It is here placed in Luciobarbus following the IUCN, but that genus is very closely related to the other typical barbels and perhaps better considered a mere subgenus of Barbus.

It is endemic to the Iberian Peninsula, where it occurs in the middle and lower Guadiana River's drainage basin in both Portugal and Spain.

[1] Its numbers are declining across its rather small range, and it is classified as Near Threatened by the IUCN Red List.

Certain planned damming projects – e.g. one near Alquedi[1] – are likely to severely impact the species' stocks.

[1] L. microcephalus is listed in Annex V of the European Union's Habitats Directive to allow its taking from the wild to be legally restricted, and – as Barbus capito, which actually refers to its Central Asian relative, the Bulatmai barbel – as Protected Species in Appendix III of the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats.