| Bowl and doily spider | |
|---|---|
| female F. communis | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Araneae |
| Suborder: | Araneomorphae |
| Family: | Linyphiidae |
| Genus: | Frontinella |
| Species: | F. communis |
| Binomial name | |
| Frontinella communis (Hentz, 1850) |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Linyphia communis |
|
The bowl and doily spider, Frontinella communis, is a species of sheet weaver found in North and Central America. It is a small spider, about 4 mm (0.2 inch) long, that weaves a fairly complex sheet web system consisting of an inverted dome shaped web, or "bowl", suspended above a horizontal sheet web, or "doily", hence its common name. The spider hangs from the underside of the "bowl", and bites through the web small flies, gnats and other small insects that fall down into the non-sticky webbing. The webs are commonly seen in weedy fields and in shrubs, and may often contain both a male and a female spider in late summer - like many linyphiids, Frontinella may cohabitate for some time.
The scientific name F. pyramitela is commonly seen, but this is a junior synonym.[1]