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 is found in both Portugal and Spain.

[1] It has declined by more than a third since the late 1990s, and it is not a common species anymore; it is classified as Vulnerable by the IUCN.

Introduced exotic fishes pose an additional problem.

L. steindachneri is listed as Protected Species in Appendix III of the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats.