SCP-2289

Item #: SCP-2289

Object Class: Euclid

Special Containment Procedures: SCP-2289-1 through 7 are to be kept under full bio-containment protocol at Site-66. The facilities must include a litterbox and a minimum of ten sheltered bedding locations, each 1 m x 1 m x 50 cm, for SCP-2289-1 through 5; a perch, cuttlebone, and nesting location in the upper half of the containment structure for SCP-2289-6; and a separate room within bio-containment with a closing door, bed, desk, lamp, toilet, and change of clothes for SCP-2289-7.

The following food will be made available daily: a carcass of not less than 5 kg lean mass, 500 g of a mix of small fruit, nuts, and seeds, and a standard daily meal portion, which may be flavored as per SCP-2289-7's wishes from a list of pre-selected choices. Any lack of appetite or difficulty swallowing observed in any organisms within containment must be immediately brought to the attention of Site-66's veterinarian surgeon, who will assess whether emergency ocular removal is necessary.

Cleaning of the litterbox, carcass bone removal, and general chamber maintenance will be carried out under camera supervision by SCP-2289-7. All waste materials, including sewage, from the bio-containment structure must be incinerated. Any materials removed from the bio-containment chamber not kept in fully sealed transport containers for incineration or testing will constitute a containment breach.

The bio-containment chamber will be monitored by no less than four cameras at all times, in order to maintain full containment of all organisms within the chamber. SCP subjects may be removed from the chamber for testing only under sedation in fully sealed transport containers by researchers equipped with Level 4 bio-containment suits and trained in hostile carnivore capture. Any wounds suffered while handling SCP-2289-1 through 7 will be brought to the attention of Site-66 officers for medical evaluation.

Description: SCP-2289 is a novel strain of Devil Facial Tumor Disease, a transmissible cancer endemic in the Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii), and spread by introduction of infected tissue to skin lesions. SCP-2289's progression is such that multiple metastasizing tumors grow over the infected vertebrate. 85% of the tumors are concentrated on the craniofacial region and the throat, with the remainder dispersed on the skin in other locations. Approximately 2.5% of tumors are expressed on internal organs. Death in the original disease usually occurs due to starvation, as the growing tumors prevent proper feeding over time.

SCP-2289 has three additional characteristics that has caused it to come to the attention of the Foundation. First, the tumors generate their own fully functional eyes, with ocular eruption occurring between 5-7 days after first appearance of the tumor. This can help to compensate for the fact that the tumors themselves may occlude the natural eyes. Second, SCP-2289 has proven capable of crossing the species barrier, resulting in potential infection of all vertebrates tested to date. Third, all living infected vertebrates are not only capable of seeing through the eyes generated by the tumors, but the eyes on all other infected vertebrates' tumors. The method of the transmission of visual information between infected vertebrates and the range of communication between infected vertebrates has not yet been determined.

SCP-2289-1 through 7 are the present known individuals infected with SCP-2289. SCP-2289-1 through 5 are Tasmanian devils, three female and two male. SCP-2289-6 is a scarlet macaw (Ara macao), infected as part of Experiment 2289-D, and held for continued observation. SCP-2289-7 is formerly D-435966, infected during a containment breach when it was cleaning the SCP-2289 enclosure. All seven subjects express multiple craniofacial tumors, with ocular eruptions on each tumor. SCP-2289-3 has expressed a tumor and eye on its tail. SCP-2289-7 has a tumor with ocular eruption on its left hand. All neoplastic eyes are of the devil type, even on non-devil species.

Addendum: Interview 2289-12