Martialinae

The only genus of this subfamily, Martialis, is monotypic. The enigmatic Martialis heureka is only known from Brazil.



Worker diagnosis: small, blind, pale, presumably subterranean ants with the following combination of characters. Putative apomorphic conditions are marked by an asterisk. (1) Prementum partly visible with closed mouthparts, not entirely concealed behind the broad labrum and stipites; (2*) clypeus highly reduced; (3*) eyes absent; (4) frontal lobes absent; (5*) antennal sockets fully exposed and distant from each other, positioned at anterior margin of clypeus and projecting anteriorly beyond it; (6*) toruli raised vertically, forming cups to hold condylar bulbs; (7) antennae 12 segmented; (8) promesonotal suture present and flexible; (9) propodeal lobes absent; (10) metapleural gland orifice slit shaped, dorsal orifice margin projecting slightly forward, but not overhanging or concealing opening; (11*) metacoxal cavity closed, with a complete cuticular annulus surrounding the cavity; (12) metasternal process absent; (13*) petiole tergosternally fused, without a trace of a suture between tergite and sternite; (14*) abdominal segment III broadly attached to segment IV but distinctly smaller than the latter, tergosternally fused; (15) helcial tergite well developed, posterior part with a girdling constriction; (16) abdominal segment IV not tergosternally fused, posttergite broadly overlapping abdominal segment V; (17) stridulitrum on presclerite of abdominal segment IV absent; (18) spiracles of abdominal segments I–IV exposed, of V–VII concealed by preceding postsclerites; (19) pygidium (tergite of abdominal segment VII) well developed, simple, neither armed with teeth or setae nor heavily sclerotized nor otherwise modified; (20) sting present; (21) metatibial gland absent; (22) tarsal claws simple, without preapical teeth. Queen, male, and larva are unknown.