 Novomessor ensifer was originally described as Aphaenogaster ensifera in 1899 by Swiss entomologist Auguste Forel , who provided the first <unk> of N. ensifer in his third volume of <unk> <unk> @-@ Americana . Among the genus Aphaenogaster , Italian entomologist Carlo Emery placed N. ensifer in the subgenus <unk> in 1915 , although this is now a synonym . In 1934 , the taxon Novomessor manni was described as a new species of Novomessor based on workers collected by William M. Mann at Colima , Mexico . However , a study showed that N. manni was a synonym of N. ensifer . Brown comments that N. manni was described as a new species because of the supposed distinct features between two type specimens of N. ensifer , but Brown noticed no morphological differences . The exact type locality for N. manni is unknown , but entomologist Paul <unk> speculates that the ant is restricted to arid scrub forests around the Pacific Slope in Mexico . This speculation is consistent with the preferred habitat of N. ensifer . 
