hard sciences, physics, astrology, astronomy, natural sciences and what Pliny knew about plant and animal species in other regions of the world like Far East, or sub-Saharan Africa or even the Hindu Kush, regions most Greeks or Romans never travelled to much less knew a lot about, someone like Pliny might as well believe that snarks, and grumpkins COULD exist as much as dragons because he couldn't prove they didn't exist, either. Remember, many people in medieval Europe believed unicorns once existed and were wiped out by the Flood.
Some ancient Romans also believed British Isles didn't exist or if they did, it was a scary, terrifying mystical place filled with ogres, malignant natural spirits, and evil, bloodthirsty Druids. In fact, before Claudius invasion of Britain in 43 C.E., some Roman legions nearly mutineed and refused to cross the English Channel from Gaul because quite a few Roman soldiers (and commanders) didnt believe Britain even existed.
I know it sounds ridiculous but the extent of what many ancient philosophers, scientists, or naturalists knew was extremely limited so even if Pliny the Elder or someone like Ptolemy likely thought the existence of dragons was asinine, well, no one had ever proven they didn't exist, so who knows?