By Susan Milius
1A new ant discovered in the Amazon looks so odd that scientists are choosing Latin names that playfully suggest the creature comes from Mars.
![This newly discovered ant species, with mouthparts like forceps and no eyes, may come from the most ancient known lineage of living ants.](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/09/8739.jpg?resize=300%2C177&ssl=1)
Yet the species Martialis heureka could help rewrite the history of ants on Earth.
Found in Brazil, the ant has a pale body and no eyes, says Christian Rabeling of the University of Texas at Austin. Its mouthparts stick out like sharp forceps and are longer than the rest of its head.