This federally threatened species is restricted to the Coosa and Cahaba river systems in the Mobile Basin; it is extirpated from the Cahaba River and is only found in four populations in the Coosa River System. They are found in clear, small streams and rivers over soft substrate. As the common name suggests, males develop a blue coloration along their sides during spawning season. Like other members of its genus, Blue Shiners have diamond-shaped scales and spawn in crevices.