The Barrens Darter is found in the Barrens region of the upper Caney Fork System in middle Tennessee. They live primarily in pools and riffles with slab-rock and gravel substrate. Like other members of the subgenus Catonotus, this species spawns on the underside of flat rocks. In this group, males of some species have a golden edge on their second dorsal fin that is hypothesized to serve as an “egg-mimic” to attract females for spawning.