The Longhead Darter has a disjunct distribution in the Ohio River Drainage from Tennessee to New York, including the lower Tennessee and upper Cumberland river drainages. They live over rocky substrate in flowing pools in association with structure. As the common name suggests, Longhead Darters have a long snout. While most darters are found on stream bottoms, members of the genus Percina tend to be found higher in the water column because they retain a swim bladder.