[2] It has a narrow, laterally compressed body with a rounded head and a blunt, conical snout which does not extend past the upper lips.

[4] The swamp darter has a wide distribution in the lowlands of the eastern United States, it is generally found below the fall line on the Atlantic and Gulf coastal plains from southern Maine to the Sabine River, Louisiana and the Red River of the South in southeastern Oklahoma.

An introduced swamp darter population is established in the French Broad River system in North Carolina.

[8] The swamp darter is found in slow moving and still waters, like ditches and oxbow lakes, which are typical of low-lying coastal plains.

It seems to show a preference for clearer water areas where there is more vegetation than the sympatric slough darter (Etheostoma gracile).

No parental care of the eggs has been observed, and no information regarding the number of males with which females spawn and vice versa.

[4] There are two recognised subspecies, although many have been proposed in the past:[8] The specific name means "spindle shaped" or tapering at each end.