Filmy Dome Spider Identification Guide
Neriene radiata
The filmy dome spider is a small, harmless sheet-weaver that hangs upside down under a dome-shaped silk sheet. Look for its webs in shrubs, low branches, and wooded yards from spring through late summer.
Taxonomy
Filmy Dome Spider Coloration
Common color patterns to help identify filmy dome spider
Filmy Dome Spider
Seasonal Activity
When filmy dome spider are most active throughout the year
Where Filmy Dome Spider Are Found
Hover over states to see their names. Green regions indicate where filmy dome spider have been reported.
Filmy Dome Spider Identification Guide
Physical Characteristics
The filmy dome spider (Neriene radiata) is a small sheet-weaving spider. It is common in wooded yards across most of the United States and Canada. Like its cousin the bowl and doily spider, it is often noticed because of its web, not its body. Some older guides list it as Prolinyphia marginata or Linyphia marginata.
Adults are small:
- Females: about 4 to 6.5 mm long (roughly 1/6 to 1/4 inch), not counting legs
- Males: about 3.5 to 5.5 mm long, with a slimmer body, longer legs, and large, dark palps (the small “arms” near the mouth)
Here is what to look for:
- Abdomen: shiny and long-oval. It is usually dark brown to black with wavy white or yellow bands along each side. A pale stripe often runs down the middle. Some spiders are mostly white with bold black marks.
- Front body section: orange-brown to dark brown, with a darker edge.
- Legs: long, thin, and amber to brown. They look long for the body size.
- Posture: the spider hangs upside down under the peak of its dome, not on top of it.
The Dome Web
The web is the best clue. It has two parts:
- Barrier threads: a loose tangle of silk lines above the sheet. Small flying insects hit these lines and drop.
- The dome: a thin, filmy sheet of silk curved upward like a dome or an upside-down bowl. Webs range from a few inches to about a foot across.
The spider waits under the dome. When an insect falls onto the sheet, the spider bites it from below and pulls it through the silk. Unlike the bowl and doily spider, the filmy dome spider does not build a second flat sheet below its web. On foggy mornings you may see dozens of small silver domes scattered across shrubs, grass, and leaf litter.
Common Look-Alikes
The filmy dome spider is in the sheet-weaver family (Linyphiidae). People often mix it up with:
- Bowl and Doily Spiders (Frontinella pyramitela) are closely related and hang upside down the same way. They are smaller (3 to 4 mm) and their web has a bowl on top of a separate flat “doily” sheet.
- Triangulate Cobweb Spiders (Steatoda triangulosa) have round, patterned bodies. They build messy cobwebs, mostly indoors, with no sheet or dome.
- House Spiders (Parasteatoda tepidariorum) also hang in their webs. Their webs are tangled cobwebs in garages and corners. Their bodies are round and blotchy brown, not striped black and yellow.
- Grass Spiders (Agelenopsis spp.) build flat sheet webs in lawns and shrubs. Their sheet leads into a silk funnel. They are bigger (10 to 20 mm) and run on top of the web.
- Funnel Weaver Spiders (Agelenidae) also hide in a funnel and sit on top of their sheet, not under it.
- Other Neriene species, such as Neriene clathrata, look very similar. Telling them apart often takes a microscope.
Filmy Dome Spider Behavior and Biology
Habitat
Filmy dome spiders live outdoors in shady places with plenty of anchor points. You will find them in:
- Shrubs, hedges, and foundation plantings
- Low branches and the trunks of trees in wooded lots
- Tall grass and weedy edges near woods
- Stumps, log piles, rock walls, and leaf litter
- Fence lines and deck railings next to plants
Webs are usually from a few inches to about 6 feet above the ground. The species is found across much of North America and also lives in Europe and Asia.
Diet
These spiders eat small, soft-bodied insects that fly or drift into the barrier threads, such as:
- Gnats and midges
- Small flies and mosquitoes
- Aphids and leafhoppers
- Tiny moths and other small insects
Life Cycle and Mating
In the Mid-Atlantic, filmy dome spiders usually complete one generation per year:
- Winter: young spiders spend the cold months in leaf litter and low plants.
- Spring: they finish growing and become adults by May. Males leave their webs to search for females.
- Late spring and early summer: males move into a female’s web to mate. Males sometimes fight over a female. Researchers in Maryland and Michigan have studied how these spiders compete for web sites.
- Summer: females lay eggs in silk sacs near the web. Spiderlings hatch and spread out, often by “ballooning” on silk threads in the wind. In warm areas, some young spiders mature by late summer.
Seasonal Activity
- November through February (none): no active webs; young spiders shelter in leaf litter.
- March and October (low): young spiders become active in spring, and a few late webs remain in fall.
- April, August, and September (moderate): webs appear in spring and thin out in late summer.
- May through July (high): peak season for adults and webs.
In the Deep South, the season starts earlier and runs later. In Canada and Alaska, it is shorter.
How We Treat for Filmy Dome Spiders
Filmy dome spiders live in the plants and trees around your home. They do not damage the house, and they eat small flying insects. Most people only call us when webs build up on the porch, eaves, railings, or doorways. Our spider control service handles them along with other web-building spiders.
- Inspection: We look for spider hot spots around your home and for what draws them in. Bright outdoor lights pull in gnats and moths, which spiders eat. Thick shrubs against the house give webs a place to hang.
- Exterior treatment: We apply a non-repellent product to the outside of the home where spiders are active, such as windows, doorways, eaves, and corners.
- De-webbing: We knock down webs around the eaves and front porch that we can reach from the ground, up to about 6 to 8 feet.
- Ongoing service: Each recurring visit renews the outside treatment and clears new webs. You also get unlimited free callbacks between visits. The same plan covers other common household pests.
Prevention and Customer Guidance
- Trim shrubs and branches so they do not touch the house
- Rake leaf litter and move log piles away from the foundation
- Switch porch lights to yellow bug lights to draw fewer insects
- Close blinds at night so indoor lights do not attract insects to windows
- Sweep webs off railings and doorways with a broom
References
- Neriene radiata (Filmy Dome Spider) - BugGuide species page with range, size, and identification notes
- Neriene radiata - Spiders of Europe, Natural History Museum Bern
- Neriene radiata taxon details - World Spider Catalog, Natural History Museum Bern
- Spiders - National Pesticide Information Center, Oregon State University
- Spiders: Management Guidelines - University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources
- Spiders - University of Minnesota Extension guide to spiders around the home
- Neriene radiata occurrence records - Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
Other Spiders
Explore other species in the spiders family
Commonly Confused With
Filmy Dome Spider are often mistaken for these similar pests
Where Filmy Dome Spider Are Found
Hover over states to see their names. Green regions indicate where filmy dome spider have been reported.
Common Questions about Filmy Dome Spider
Are filmy dome spiders dangerous?
+
No. Filmy dome spiders are not dangerous to people or pets. They are small, shy spiders with tiny fangs, and they almost never bite. Their venom is meant for gnats and other small insects. If you have a reaction to any bite, this is not medical advice, so talk to a doctor.
What does a filmy dome spider look like?
+
It is a small spider, about 1/6 to 1/4 inch long. The abdomen is shiny and dark brown to black with wavy white or yellow bands along the sides. The front body section is orange-brown, and the legs are long, thin, and amber to brown. Some spiders are much paler, with a mostly white abdomen and black marks.
What does a filmy dome spider web look like?
+
The web is a thin sheet of silk shaped like a dome or an upside-down bowl, often a few inches to about a foot across. A loose tangle of threads sits above it. The spider hangs upside down under the top of the dome. There is no second flat sheet below, which is how you tell it apart from a bowl and doily spider web.
Where do filmy dome spiders live?
+
They live outdoors in shady, wooded spots. Look for them in shrubs, low tree branches, tree trunks, tall grass, stumps, and rock walls, usually within a few feet of the ground. Around homes they show up in foundation plantings and wooded edges of the yard. They rarely live indoors.
When are filmy dome spiders most active?
+
In the Mid-Atlantic, adults are most common from May through July, and some are still around into September. Young spiders spend the winter in leaf litter and finish growing in spring. Webs are easiest to see on dewy or foggy mornings.
How do I get rid of filmy dome spiders?
+
Most people leave them alone because they eat small flying insects. If webs build up near doors or on porch railings, knock them down with a broom, trim shrubs back from the house, and switch to yellow bug lights. If webs keep coming back on the house, a pest control plan with an exterior spider treatment and web removal can help.
Is a filmy dome spider a black widow?
+
No. Both can look black and both hang upside down, but a black widow has a glossy, round black abdomen with a red hourglass underneath and builds a messy cobweb close to the ground. A filmy dome spider is smaller and has white or yellow wavy bands on its sides and a neat dome-shaped sheet web.
With five years of hands-on experience in the pest control industry, George Schulz is a registered technician with the Virginia Pest Management Association and a proud third-generation professional in a family business that's been protecting homes for over 58 years. He manages and trains a team of service pros while also leading internal research efforts—recently spearheading a deep-dive review of thousands of documents on pest control materials to hand-pick the most kid and pet friendly, most effective solutions tailored specifically for homes in the DC metro area.
Local Spiders Help
Dealing with spiders at home? Our licensed technicians provide pest control across Northern Virginia and Maryland.
