Per 
A photograph of SCP-5327-1 in its visible form, shortly after feeding.
Item #: SCP-5327
Object Class: Euclid
Special Containment Procedures: SCP-5327 is to be held in a fully enclosed artificial forest habitat replicating its natural environment, with an area of approximately 5 square kilometers. The enclosure should be wholly sealed off from its surroundings and planted with vegetation native to Papua New Guinea and northeastern Australia. As a cover story, the habitat is to be explained as a captive breeding facility for the critically endangered Archbold's Bowerbird (Archboldia papuensis).
Description: SCP-5327 is the designation of four individual birds identical to male Paradise Riflebirds (Ptilornis paradiseus), a species native to Papua New Guinea. It is unknown whether SCP-5327 are anomalous individuals of that species or part of a species in its own right, as only four individual of it has been discovered thus far. These four have been found in places far outside of the Paradise Riflebird's normal range, suggesting that SCP-5327 is found worldwide. Although only a single individual of SCP-5327 was initially brought into captivity, three others have since been discovered; they will hereafter be designated SCP-5327-1 through -4. All four individuals are male— females have yet to be found.
SCP-5327 is in most respects identical to a typical Paradise Riflebird, with the exception of its feathers. A typical Paradise Riflebird has the most light-absorbent feathers of any animal, reflecting back as little as 1% of all light that touches them. SCP-5327s feathers, on the other hand, absorb 100% of light that touches them, making the bird for all intents and purposes invisible save for a bird-shaped void in its location. Other forms of radiation, such as infrared, radio, and ultraviolet, are also absorbed by the feathers. This is speculated to be how SCP-5327 "feeds", since it has never been recorded eating in the typical manner of a bird.
Because SCP-5327 absorbs all electromagnetic radiation that it comes into contact with, it is typically invisible to the naked eye. However, on occasions it will "turn off" this invisibility and appear to humans as a typical Paradise Riflebird. It appears to do this once it has consumed a great deal of light, and must wait while it digests its meal. The means by which SCP-5327 obtains energy from light and other radiation is unknown. Once this process ends, SCP-5327 becomes invisible again and resumes the process of absorbing light.
SCP-5327 flies at extremely high speeds and altitudes, seemingly for the purpose of exposing itself to as much sunlight and other radiation as possible when feeding. How it is capable of breathing and maintaining its body temperature in the cold, thin air of these altitudes is unknown at present. SCP-5327-3 has been clocked in flight at up to 800 km/h and at an altitude of up to 10 km.
It is impossible to obtain an X-ray of SCP-5327, since the radiation would be absorbed by the bird and return no useful image. SCP-5327 also does not leave a signature on radar, but it does have a physical form and can be detected using sound-based location devices. A dissection of SCP-5327-2 to study its internal organs revealed a highly simplified, rudimentary digestive system. The intestines, gizzard, and many other major digestive organs are atrophied or absent, and the digestive tract is reduced to a narrow tube running from the mouth to the cloaca.
Because SCP-5327 is invisible both to the naked eye and on radar, it represents a collision hazard to aircraft. The three known wild specimens of SCP-5327 were collected in various parts of the world, all far outside the natural range of the Paradise Riflebird. It is therefore likely that instances of SCP-5327 occur worldwide. Mobile Task Force Omega-19 "Twitchers" are currently tasked with locating wild populations of SCP-5327 and ensuring that, in their invisible state, they do not collide with aircraft or buildings. Air traffic reports are to be monitored to ensure that unidentified bird-strikes, which may be caused by wild instances of SCP-5327, do not cause significant damage.
SCP-XXXX-1: Captured in [REDACTED], Mexico. The first specimen captured, and the oldest one currently living. Tissue samples indicate that it is currently 76 years old, far older than a typical Paradise Riflebird. The reasons for SCP-5327 longevity are unknown. Despite its great age, it shows no sign of being infirm or disabled.
SCP-5327-2: Captured in [REDACTED], Germany. The oldest individual, and the only one that has died in Foundation custody, with tissue samples indicating it was 83 years old at the time of its death. Following its death, its superficial anomalous properties disappeared and it became visible, appearing as a male Paradise Riflebird. Its subsequent dissection led to a great deal of knowledge being gained about SCP-5327's anatomy. Cause of death still unknown at this time.
SCP-5327-3: Captured in [REDACTED], Canada. The only known SCP-5327 individual to have reproduced, currently 59 years old. SCP-5327-3 has been observed performing a courtship display identical to that of a male Paradise Riflebird, which attracted a female of that species. The two copulated, after which the female was taken into Foundation custody to raise her offspring1.
SCP-5327-4: The only male among SCP-5327-3's four chicks, as well as the only one belonging to SCP-5327. It was invisible even as a hatchling, before its feathers had grown in, confirming that SCP-5327's anomalous properties extend to its entire body and not merely its feathers. SCP-XXXX-4 refused any and all offerings of food, but sustained itself on light and other electromagnetic radiation just as the other three individuals did. While it fledged along with its non-anomalous siblings, it has been kept in Foundation custody rather than being released into the wild.
In addition to the four specimens that exist in captivity, there have been a number of incidents in which un-contained specimens of SCP-5327 have come into conflict with humans, typically through collisions with aircraft.
Incident XXXX-08-02
Description: An Avro Lancastrian airliner in service with [REDACTED] disappeared during a flight over the Andes. Foundation personnel were dispatched to the area, and an individual of SCP-5327 was discovered to have been ingested into the aircrafts inner port engine.
Incident XXXX-11-08
Description: A Boeing 377 Stratocruiser on a trans-Pacific flight disappeared between California and Hawaii, which disappeared over the Pacific. Its remains were recovered from the seabed by Foundation scientists, and it was determined that a high-speed collision with a specimen of SCP-5327 was responsible for its crash.
Incident XXXX-09-24
Description: A Curtiss C-46 transport airplane crashed off the island of Aruba in the Caribbean. A team of SCP investigators was sent to retrieve the aircraft's wreckage. The largely intact remains of a specimen of SCP-5327 were found in its engines.
Incident XXXX-10-28
Description: A twin-engined Cessna airplane piloted by Cuban revolutionary [[REDACTED]] vanished from contact over the Gulf of Mexico. Though no remains of SCP-XXXX were found on the wreckage when it was recovered, the damage to the port engine was consistent with a collision with SCP-5327.
Incident XXXX-10-31
Description: A Boeing 767 in service with [REDACTED] crashed into the Atlantic Ocean leaving no survivors. Officially, the crash was attributed to suicide by the pilot. However, Foundation investigators, upon salvaging the airplane's remains, discovered genetic traces of SCP-5327 inside its engines, indicating that a bird-strike was responsible for the crash.
