It is endemic to the eastern slope of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt near Cuautlapan, in the west-central Veracruz, Mexico, at elevations of 800–1,250 m (2,620–4,100 ft) above sea level.

[1][2] Molecular evidence suggests that it consists of two distinct species.

[4] Natural habitats of Pseudoeurycea lineola are pine-oak forests, but it can also survive in shaded coffee plantations.

It is a terrestrial species found beneath stones, logs and other debris, and in subterranean situations.

The species is threatened by habitat loss caused by expanding agriculture and human settlements and by wood extraction.