[3] The genus name Hamiota, from the Greek hamus, "to hook", refers to its use of an external lure to attract host fish for its larvae,[2] while the Latin altilis means "fattened".

It lives in sand or gravel shoals in small to medium streams and rivers with moderate to strong currents.

The package, called a superconglutinate, is attached to the female or to a substrate by a long mucous tether, so that it darts in the water like a fish.

The finelined pocketbook was listed as a threatened species in the United States in 1993, and critical habitat was established in 2004.

[7] Major threats to the species are dams and other alteration of river systems, sedimentation, debris removal, and water pollution.

Sedimentation and reduced water flow due to dams cause suffocation, decreased oxygen levels and food supply in the river, and change the habitat.

[6] Pollution from agriculture and mining is a major problem in the Black Warrior River, and may have contributed to its extinction there.

The Cahaba River is affected by issues including municipal wastewater and surface mining.

Climate change may cause droughts, increased water temperature, or other effects that may impact habitat.

These pollutants enter the stream through agricultural run-off and municipal and industrial wastewater and can cause suffocation and algal blooms that alter the habitat.