The Athabasca rainbow trout was considered as a form of the Columbia River redband trout (O. mykiss gairdneri) subspecies in the trout handbook of Robert J. Behnke (1992), but considered a separate, yet unnamed subspecies by L. M. Carl of the Ontario Ministry of Resources in work published in 1994.

[3] In the winter they will use the largest and deepest pools in any occupied stream as an overwintering spot.

[2] The Athabasca rainbow trout spawn in the springtime in streams with fine gravels that are free of silts in clays, and that also have moderate flow rates.

[1] As of August 2019 it is designated under the Species At Risk Act (SARA) as Endangered.

[2] Their main threats are invasive species and the increased competition they bring, introgression with non-native rainbow trout introduced as game fish, fishing pressures, habitat loss and fragmentation, sedimentation, climate change, and water pollution.