Original description as Cichlosoma (Parapetenia) ornatum:
ZooBank:2A004CF1-1BFE-4883-A2CA-9A5017FE08DE.
- Regan, Charles Tate. 1905. "A revision of the fishes of the American cichlid genus Cichlosoma and of the allied genera". Annals and Magazine of Natural History. [Series 7]16:60-77:225-243:316-340:433-445 (crc00042)
Conservation: Mesoheros ornatus is evaluated by the international union for the conservation of nature in the iucn red list of threatened species as (LC) least concern (2016).