Sea snakes

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Q 1.
	Have sea snakes any commercial value?
Q 2.
	Are sea snakes dangerously poisonous?
Q 3.
	What are the reddish or orange-colored snakes that are sometimes seen about mangrove thickets? Is this species poisonous?
Q 4.
	How large do sea snakes grow?
Q 5.
	When I was in the South Pacific, we were warned about sea snakes. However, we were never able to get any information on them or their habits, except that they are supposed to be poisonous. Can you tell me something about them and if they occur in the United States?
Q 6.
	Is there any form of sea snake in Florida waters?
Q 7.
	Can you tell me if there are any snakes that inhabit the seas and if so are they poisonous?
Q 8.
	Do sea serpents really exist?
Q 9.
	In the “oddities” column I was reading in a recent issue of a magazine, it told of sighting a column of sea snakes, swimming n a column “miles long”, and entwined like a rope, and, if I remember correctly, the column was described as being about one-quarter to one-half mile wide. What were these sea snakes, traveling in a “miles-long” column and where were they going?
Q 10.
	Sea snakes are not supposed to be in the tropical waters of the Atlantic. Is there any record of sea snakes having been observed in the waters of Florida, the Gulf, or the Caribbean area?
Q 11.
	Some time ago in an issue of Sea Frontiers there was an account of an Australian who was bitten by a sea snake and died two hours later. While snorkeling off Buck Island, near St. Croix, my son and I saw, on the sandy bottom in about 15 feet of water, the most beautiful snake. This was not a moray or conger eel, as I am familiar with both, but a snake coiled on the bottom with its head up like a land snake. It was sand-colored with chocolate brown markings and a golden head and I would estimate it was 1 1/2 to 2 feet long. The head looked like the head of a poisonous snake. Was this snake referred to in the article and what was it called?
Q 12.
	On several occasions, I have attempted to find information pertaining to sea snakes on more than a casual basis, but not specific. Can you direct me to such literature?
Q 13.
	Is there any form of sea snake in Florida or the Bahamas?
Q 14.
	While in Panama I saw a group of odd animals swimming in a school not far from shore. They were eel-like in shape, very narrow, black and yellow in color, and banded on the tail. Have you any idea what they might have been?
Q 15.
	My friend and I were bitten when in heavily weeded water at St. Croix. The bite was similar to a short slice made by a short knife. My friend’s leg became numb and swelled. We saw an animal resembling a snake, about 2 feet in length and white with greyish-brown spots. Are there snakes in the waters near the Virgin Islands, and if so, are they poisonous?
Q 16.
	I am now employed at the herpetarium of the Fort Worth zoo, where I have received into my care a sea snake, Laticauda semifasciata. I have been unsuccessful in feeding this animal. It has refused both live goldfish and dead smelt. I am keeping it in a 30-gallon aquarium with filtered artificial sea water at a temperature of 78 degrees Fahrenheit. Can you offer any suggestions?
Q 17.
	In past issues of Sea Secrets, it has been stated that “there are no sea snakes in the Atlantic Ocean.” While visiting Nichol’s Town on Andros Island, Bahamas, I was informed that, indeed, poisonous sea snakes exist there. Can you provide information about these animals?
Q 18.
	Is there an antidote for the bite of a sea snake?
Q 19.
	On a television program, it was stated that sharks fear the banded sea snake and that some divers have painted their wet suits to resemble this animal to ward off shark attacks. Is a striped wet shirt actually an effective shark repellent?
Q 20.
	I have heard professional fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico claim to have caught and released sea snakes. Have sea snakes officially been confirmed in the Gulf or in the Atlantic?
Q 21.
	In the intriguing news item on the yellow-bellied sea snake in the July-August Sea Secrets, you alluded to the lungs (plural) of this reptile. In my experience with terrestrial snakes, all seem to possess only one lung. Are the sea snakes different, or am I mistaken?
Q 22.
	On page 286 of the September-October 1985 Sea Frontiers, it states that the yellow-bellied sea snake is “…totally incapable of moving about on land.” Surely a snake has a wide variety of available movements. Can you explain why the yellow-bellied sea snake cannot move on land?
Q 23.
	I took this photograph of a snakelike creature in water 6 feet deep of Icacos Key, northeast of Puerto Rico. Is the animal a venomous sea snake?
Q 24.
	How fast can a sea snake swim?
Q 25.
	While diving off Bonaire, Lesser Antilles, I came across this spotted, snakelike animal at a depth of approximately 45 feet (13.7 meters). I know there are no sea snakes in the Atlantic Ocean, so the animal, which is about 3.5 feet (1 meter) long, must be some sort of eel. Can you identify it?
Q 26.
	Are sea snakes found on both sides of the Panama Canal?


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	Q&A 1.	Have sea snakes any commercial value?
	Yes, sea snakes (Family Hydrophidae) are taken by the hundreds as they come ashore to breed on rocky islets along the Philippine coast. The Japanese hunt them most extensively and prize them both for their skins, which are used in the manufacture of leather goods, and for their flesh, which is eaten. Although they are all extremely poisonous, the Indo-Pacific sea snakes are usually reluctant to bite and a great many of them are caught by hand.
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	Q&A 2.	Are sea snakes dangerously poisonous?
	Yes, the true sea snakes (Family Hydrophidae) are marine relatives of the cobra and are deadly poisonous. Their range includes the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans, usually near the coast, but none are found in the Atlantic. Despite the fact that these snakes possess fangs and powerful venom apparatus, they are usually reluctant to bit and swimmers have little to fear of them. It is reported that fishermen in the Philippine Islands remove live sea snakes from their nets by hand and toss them back to the sea. Most species are under six feet in length.
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	Q&A 3.	What are the reddish or orange-colored snakes that are sometimes seen about mangrove thickets? Is this species poisonous? Hollywood, Florida
	This is a distinct color phase of the Florida salt water snake, Natrix fasciata compressicauda. This snake, which is normally grayish or brown marked with darker cross bands, reaches a length of slightly over two feet and is unique among out local snakes living in salt or brackish water close to shore. The salt water snake is non-poisonous and is perfectly harmless to man, being in no way related to the true poisonous sea snakes of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Salt water snakes feed largely on fishes which they catch in shallow water.
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	Q&A 4.	How large do sea snakes grow?
	The true sea snakes of the Family Hydrophidae of the Indian and Pacific Oceans (there are no Atlantic forms) are usually of small to moderate size, although one species attains a length of eight feet. These snakes spend their entire lives in the sea, though a few of the more primitive members breed ashore on rocky islands. All of the sea snakes are poisonous, having descended from cobra-like ancestors, and are distinct in having broad, paddle-shaped tails. Their principle food consists of eels and certain other fish.
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	Q&A 5.	When I was in the South Pacific, we were warned about sea snakes. However, we were never able to get any information on them or their habits, except that they are supposed to be poisonous. Can you tell me something about them and if they occur in the United States? San Diego, California
	The sea snakes occur in the tropical parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. They are found along the Asiatic coast of the Gulf of Persia to Southern Japan, throughout the Indo-Astralian seas to the coast of tropical Australia, and among the islands of Oceania to the southern Pacific. One species only, Pelamis platurus, is found beyond these limits. This snake, one of the most highly specialized of them all, has extended its range across the Pacific and established itself on the western coast of tropical America, and across the Indian Ocean to Madagascar and the shores of southeast Africa. All other species are inhabitants of shallow sheltered waters and are never found far from the coast. In the western hemisphere, this snake is found in great abundance in Panama Bay and they occur from the coast of Ecuador to the lower tip of Baja California. They probably do not occur north of this area. Sea snakes feed entirely upon fish, and one group appear to feed almost exclusively upon eels. Some species of sea snakes are fond of basking upon the surface of the water, and on days when the sea is calm they may be seen, sometimes by the hundreds, from the bows of ships. All sea snakes are poisonous and many of them are deadly. The poison of Enhydrina schistosa has been shown in the laboratory to be more deadly than that of the cobra. The sea snakes are exclusively aquatic; the majority of the species never leaving the water. In their native habitat they are graceful and rapid swimmers; on land they are almost helpless, progressing awkwardly and with considerable difficulty. There is one freshwater species in Luzon, but all the rest are marine. There are at least 40 different kinds of sea snakes. All the species bear live young, the number ranging from two or three to sixteen or eighteen at a time. The adults reach a length of about four or five feet at a maximum. They are sometimes used for human consumption. In Hainan, China, they are chopped up and used for sausage meat.
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	Q&A 6.	Is there any form of sea snake in Florida waters? Fort Lauderdale, Florida
	There are no sea snakes in Atlantic waters. A few land species occasionally are found in brackish waters and may be carried out into bays or even to the sea. There are many species of worm eels, or snake eels, that are common in coastal waters, but these, of course, are fishes that are sometimes confused with snakes.
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	Q&A 7.	Can you tell me if there are any snakes that inhabit the seas and if so are they poisonous? Miami, Florida
	Several species of terrestrial snakes such as the rattle snakes are occasionally seen swimming in bays or near shore waters of the ocean but there is also a specialized group of sea snakes (Hydrophidae) adapted for life in the sea. The sea snakes can be distinguished from terrestrial forms by their paddle-shaped tails and from the smooth skinned eels by their reptilian scales, which are rough. The sea snakes are mostly residents of sheltered waters near shore but one species, Pelamis platurus, occurs beyond coastal waters and is distributed across the Pacific to lower California, Mexico, Central America and northern South America. All sea snakes are reported to be poisonous and many are deadly. However, it is the opinion of M. Smith who has made exhaustive studies of these snakes that in their native habitat they do not attack humans but that fishermen are bitten by accidental contact during their work.
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	Q&A 8.	Do sea serpents really exist? Coconut Grove, Florida
	No, sea serpents do not exist. But there are small sea snakes up to about four feet long which are poisonous. They do not occur in the Atlantic Ocean.
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	Q&A 9.	In the “oddities” column I was reading in a recent issue of a magazine, it told of sighting a column of sea snakes, swimming n a column “miles long”, and entwined like a rope, and, if I remember correctly, the column was described as being about one-quarter to one-half mile wide. What were these sea snakes, traveling in a “miles-long” column and where were they going? Long Island, New York
	There are a number of reputable accounts of sea snakes covering areas of water a mile or more long and hundreds of yards wide. These are pelagic sea snakes and are found in the open ocean. Little is known of their migratory habits; however, some information on them appeared in a past issue of Sea Frontiers (Vol. 3, No. 2).
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	Q&A 10.	Sea snakes are not supposed to be in the tropical waters of the Atlantic. Is there any record of sea snakes having been observed in the waters of Florida, the Gulf, or the Caribbean area? Fort Lauderdale, Florida
	Sea snakes are not found in Atlantic waters. However, rattlesnakes, water moccasins, and numerous harmless snakes have the ability to swim, and have been reported swimming from one land mass to another within the coastal waters of Florida. It might be that these were mistaken as being sea snakes under such circumstances. Usually, reports of sea snakes in Caribbean reef areas involve various species of eels.
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	Q&A 11.	Some time ago in an issue of Sea Frontiers there was an account of an Australian who was bitten by a sea snake and died two hours later. While snorkeling off Buck Island, near St. Croix, my son and I saw, on the sandy bottom in about 15 feet of water, the most beautiful snake. This was not a moray or conger eel, as I am familiar with both, but a snake coiled on the bottom with its head up like a land snake. It was sand-colored with chocolate brown markings and a golden head and I would estimate it was 1 1/2 to 2 feet long. The head looked like the head of a poisonous snake. Was this snake referred to in the article and what was it called? St. Croix, Virgin Islands
	Since there are no sea snakes in the Atlantic Ocean, the creature you saw was probably not the kind referred to in the Sea Frontiers article. True sea snakes are usually striped or banded, often with black, yellow or whitish markings and they have a flattened, paddle-like tail that aids them in swimming. The head of the sea snake is usually rather slender and not conspicuously distinct from the rest of the body. The animal you saw was probably a snake-eel which is a fish. Often these eels are conspicuously colored and are confused with snakes by divers. They may coil in a snake-like attitude and their gill chambers when expanded may cause the head to appear quite broad and snake-like. There are a number of species of snake-eels in the West Indies, although ichthyologists do not know of a species with a yellow head.
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	Q&A 12.	On several occasions, I have attempted to find information pertaining to sea snakes on more than a casual basis, but not specific. Can you direct me to such literature? Warehouse Point, Connecticut
	A technical treatment of sea snakes is given in “Monograph of Sea Snakes (Hydrophidae)” by M. Smith, British Museum, London, printed by Taylor and Francis, 1926, pp. 1-130. Although nearly forty years old, it is still the most authoritative reference to the group. Semipopular accounts covering reptiles and amphibians are Living Reptiles of the World by K.P. Schmidt and R.F. Inger, published by Doubleday, New York, 1957, pp. 238-240, The Reptile World by C.H. Pope, published by Knopf, New York, 1955, pp. 214-216, and Sea Frontiers, Voume 3, Number 2 “Sea Snakes are Real.”
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	Q&A 13.	Is there any form of sea snake in Florida or the Bahamas? Fort Lauderdale, Florida
	No sea snakes are present in Atlantic waters, but a few land snakes are sometimes found in brackish or even salt waters. There are many species of worm eels, or snake eels, that are sometimes mistaken for sea snakes; but these, of course, are actually fishes.
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	Q&A 14.	While in Panama I saw a group of odd animals swimming in a school not far from shore. They were eel-like in shape, very narrow, black and yellow in color, and banded on the tail. Have you any idea what they might have been? Winter Haven, Florida
	The animals you describe are sea snakes, specifically the yellow-bellied sea snake (Pelamis platurus.) Most sea snakes occur in Indonesian waters, and only the one species mentioned above crosses the Pacific to Central America and northern South America. They are very venomous, and although they are docile by nature and not disposed to bite, they should not be handled without the same caution accorded other venomous snakes. They feed on smaller fishes, especially those occurring around drift lines. An article on sea snakes is currently being prepared for Sea Frontiers.
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	Q&A 15.	My friend and I were bitten when in heavily weeded water at St. Croix. The bite was similar to a short slice made by a short knife. My friend’s leg became numb and swelled. We saw an animal resembling a snake, about 2 feet in length and white with greyish-brown spots. Are there snakes in the waters near the Virgin Islands, and if so, are they poisonous? St. Croix, Virgin Islands
	Sea snakes are confined to the Tropical Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. None of the true sea snakes occur in Atlantic waters. The animal you saw was a snake eel of the family Ophichthidae. This eel is harmless, and is quite unlikely that you were bitten by it. The Foundation has had reports of persons receiving similar “bites” from various species of swimming crabs. These crabs have very sharp tips on their claws and actually cut, rather than pinch. Snake eels are often observed in Atlantic waters. For example, the gold-spotted eel Myrichthys oculatus is widespread in shallow waters of the Western Atlantic Ocean, especially in the Bahamas. It is very active by day in reef areas and enters burrow looking for small shrimps to eat.
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	Q&A 16.	I am now employed at the herpetarium of the Fort Worth zoo, where I have received into my care a sea snake, Laticauda semifasciata. I have been unsuccessful in feeding this animal. It has refused both live goldfish and dead smelt. I am keeping it in a 30-gallon aquarium with filtered artificial sea water at a temperature of 78 degrees Fahrenheit. Can you offer any suggestions? Grand Prarie, Texas
	In nature sea snakes feed on eels and other elongate, soft-bodied fishes. Sea snakes have been force-fed successfully at the Miami Seaquarium, and they have also been known to take such easily bred live bearers as mosquito fish and mollies alive.
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	Q&A 17.	In past issues of Sea Secrets, it has been stated that “there are no sea snakes in the Atlantic Ocean.” While visiting Nichol’s Town on Andros Island, Bahamas, I was informed that, indeed, poisonous sea snakes exist there. Can you provide information about these animals? Lemont, Illinois
	Scientific literature has no record of sea snakes sighted in the Atlantic Ocean. There are, however, many species of bright-colored snake eels, which are spotted or banded fishes and are frequently misidentified as sea snakes. Snake eels belong to the family Ophichtidae, along with the worm eels. As described in Fishes of the Bahamas and Adjacent Tropical Waters by Bothlke and Chaplin, they differ in that snake eels are often strikingly marked and have pointed tails with an external fin around the tip, whereas worm eels are plain in coloring and have a fringe of fin around the tail. The different species can range form less than 1 to nearly 7 feet (30 centimeters to 2 meters) in length. These eels are not poisonous, but certain snake eels have a large mouth, large sharp teeth, and very powerful jaw musculature. They should be left alone as one could receive a severe bite from them. The worm eels are considered harmless to man. There are, of course, many other families of eels in the Atlantic. These include the spagetti eels, conger eels, arrowteeth eels, snipe eels, false morays, and the potentially dangerous morays having fanglike teeth capable of retaining a lasting grip on a victim. In general, it is recommended that divers and fishermen avoid direct contact with any eel unless they can positively distinguish a biting species form one that is harmless.
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	Q&A 18.	Is there an antidote for the bite of a sea snake? Irving, Texas
	There are antivenins that enable victims of sea-snake bites to recover even after an eight-hour lapse of time between the bite and the administration of the antivenin. The antivenins are obtained by injecting sublethal venom into a horse and then withdrawing some of the serum after a short period of time. The serum contains antibodies that neutralize the toxic components of the snake venom. This is discussed in detail in “Sea Snake Antivenin and Experimental Envenomation Therapy” in Biology of Sea Snakes, edited by W.A. Dunson (University Park Press, Baltimore, Maryland, 1975). Interesting information on the biology and distribution of sea snakes is given in “Sea Snakes are Real,” Sea Frontiers, Vol. 3, No. 2, June, 1957 and “Searching for Sea Serpents,” Sea Frontiers, Vol. 13, No. 4, July-August, 1967.
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	Q&A 19.	On a television program, it was stated that sharks fear the banded sea snake and that some divers have painted their wet suits to resemble this animal to ward off shark attacks. Is a striped wet shirt actually an effective shark repellent? San Diego, California
	Striped wet suits do tend to deter sharks from approaching divers, but not for the reason stated. Sharks are not in fear of the banded sea snake and, in fact, actually prey upon it. The reason for the deterrent effect appears to be that sharks are frightened by the presence of a 6- to 8-foot (with flippers) creature that is strongly or unusually colored. This would explain why Atlantic sharks, which never come in contact with sea snakes, avoid divers in striped wet suits. The behavior of sharks is not well understood, and so the above method of repelling them is not completely foolproof. It should be kept in mind that the individuals involved in testing the striped wet suits are experienced in diving in shark-infested waters and know how to avoid truly risky situations. For the majority of divers, the best way to avoid shark attacks is still simply not t dive in waters where these animals are seen. Illustrations of the various shark likely to be seen by divers are presented in Sharks and Other Dangerous Sea Creatures by Idaz and Jerry Greenberg, 1981, 64 pages, $4.95, available from the Planet Ocean Book and Gift Shop (refer to Sea Frontiers book section for ordering instructions.
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	Q&A 20.	I have heard professional fishermen in the Gulf of Mexico claim to have caught and released sea snakes. Have sea snakes officially been confirmed in the Gulf or in the Atlantic? Gordo, Alabama
	No. Sea snakes do not inhabit either the Gulf of Mexico or the Atlantic Ocean. Most commonly, the animal observed or caught and misidentified is a fish of the family Ophichthidae – the snake eels and worm eels. Many of these fishes are brightly colored, have reduced fins, and may reach a length of several feet, giving tem a snakelike appearance. Several other families of eels also occur in Gulf and Atlantic waters. These fishes typically have very smooth-appearing skin, however, in contrast to the stiff plates or scales of a snake. The eels are not venomous, but many of them have sharp teeth and powerful jaws. Some land snakes have been reported swimming from one land mass to another in shallow coastal waters of Florida. These include venomous rattlesnakes and the cottonmouth (water moccasin), as well as numerous non-venomous species. It is recommended, therefore, that divers and fishermen avoid direct contact with any snakelike animal unless they can positively distinguish a biting or venomous species from one that is harmless.
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	Q&A 21.	In the intriguing news item on the yellow-bellied sea snake in the July-August Sea Secrets, you alluded to the lungs (plural) of this reptile. In my experience with terrestrial snakes, all seem to possess only one lung. Are the sea snakes different, or am I mistaken? Warren, Ohio
	Most terrestrial snakes have only one lung, but some snakes have a vestigial left lung, and some have two complete lungs. The loss of the left lung is seen in evolutionarily more-advanced snakes. The same is true among the sea snakes, where most, but not all, entirely lack a left lung. Among sea snakes and some other snakes, however, the right lung is divided into the vascular and the saccular lungs, with the vascular lung further subdivided into the bronchial and the tracheal lungs. The use of the plural when referring to a snake's lungs can refer to these divisions, rather than to distinct right and left lungs.
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	Q&A 22.	On page 286 of the September-October 1985 Sea Frontiers, it states that the yellow-bellied sea snake is “…totally incapable of moving about on land.” Surely a snake has a wide variety of available movements. Can you explain why the yellow-bellied sea snake cannot move on land? Jacksonville, Florida
	While snakes in general are capable of a wide variety of movements, particular snakes use specific methods for locomotion. Generally, locomotion on land by snakes requires that the snake has a flat ventral (stomach) surface with which to apply differential pressure on the ground and pull/push itself along. The yellow-bellied sea snake (Pelamis platurus) is a highly modified snake. Instead of a flat ventral surface, it has a keel-like structure along its belly. The keel is more prominent toward the tail, which is flattened like an oar. Because P. platurus does not have a flattened ventral surface, it is helpless when cast onto a beach by currents. According to The Biology of Sea Snakes edited by William A. Dunson (University Park Press, 1975), this sea snake "... cannot move or struggle back into the ocean," and is "... subject to dehydration, predation, or scavenging by terrestrial animals."
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	Q&A 23.	I took this photograph of a snakelike creature in water 6 feet deep of Icacos Key, northeast of Puerto Rico. Is the animal a venomous sea snake? Ponce, Puerto Rico
	No. The animal in the photograph is a fish-- the goldspotted eel (Myrichthys oculatus). This and other snake eels in the family Ophichthidae frequently are mistaken for sea snakes, which do not inhabit Atlantic waters. Snake eels do not have venom and present a threat to swimmers only if they are handled; certain species have large sharp teeth and powerful jaw musculature, with which they could deliver a severe bite if provoked. Occassionally, a few species of venomous terrestrial snakes are found in brackish and coastal waters of the Atlantic. The true sea snakes, however, are confined to the tropical Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean.
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	Q&A 24.	How fast can a sea snake swim? Gainesville, Florida
	For short distances, the yellow-bellied sea snake (Pelamis platurus) can swim up to 1 meter per second. Bursts of swimming at this speed have been observed when this species is disturbed, diving, or feeding, according to The Biology of Sea Snakes (University Park Press, Baltimore, MD, 1975). Generally, the yellow-bellied sea snake swims more slowly or lies motionless at the sea surface. All sea snakes are venomous and should be admired at a distance, with caution, since their behavior cannot be predicted. As little as 0.03 milliliter of sea-snake venom is enough to kill three adult humans, according to "Deadly, but not dangerous," Sea Frontiers, 31(5):282-285.
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	Q&A 25.	While diving off Bonaire, Lesser Antilles, I came across this spotted, snakelike animal at a depth of approximately 45 feet (13.7 meters). I know there are no sea snakes in the Atlantic Ocean, so the animal, which is about 3.5 feet (1 meter) long, must be some sort of eel. Can you identify it? Denver, Colorado
	The animal in the photograph in a sharptail eel (Myrichthys acuminatus), a member of the snake-eel family Ophichthidae. This species inhabits western Atlantic waters from Bermuda to northern South America. Snake eels feed on a variety of benthic organisms and, in turn, are fed upon by larger reef fishes such as groupers and jacks. As reported in A Field Guide to Atlantic Coast Fishes of North America (Houghton Mifflin, Co., Boston, MA, 1986), some snake eels, after being swallowed, burrow through the predator's stomach wall and become entombed in the fish's body cavity as "mummies."
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	Q&A 26.	Are sea snakes found on both sides of the Panama Canal? Pasadena, California
	No. True sea snakes live only in the tropical Pacific and Indian oceans. Divers need to keep a distance between themselves and a sea snake, even if the reptile is lying motionless at the surface. The behavior of these highly venomous animals can't be predicted, and they make swimming bursts, some up to three feet per second, when disturbed, diving, or feeding. A few species of venomous terrestrial snakes enter brackish and coastal waters of the Atlantic. These include rattlesnakes and the cottonmouth (water moccasin). Many people report sightings of sea snakes in the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic, but they're actually seeing snake eels and worm eels. These fishes aren't venomous, but some of them have sharp teeth and powerful jaws. Divers and fishermen should avoid contact with any snakelike animal unless they can positively distinguish a biting or venomous species from one that is harmless.
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