Eyes medium or small, about the midlength of the head. Dorsum of alitrunk without sutures. Pronotum usually with a pair of spines or blunt tubercles. Propodeum bispinose or bidentate. Sting simple, without an apical spatulate lamella.
Members nest in rotten wood or fallen twigs in the leaf litter, foraging in the same area.
Most species are leaf litter dwellers, nesting in rotten wood. Described by Bolton as widespread in woodlands and forest virtually throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Erect hairs mainly on the ventral surface, one pair on the mesonotal dorsum. Very sparse and very short pilosity on the gaster. Pronotum with rounded acute tubercles.