Item #: SCP-1186
Object Class: Safe
Special Containment Procedures: Multiple SCP-1186 nymphs are contained in Sites-██, ███ and ███. An overall maximum of one-hundred (100) specimens are to be contained, with a minimum of 15 (fifteen) per assigned Site. All specimens must be held within a completely sound-proofed container.
Excess specimens are to be removed and incinerated while nymphs. Under no circumstances should imago specimens be removed less than 3 (three) days following death.
Feeding is to be carried out as follows: the endolymph of cattle (kept on-site specifically for this purpose) is to be extracted weekly, and then inserted into basic, reusable models of the human auditory system (referred to as the █████ model: please see Document 1186-1). At this time, it is decided that reproduction should be allowed to occur as normal; however, select specimens are to be removed and incinerated (through the use of sound-proofed biohazard suits) should the population increase past acceptable limits. SCP-1186 imago are to be handled separately from nymphs, and should be dealt with in such a way as to facilitate breeding: please refer to Document 1186-2 for further information on this.
Any SCP-1186 uncontained specimens should be disposed of at the earliest possible opportunity, if no special circumstances apply. In this event, wild SCP-1186 eggs should be incinerated and the areas housing them fumigated, with appropriate cover stories provided to local media.
Description: SCP-1186 (Tibicen auritus) is a species of the family Cicadidae. SCP-1186 imagos display no active anomalous behaviour, but lack sexual organs and a reproductive capacity. 4-5 (four to five) hours after the death of a SCP-1186 imago, 2-3 (two to three) SCP-1186 larvae will spontaneously appear in its vicinity, provided the imago's body remains intact. This process has not yet been observed or recorded.
Unlike most members of the order Hemiptera, SCP-1186 nymphs are not herbivorous - instead of consuming arboreal sap, nymphs are known to drain the endolymph from human cochlear ducts. Other adaptations, such as a specially elongated and retractable proboscis and an internal structure with the function of efficiently digesting substances with a high potassium concentration are also notable, though not independently unusual. Most specimens of SCP-1186 are able to fulfill their dietary requirements by feeding once every 1-2 (one to two) weeks.
Specimens accomplish feeding through the use of a combination of undetermined audio frequencies (all of which are estimated to be extremely close to the upper range of human hearing) that cause adverse psychological and physical effects. While the sounds produced are imperceptible and asymptomatic in noisy environments (>50 dB), they cause a phenomenon usually described as "deafening silence" by those who experience it in quiet places (<10 dB). Attempts at replicating the effects of this sound through other means have invariably been unsuccessful.
The first effect of this sound is a headache and nausea, followed by extreme dizziness and unconsciousness. Extremely close exposure has been shown to cause damage to lung and neural tissue; however, fatal injury rarely occurs.
SCP-1186 will find and incapacitate prey in quiet environment, then crawl behind the target's ear following the onset of unconsciousness. Specimens will then use their proboscis to puncture the skin and drain the inner ear, a process which will often leave victims permanently deaf in addition to severely impairing balance.
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